EVOO with Frosted Chocolate Brownies? Yes!

By Cal Orey

If you want cakey, eat chocolate cake. Brownies should be dense and moist and fudgy.”
--Houghton Mifflin

Here I sit waiting for FedEx. It's finally over. The galley, the proofs, the big book--The Healing Powers of Chocolate is going back to its roots in New York. I finished my work. It's done. Ironically, while I thought I was chocolated out, not so. This a.m. I got a call from Anette at Anette's Chocolates and a friendly email from chocolatier Michael Recchiuti...The gourmet chocolate cravings are teasing me (again). It's obvious my love affair with chocolate will be till death do us part...

So, I am trapped here in my mountain cabin as the carrier's window is from 2:30-7:00 P.M. I cannot go to the store but I do have a box of Ghirardelli Double Chocolate Brownie mix, a separate bag (not the one in the box) of Ghirardelli Chocolate Chips (60% cacao content which I've learned to love), and extra virgin olive oil--plenty of this good stuff in the pantry thanks to my last work The Healing Powers of Olive Oil. What bugs me a lot is that today I read (again) that not only can you not bake with olive oil, you can't use it in frosting. So not true. At all.

Experiment time. I just put about a half cup of chocolate chips in the microwave for less than one minute. The texture was good but I added about 1/8 tablespoon of EVOO and it seemed to make the consistency richer, smoother. Then, I wanted a citrus note--I squeezed orange juice from a big, fresh orange into the frosting concoction and yeah, it worked. (I wish I had a lime or lemon but like I said--I am stuck here, sort of like being snowbound in the winter at Lake Tahoe.)

What's more, I have used olive oil before instead of vegetable oil in the tasty premium brownie mix. It worked. And, when you live in high altitude, like I do...the mix calls for flour and water. No problem. We're good to go. So, once the FedEx savior comes to my rescue, I will go out into the kitchen and make up a batch of Frosted Chocolate Brownies. Funny, last night I watched Bridget Jones's Diary and I love the cooking scene where she attempts to cook a dinner for friends. Bridget can't cook either--I could relate to my anti-cooking soul sister. But I know these frosted chocolate brownies will work like a charm and look close to the photo above, complete with those pretty little ridges. Now that's a celebration. And I thank olive oil for it, too. OMG! The FedEx guy just knocked on the door. Yes! Yes! Yes! The Healing Powers of Chocolate is now officially en route back to its home. Mission accomplished.