Brownies...

Who doesn’t love some chocolate over-loaded brownies? There may be hundreds of reasons for loving brownies and for me it’s the way their packed with chocolate and how easy to make they are. The cracked uneven surface and the rustic look makes it more tempting. Brownies are not a simple piece of chocolate. Brownie can be of different types, fudgey, gooey, cakey, sticky, with addition of fruits or nuts depending on your choice. You can use the same recipe to make muffins, brownie cookies (brookies) And it can be a versatile dessert too, serve a slice of brownie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or bribe your picky eater with a piece of brownie along with his or her glass of milk. So here I'm sharing the recipe for the timeless classic that works as a happiness booster.

Before jumping to the recipe of brownies, let's talk about some photography tips. The above shot was taken while I was making the brownies. The texture of cocoa powder and chopped chocolate appeared so attractive that I couldn't help but take a picture. Previously I struggled while taking macro images, then I realised it's all about the depth of field, that is the area in focus. The mistake I used to make was keeping the f-stop or the aperture to a low value, resulting in a smaller depth of field that led to a blurry image.

While taking macro shots always remember to keep a narrow aperture, so you can have a wider depth of field, which helps to capture the beauty of the texture of the subject. I would love to share a few things that I have learned while taking macro images, a tripod helps a lot, keep the aperture narrow (at least 9), use directional light and above all practice. Hope this will help you, if you have any questions regarding photography drop an email or message me.

Coming back to the recipe, making brownies is the easiest thing to do, just mix all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl with a whisk and pour the batter in a baking tray and bake the brownie in the pre-heated oven. 

I have made a video for the brownie recipe for your better understanding. 

Ingredients for Brownies:

• Butter: 200 gms
• White sugar: 1 cup
• Brown sugar: 1 cup
• Flour: 1 cup
• Cocoa powder: 1 cup
• Eggs: 4
• Vanilla essence: 2 tsp
• Chopped chocolate or chocolate chips: 1/2 cup

Steps of making brownie:
(Please check the video for better understanding)

1. Pre-heat oven to 325 F or 160 C.
   
   
2. Line a brownie pan or a baking tray 13 inch by 9 inch with parchment paper. Keep aside.
   
   
3. Take the butter in a large mixing bowl, melt it in the microwave oven. You can also use a double boiler to melt the butter. I have used salted butter. If you’re using unsalted butter then add a teaspoon of salt to the batter.
   
   
4. Add white sugar and brown sugar to the melted butter and mix well with a wire whisk. Use granulated sugar.
   
   
5. Add one egg at a time and mix well.
   
   
6. Add vanilla essence, mix well.
   
   
7. Add flour, I have used all purpose flour. Mix well.
   
   
8. Add cocoa powder, I have used unsweetened natural cocoa powder. Mix well.
   
   
9. Add chopped chocolate pieces or chocolate chips, mix well.
   
   
10. Pour the batter into the prepared baking tray. Spread the brownie batter with a spatula. Tap the tray to get rid of air bubbles.
    
    
11. Bake in the pre-heated oven at 325 F or 160 C for 20-25 mins. Take out and let the brownie cool on a wire rack. You can drizzle melted chocolate on the brownie. Cut into pieces and serve warm or at room temperature. You can store the brownies in a air tight container for 4-5 days, 

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