TWD: Rick Katz's Brownies for Julia and another brownie recipe

**Update: these are pretty fudgy just like people said on the TWD blog. I put mine in the freezer and will eat a whole one after they firm up a bit. They looked great when I cut some of the edge pieces (less gooey!) for the family I made dinner for tonight, and I had a small taste test with Jacob. We approve! If you like fudgy brownies, try Dorie's recipe at Chocolatechic's blog!

This week's recipe was chosen by Tanya of Chocolatechic, a fitting choice for someone who loves chocolate. I'd never heard of Rick Katz, but he is a pastry chef who worked with Dorie Greenspan and Julia Child when they were putting together the Baking with Julia series 15 years ago. And though I haven't eaten one of these brownies yet, I would say that this Mr. Katz is a good man.

The recipe and method can be found at Tanya's blog. I like brownies from scratch much better than the boxed variety, but I'd never heard of making brownies this way before where half of the egg-sugar mixture is whipped and doubled in volume. I suspect these will be very fudgy as other people have reported on the TWD site. I tend to go for a more cakey, sturdy brownie (my favorite is from Cook's Country actually. I'll paste that recipe below. They are REALLY good when you double the recipe, then put about half the batter in a 13X9 pan, top that first half of the batter with whole York peppermint patties, then pour the rest of the batter on top. I'll report later on how these fudgier ones in my kitchen ended up tasting!!

3	ounces unsweetened chocolate , chopped
8	tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick) , cut into chunks
1	cup sugar
1/2	teaspoon baking powder
1/4	teaspoon table salt
2	large eggs
1	teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3	cup all-purpose flour 1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 8-inch baking dish with foil and coat foil with cooking spray. 2. Melt chocolate and butter in small bowl in microwave or in heatproof bowl set over pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally to combine. Cool mixture for several minutes. 3. Whisk sugar, baking powder, salt, eggs, and vanilla together in medium bowl until combined, about 15 seconds. Whisk in chocolate mixture until smooth. Stir in flour until no streaks of flour remain. Scrape batter evenly into prepared pan. 4. Bake until toothpick inserted halfway between edge and center of pan comes out clean, 22 to 27 minutes. Cool brownies on wire rack for 1 hour.