Happy Monday everyone! It’s almost holiday time and I am super looking forward to some quality times with friends and family. I hope that you are finding a semblance of balance in this very packed time of year!
I wanted to throw out some book recommendations in case you need something to read during the holidays! These are books that I have read and enjoyed over the last few months – let me know if you have an recommendations for me!
- Little Fires Everywhere
- A difficult but necessary read: Homegoing
- Some interesting life advice books: Grit and this one that I liked less but was still interesting: Overwhelmed – this book had a quote from one of our really good friends which was really cool and it also called out the overuse of the word BUSY – so I am trying hard to stop using it!
- An interesting story: How to Stop Time
- Loved this: The Hate You Give – still have to see the movie
- Intense and SO interesting! One of President Obama’s fave books from last year – literally blew my mind! The Power
The ones on my list to read next are:
- Becoming – no intro necessary!
- Always looking for an inspiring read and came across this: Gmorning, Gnight!: Little Pep Talks for Me & You – it’s by Lin Manuel-Miranda
- A Place for Us
Also, I recommend this article for those of you who are interested in what it is like being a doctor mom, it was written by a friend of mine: Working in Medicine: Experiences of Pregnant Physicians.
Now, onto the brownies! These brownies are GF as they are made with rye flour. They are intensely chocolatey and these turned out a bit salty since I cut back on the added sugar – however, I think that this made them even more addictive! These are adapted from the Violet Bakery Cookbook by Claire Ptak. The recipe comes in grams but I converted on google.
Salty Rye Brownies
Ingredients:
- 150g unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, plus more for greasing the tin (about 10 tablespoons)
- 300g dark chocolate (at least 60-70% cocoa solids), broken into pieces (about 8 ounces, I used about half of a Trader Joe’s 72% dark giant bar)
- 50g cocoa powder (1/4 cup)
- 200g wholemeal rye flour (1 cup)
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 200g unrefined caster sugar (I cut this down to a half cup instead of the full one cup)
- 200g light brown sugar (I also cut this down to a half cup)
- 200g eggs (this is closer to 3-4 eggs but I used 2 and they came out fine)
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon flaky sea salt (e.g.Maldon), for sprinkling on top
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a square 8×8 or 9×9 pan and line with parchment paper.
In a heatproof bowl, melt together the butter and the chocolate over a pan of water that has been brought to the boil and then taken off the heat. I actually did this by melting the butter in the microwave then adding the chocolate and stirring until it was melted. This allowed me to avoid the double boiler technique.Allow the mixture to rest, stirring occasionally as it melts.
In another bowl, whisk together the cocoa, rye flour, baking powder and salt.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, whisk together the sugars, eggs, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Slowly add the melted chocolate, followed by the dry ingredients. Mix just enough to combine, then pour into the prepared baking tin. Smooth the top with a spatula and sprinkle with a teaspoon or so of flaky sea salt.
Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the brownies are set but with a slight wobble. Leave to cool completely in the tin before cutting into 12 squares. These are best warm with vanilla ice cream but also take amazing the next day as they firm up!
Love,
Pooja
Three Sweet peas 