Chocolate Seen but Not Tasted: Milk Chocolate Swirl Brownies

One of these days I will get around to making a plain batch of Sarah Kieffer's "My Favorite Brownies." But so far, I've only tried variations that build on the base brownie recipe: chocolate basil brownies; rocky road brownies; and marshmallow peanut butter brownies. Now I can add one more variation to that list: "Milk Chocolate Swirl Brownies," which are the base brownies with a swirl of condensed milk and milk chocolate.

 

For the base brownie recipe, you whisk together eggs, granulated sugar, brown sugar, canola oil and vanilla; add a mixture of melted butter, melted bittersweet chocolate, and cocoa powder; and incorporate flour, salt, and baking powder. I poured the batter into a parchment-lined 9-inch by 13-inch pan and added dollops of the swirl mixture (a combination of condensed milk, melted and cooled milk chocolate, and a little salt). I used Valrhona Caramélia caramelized milk chocolate feves in the swirl. I marbled the milk chocolate-condensed milk mixture into the brownie batter before baking.

Even though the milk chocolate swirl was almost the same color as the brownie itself, you could differentiate the swirl from the shiny brownie top if you looked closely; the swirl was more clearly visible in the brownie cross-sections after slicing. I really like this base brownie recipe -- it's moderately fudgy, with a rich chocolate flavor. I was disappointed in the swirl, though. I couldn't taste it, even though I had used my very spendy Valrhona chocolate, which has a beautiful and distinctive caramel flavor. It seemed like a waste of good chocolate and I think I would have preferred the addition of something that added some texture or a greater flavor contrast instead. That said, this was a very tasty brownie and I quite enjoyed it. It just didn't seem like anything particularly special or worth making again.

Recipes: "Swirl Brownies, Two Ways," and "My Favorite Brownies," from 100 Cookies by Sarah Kieffer. 

Previous Posts:

• "The Herbs Uplift: Chocolate Basil Brownies," August 15, 2021.
• "My Favorite Brownies Two Ways: Rocky Road Brownies and Marshmallow Peanut Butter Brownies," February 28, 2021.