Christmas Baking: Chocolate Brownies

These brownies come from Jamie Oliver's How to Cook. They are intense. Little more than dark chocolate held together with a few fillers.

1 cup unsalted butter
7 oz. dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids), broken up
optional: 75g dried sour cherries
optional: 50g chopped nuts
3/4 cup cocoa powder, sifted
1/2 cup flour, sifted
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 3/4 cup sugar
4 large eggs

Preheat your oven to 350°F.
Line a 25cm square baking tin with greaseproof paper.
In a large bowl over some simmering water, melt the butter and the chocolate and mix until smooth.
Add the cherries and nuts, if you’re using them, and stir together.
In a separate bowl, mix together the cocoa powder, flour, baking powder and sugar, then add this to the chocolate, cherry and nut mixture. Stir together well.
Beat the eggs and mix in until you have a silky consistency.

Pour your brownie mix into the baking tray, and place in the oven for around 25 minutes. You don’t want to overcook them so, unlike cakes, you don’t want a skewer to come out all clean. The brownies should be slightly springy on the outside but still gooey in the middle. Allow to cool in the tray, then carefully transfer to a large chopping board and cut into squares*.

* I cut the brownies into one inch squares and put them in paper cups for a small, easily packed, addition to my Christmas Cookie tins.