Chocolate brownie
Encyclopedia
A chocolate brownie is a flat, baked
square or bar introduced in the United States
at the end of the nineteenth century and popularized in both the U.S. and Canada during the first half of the twentieth century. The brownie is sliced from a type of dense, rich chocolate
cake, which is, in texture, like a cross between a cake
and a cookie
. Brownies come in a variety of forms. They are either fudgy
or cakey, depending on their density
, and they may include nuts, frosting
, whipped cream
, chocolate chip
s, or other ingredients. A variation that is made with brown sugar and no chocolate is called a blondie
.
Brownies are common lunchbox fare, typically eaten by hand, and often accompanied by milk
or coffee
. They are sometimes served warm with ice cream
(à la mode), topped with whipped cream
, or sprinkled with powdered sugar
, especially in restaurant
s.
created the confection after Bertha Palmer
requested a dessert for ladies attending the fair; it should be, she said, smaller than a piece of cake, though still retaining cake-like characteristics and easily eaten from boxed lunches. These first brownies featured an apricot
glaze and walnuts, and they are still being made at the hotel according to the original recipe.
The earliest published recipes for a brownie like those of today appeared in the Home Cookery (1904, Laconia, NH), Service Club Cook Book (1904, Chicago, IL), The Boston Globe (April 2, 1905 p. 34) and the 1906 edition of The Boston Cooking School Cook Book by Fannie Merritt Farmer. These recipes produced a relatively mild and cake-like brownie. The name "brownie" first appeared in the 1896 version of the cookbook, but this was in reference to molasses cakes baked individually in tin molds, not true brownies.
A second recipe appeared in 1907 in Lowney’s Cook Book, by Maria Willet Howard and published by the Walter M. Lowney Company of Boston, Massachusetts. This recipe added an extra egg and an additional square of chocolate to the Boston Cooking School recipe, creating a richer, fudgier brownie. The recipe was named Bangor Brownies, possibly because it was created by a woman in Bangor, Maine
. The Bangor Brownie went on to be rated 3rd in the top 10 snacks a few years later.
Baking
Baking is the technique of prolonged cooking of food by dry heat acting by convection, and not by radiation, normally in an oven, but also in hot ashes, or on hot stones. It is primarily used for the preparation of bread, cakes, pastries and pies, tarts, quiches, cookies and crackers. Such items...
square or bar introduced in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
at the end of the nineteenth century and popularized in both the U.S. and Canada during the first half of the twentieth century. The brownie is sliced from a type of dense, rich chocolate
Chocolate
Chocolate is a raw or processed food produced from the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. Cacao has been cultivated for at least three millennia in Mexico, Central and South America. Its earliest documented use is around 1100 BC...
cake, which is, in texture, like a cross between a cake
Cake
Cake is a form of bread or bread-like food. In its modern forms, it is typically a sweet and enriched baked dessert. In its oldest forms, cakes were normally fried breads or cheesecakes, and normally had a disk shape...
and a cookie
Cookie
In the United States and Canada, a cookie is a small, flat, baked treat, usually containing fat, flour, eggs and sugar. In most English-speaking countries outside North America, the most common word for this is biscuit; in many regions both terms are used, while in others the two words have...
. Brownies come in a variety of forms. They are either fudgy
Fudge
Fudge is a type of Western confectionery which is usually very sweet, and extremely rich. It is made by mixing sugar, butter, and milk and heating it to the soft-ball stage at , and then beating the mixture while it cools so that it acquires a smooth, creamy consistency...
or cakey, depending on their density
Density
The mass density or density of a material is defined as its mass per unit volume. The symbol most often used for density is ρ . In some cases , density is also defined as its weight per unit volume; although, this quantity is more properly called specific weight...
, and they may include nuts, frosting
Icing (food)
Icing, also called frosting in the United States, is a sweet often creamy glaze made of sugar with a liquid such as water or milk, that is often enriched with ingredients such as butter, egg whites, cream cheese, or flavorings and is used to cover or decorate baked goods, such as cakes or cookies...
, whipped cream
Whipped cream
Whipped cream is cream that has been beaten by a mixer, whisk, or fork until it is light and fluffy. Whipped cream is often sweetened and sometimes flavored with vanilla, in which case it may be called Chantilly cream or crème Chantilly ....
, chocolate chip
Chocolate chip
Chocolate chips are small chunks of chocolate. They are often sold in a round, flat-bottomed teardrop shape. They are available in numerous sizes, from large to miniature, but are usually around 1 cm in diameter.-Origin:...
s, or other ingredients. A variation that is made with brown sugar and no chocolate is called a blondie
Blondie (cookie)
A blondie is a rich, sweet dessert bar. They are made from flour, brown sugar, butter, eggs, baking powder, and vanilla. Chocolate chip blondies may contain white or dark chocolate chips, but the dominant flavor of a blondie is brown sugar, not chocolate. They may also contain walnuts or pecans...
