Espresso Chocolate Chip Walnut Brownies

Recently I’ve been craving brownies so I ended up making a batch to curb my craving. I also wanted to make a dessert for Gary that didn’t require milk or butter. I found this on allrecipes.com and knew I had to try it. Although it has 2 cups of sugar in it, it doesn’t taste overly sweet. He loved that it didn’t taste too greasy at all and tasted very light. He ended up having 3 pieces in one sitting!

I tried this recipe twice in the past week. The first time, I followed the recipe exactly, and also added 1 cup each of chopped walnuts and chocolate chips. I baked it for 35 minutes. It was good, and had rave reviews from my coworkers (who love being my guinea pigs!). However, I personally thought it was lacking something.

The next batch I made, I also added 1 tablespoon of espresso powder, as suggested from one of the reviews. This was the key ingredient that MADE this brownie! If you want a great brownie, you can still omit the espresso. If you want an extraordinary brownie, add the espresso powder!

Chocolate Chip Walnut Brownies
Adapted from: allrecipes.com
Makes 24 squares

Ingredients:
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup boiling water
2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 Tablespoon espresso powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (or carob chips)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350° F (175° C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan.

2. In a large bowl, stir together the cocoa and baking soda. Add 1/3 cup vegetable oil and boiling water. Mix until well blended and thickened. Stir in the remaining 1/3 cup oil, sugar, then eggs one at a time. Add the flour, vanilla and salt; mix just until all of the flour is absorbed. Add in the espresso powder. Mix until combined. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts. Spread evenly into the prepared pan.

3. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. (The second time around, I baked for 30 minutes. It was not coming out perfectly clean, but it was a great consistency after it cooled.) Allow to cool before cutting into squares.