Black Forest Brownies

Trust me. It tastes better than it looks.

I’m a pretty crappy baker. Mostly because I tend to treat recipes as a jumping off point for improvization. Unfortunately, baking takes no truck with people who wing it. The sheer number of failed cakes, resolutely reclining souffles and other atrocities prove that I have no business creating any baked goods. I’ve had some good luck with brownies lately judging by the lack of complaints and Emergency Room visits from my ~~food testing lab rats~~ co-workers.

Oh… kinda funny story here. As I was buying sour cream for the topping (the stuff I had on hand had passed it’s expiration a good 2 1/2 years ago), a little kid looked at me with total disgust and said “Yuk! Why do you want to buy cream if it’s already sour?” Also if anyone has recipes for drinks made using kirschwasser that don’t taste worse than an unwashed urinal mint*, would you mind sharing them? I have an entire bottle of it that I don’t have any idea what to do with.

1 Cup All-purpose Flour
1/2 tsp Salt
3/4 Cup Butter
1/2 Cup Unsweetened cocoa
2 Tbs Kirsch (optional)
1 3/4 Cups Sugar, divided
3 tsp Vanilla extract, divided
4 large Eggs, beaten
3/4 Cup Dried cherries
1 Tub Sour cream (16 oz)

Preheat oven to 350; grease a 13” x 9” baking pan. Whisk flour and salt together in a small bowl.

Melt butter over low heat in a large saucepan, then remove from heat. Whisk in cocoa until smooth. Add kirsch, 1 1/2 cups sugar, and 2 teaspoons of the vanilla. Continue whisking until all liquid is mixed in, then add the beaten eggs. Keep whisking until combined. Add flour and stir with a spatula until well blended. Toss in teh dried cherries and mix them in as well.

Pour batter into pan and spread evenly. Bake about 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out fairly clean.

While the brownie is baking, combine the sour cream, the remaining 1/4 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon of vanilla. Spread topping onto the brownie and put back into the oven for a bout 5 more minutes, or until the topping is set.

Cool on a wire rack and garnish with chopped semi-sweet chocolate if desired.

* The only drink recipe on the bottle’s label called for 1 oz kirsch and 1 oz gin over ice and topping it off with grapefruit juice.

Vile.

Absolutely vile.