.
Brownies are common lunchbox fare, typically eaten by hand, and often accompanied by milk
Milk
Milk is a white liquid produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals before they are able to digest other types of food. Early-lactation milk contains colostrum, which carries the mother's antibodies to the baby and can reduce the risk of many...
or coffee
Coffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
. They are sometimes served warm with ice cream
Ice cream
Ice cream is a frozen dessert usually made from dairy products, such as milk and cream, and often combined with fruits or other ingredients and flavours. Most varieties contain sugar, although some are made with other sweeteners...
(à la mode), topped with whipped cream
Whipped cream
Whipped cream is cream that has been beaten by a mixer, whisk, or fork until it is light and fluffy. Whipped cream is often sweetened and sometimes flavored with vanilla, in which case it may be called Chantilly cream or crème Chantilly ....
, or sprinkled with powdered sugar
Powdered sugar
Powdered sugar, also known as confectioners' sugar or icing sugar, is very fine sugar. When intended for home use, it typically contains a small amount of anti-caking agent....
, especially in restaurant
Restaurant
A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
s.
History
A chef at Chicago's Palmer House HotelPalmer House
The Palmer House Hilton is a famous and historic hotel in downtown Chicago.-History:There have been three Palmer House Hotels at the corner of State and Monroe Streets in Chicago....
created the confection after Bertha Palmer
Bertha Palmer
Bertha Palmer was an American businesswoman, socialite, and philanthropist.- Biography :Born Bertha Matilde Honoré in Louisville, Kentucky, her father was businessman Henry Hamilton Honoré...
requested a dessert for ladies attending the fair; it should be, she said, smaller than a piece of cake, though still retaining cake-like characteristics and easily eaten from boxed lunches. These first brownies featured an apricot
Apricot
The apricot, Prunus armeniaca, is a species of Prunus, classified with the plum in the subgenus Prunus. The native range is somewhat uncertain due to its extensive prehistoric cultivation.- Description :...
glaze and walnuts, and they are still being made at the hotel according to the original recipe.
The earliest published recipes for a brownie like those of today appeared in the Home Cookery (1904, Laconia, NH), Service Club Cook Book (1904, Chicago, IL), The Boston Globe (April 2, 1905 p. 34) and the 1906 edition of The Boston Cooking School Cook Book by Fannie Merritt Farmer. These recipes produced a relatively mild and cake-like brownie. The name "brownie" first appeared in the 1896 version of the cookbook, but this was in reference to molasses cakes baked individually in tin molds, not true brownies.
A second recipe appeared in 1907 in Lowney’s Cook Book, by Maria Willet Howard and published by the Walter M. Lowney Company of Boston, Massachusetts. This recipe added an extra egg and an additional square of chocolate to the Boston Cooking School recipe, creating a richer, fudgier brownie. The recipe was named Bangor Brownies, possibly because it was created by a woman in Bangor, Maine
Bangor, Maine
Bangor is a city in and the county seat of Penobscot County, Maine, United States, and the major commercial and cultural center for eastern and northern Maine...
. The Bangor Brownie went on to be rated 3rd in the top 10 snacks a few years later.
See also
- BlondieBlondie (cookie)A blondie is a rich, sweet dessert bar. They are made from flour, brown sugar, butter, eggs, baking powder, and vanilla. Chocolate chip blondies may contain white or dark chocolate chips, but the dominant flavor of a blondie is brown sugar, not chocolate. They may also contain walnuts or pecans...
- Hash brownies
- KladdkakaKladdkakaKladdkaka is a type of Swedish cake. This dense sticky chocolate cake is similar to the American brownie but has a soft and viscous centre. It is sometimes eaten with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.-See also:*Treats in the Swedish cuisine* in Swedish...
, Swedish cake similar to a brownie - Nanaimo barNanaimo barThe Nanaimo bar is a dessert of Canadian origin popular across North America. The Nanaimo bar is a bar cookie which requires no baking, and is named after the West-Coast city of Nanaimo, British Columbia. It consists of a wafer crumb-based layer, topped by a layer of light vanilla or custard...
- TorteTorteA torte is a rich, usually multilayered, cake that is filled with buttercreams, mousses, jams or fruits. Ordinarily, the cooled torte is glazed and garnished . A torte is made with little to no flour, but instead with ground nuts or breadcrumbs, as well as sugar, eggs, and flavorings.- Origin...
- Comfort foodComfort foodComfort food is food prepared traditionally that may have a nostalgic or sentimental appeal. Comfort foods may be foods that have a nostalgic element either to an individual or a specific culture...