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This morning I spoke with David Lebovitz, author of the new “The Sweet Life in Paris: Delicious Adventures in the World's Most Glorious – and Perplexing – City.” You may also know him from his blog, or previous books such as “Room for Dessert” and “The Perfect Scoop.”
Lebovitz, who cooked at Chez Panisse for years, creates wonderful recipes. He's got a particular knack for sweets. In anticipation of our conversation, which you'll read part of in an upcoming Q&A, I baked his dulce de leche brownies. I adore dulce de leche, while I merely like brownies. But together, they're pretty swoon-worthy.
Dulce de Leche or Confiture de Lait
Adapted from The Perfect Scoop (Ten Speed Press) - Preheat the oven to 425° F (220° C). - Pour one can (400 gr/14 ounces) of sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk) into a glass pie plate or shallow baking dish. Stir in a few flecks of sea salt. - Set the pie plate within a larger pan, such as a roasting pan, and add hot water until it reaches halfway up the side of the pie plate. - Cover the pie plate snugly with aluminum foil and bake for 1 to 1¼ hours. (Check a few times during baking and add more water to the roasting pan as necessary). - Once the Dulce de Leche is nicely browned and caramelized, remove from the oven and let cool. Once cool, whisk until smooth.
Dulce de Leche Brownies
12 brownies
- 8 tablespoons (115g) salted or unsalted butter, cut into pieces
- 6 ounces (170g) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
- 1/4 cup (25g) unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup (200g) sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup (140g) flour
- optional: 1 cup (100 g) toasted pecans or walnuts, coarsely chopped
- 1 cup Dulce de Leche (or Cajeta)
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (175 C).
- Line a 8-inch (20 cm) square pan with a long sheet of aluminum foil that covers the bottom and reaches up the sides. If it doesn't reach all the way up and over all four sides, cross another sheet of foil over it, making a large cross with edges that overhang the sides. Grease the bottom and sides of the foil with a bit of butter or non-stick spray.
- Melt the butter in a medium saucepan. Add the chocolate pieces and stir constantly over very low heat until the chocolate is melted. Remove from heat and whisk in the cocoa powder until smooth. Add in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the sugar, vanilla, then the flour. Mix in the nuts, if using.
- Scrape half of the batter into the prepared pan. Here comes the fun part.
- Drop one-third of the Dulce de Leche, evenly spaced, over the brownie batter, then drag a knife through to swirl it slightly. Spread the remaining brownie batter over, then drop spoonfuls of the remaining Dulce de Leche in dollops over the top of the brownie batter. Use a knife to swirl the Dulce de Leche slightly.
- Bake for 35 to 45 minutes. The brownies are done when the center feels just-slightly firm. Remove from the oven and cool completely.
Storage:These brownies actually become better the second day, and will keep well for up to 3 days.
Store in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Warm gently in a warm water bath or microwave oven before using.
source: http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/food/dishing/2009/05/two_great_taste.html