(Espresso Brownies)
It most definitely was not the weather we are used to for Christmas break, but we did not complain about it, aside from the effect it had on the animals.
Country road walks were enjoyed, loads of laundry were hung on the line, crafts were made on chilly days, a plethora of eggs were gathered from chickens confused about winter break, and chores were done.
My oldest completed her first rag quilt over break. It had been a goal for a while. She used some bright 10-inch squares and is already looking forward to making one with smaller squares after discovering how easy it was. We did not start my youngest’s rag quilt yet. That will fill some homeschool days for sure, but she tried it on a smaller scale and made the cutest little rag quilt for her doll. Our last sewing project was a fabric hanging wall basket. I joined in on making one of my own with my youngest, as I am usually just the fabric cutter and organizer. I was so happy to have made a project of my own, despite my youngest staying a step ahead of me most of the time.
My son asked for some sanding bits for his Dremel. He is trying to perfect making wooden spoons. I love supporting their hobbies, so I found some bits online and then checked out the clearance section of the website, which is where I found a lathe on clearance. The best thing was that the clearance price was 50 percent off, which made for an unbeatable deal on a lathe. The kids already have a lathe, a twenty- five-dollar antique auction find. It is far from perfect condition, but it showed me the kids have enough interest to spend a little bit more on a nice lathe. It was an easy decision to buy it after seeing it. I am not buying sports shoes season after season, nor video games, so I justified it, and truly, we would not find a better deal again.
The kids got the new lathe set up on the morning I asked them to clean the stall in the barn. Cleaning the barn stall is a paying job, so everyone was told the expectations if they wanted to make a little money. My son was actually the first one to give up on toting the endless heavy shovel loads to the tractor bucket, take the portion of money he made, and head to the woodshop to the shiny new lathe. My youngest surprised me by sticking it out nearly the whole time. She did ask several times how much money she would make if she quit at that moment. The job did get finished, and it was good exercise for all.
I would be okay if Christmas break were extended. I love the quality time together and seeing the kids have time to pursue their hobbies.
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ESPRESSO BROWNIES • 1 cup unsalted butter cold
• 1 cup + 2 tbsp semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup all-purpose flour (we used freshly milled soft white wheat)
• 3 tbsp dark cocoa powder
• 2 tbsp espresso powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a square 8x8 baking pan.
2. In a stainless steel pan, brown the butter over medium heat for 10-12 minutes. While it cooks, the butter will foam, pop, and crackle. This is normal! Stand by and stir it occasionally. When the bottom of the pan has brown bits of butter solid and it starts to smell nutty, scrape all of it into a separate bowl.
3. Add the chocolate chips to the bowl of browned butter and stir to melt completely. Set aside.
4. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, espresso, and salt. Set aside 5. In a mixing bowl, whisk the eggs, sugar, and vanilla together on medium speed for 1-2 minutes until fluffy.
6. With the mixer running on low, stream the melted butter and chocolate into the batter. Mix until just combined.
7. Gently fold in the dry ingredients with a rubber spatula until just combined.
8. Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out covered in moist crumbs.
9. Let the pan cool completely on a wire rack then cut into 16 squares with a hot sharp knife, wiping it clean between cuts.
