Salted Chewy Brownies

Have I mentioned I like salt? Seriously, it is dangerous. Granted putting salt on desserts is the hip thing right now but it doesn't make it any less valuable! It simply proves how awesome it is. That is why I always use kosher salt in baking (except below) because you can actually taste it. 

These were great. Chewy but not raw fudgy. Nor were they cakey and dry. They are great but so is everything that comes from The Test Kitchen. Ugh. This isn't related to brownies but if you watch Dawson's Creek, read on. Pacey Witter is love. Joey and him should get married and have lots of babies. And Dawson should go jump off a cliff. Season four better turn things around.  

Salted Chewy Brownies

Adapted from America's Test Kitchen Magazine March & April 2010

1/3 cup Dutch-processed cocoa
2 tsp instant coffee
heaping 1/2 cup boiling water
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, very finely chopped
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup + 2 tbsp canola oil
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
2 tsp vanilla 
2 1/2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp table salt*
1 1/2 cup milk chocolate, roughly chopped 
1 cup pecans, toasted and roughly chopped (optional)
1 tsp fleur de sel

Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 350º. Line a 9" x 13" baking pan with foil with an overhang so the brownies can be lifted from the pan. Coat with non-stick spray. Whisk cocoa, instant coffee and boiling water together in a large bowl until smooth. Add the unsweetened chocolate and whisk until chocolate is melted. Whisk in butter and oil. (Mixture may look curdled.) Add eggs, yolks and vanilla and continue to whisk until smooth and combined. Whisk in sugar until fully incorporated. Add flour and salt and mix in with a rubber spatula until combined. Fold in chocolate and pecans (if using). Scrape batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle the fleur de sel over top. Use all of it, if not more than 1 tsp. Bake until toothpick inserted halfway between the edge and center comes out with just a few moist crumbs attached, 30 to 35 minutes. ** Transfer pan to wire rack and cool 1 1/2 hours. *** Using foil overhang, life brownies from pan. Return to wire rack and let cool completely, about an hour. Cut into 2-inch squares and serve.

* It killed me not to use kosher and I don't think the table salt made a difference. Kosher would work as well.

** My brownies were finished after 28 minutes.

*** If the brownies were baked in a glass pan, remove them from the pan after 10 minutes and allow them to cool completely on a wire rack. Glass pans with continue to cook the brownies if they stay in the pan.