Big Fat n' Fudgy Shoebox Brownies

We were having a friend over for Family Home Evening. I hadn't gone shopping for the week so I had to work with cupboard staples. I also had to clean the house so I needed something fast, that didn't require scooping, rolling, cutting, etc. Perfect time to try these big fat brownies from Marcy Goldman.

Apparently 11 x 7 brownie pans can be hard to find. I bought one once at Safeway in Colorado years ago, but if you don't have one or can't find one an 8 x 8 or 9 x 9 square pan is almost as good. Double the recipe to use a 9 x 13 pan.

There's not much more to say about these brownies; the title pretty much says it all. The "shoebox" part comes from older times when people would pack up brownies in shoeboxes? I suppose these days we might call them "Big Fat n' Fudgy Gladware Brownies" but it just doesn't have the same ring. So maybe Big Fat n' Fudgy is enough. More than enough.

1/2 cup unsalted butter
7 oz. semisweet chocolate, cut into chunks
2 T cocoa powder
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
3 large eggs
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350. Generously spray 11 x 7 pan with nonstick cooking spray and place pan on a parchment lined baking sheet.

2. Melt butter and chocolate over low heat in a heavy bottomed 1 quart saucepan and stir until smooth. Add cocoa. Remove from heat, spoon into a medium bowl, and let cool to room temperature.

3. Add sugar, vanilla, and eggs, stirring until smooth. Fold in flour, salt and then walnuts and stir to make a smooth batter.

4. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until brownies seem just set. It is tricky to test these, but if you do underbake them, just freeze brownies and serve well chilled.