Try something new with this triple-tested brownie recipe. Odd though it may sound, the bacon adds a wonderful depth to these moreish squares. Trust us, it works – think bacon and syrup pancakes.
150g (5oz) unsalted butter, chopped, plus extra to grease
75ml (3fl oz) maple syrup
75g (3oz) pecans, roughly chopped
225g (8oz) light brown soft sugar
75g (3oz) cocoa powder
2 medium eggs
60g (2½oz) plain flour
Directions
Step 1
Preheat grill to medium. Grill the bacon on a baking sheet until the fat is golden, then lay the rashers on kitchen paper to allow them to crisp up. Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fan) mark 4 and lightly grease and line a 20.5cm (8in) square tin with baking parchment.
Step 2
Snip or break the bacon into small pieces; put into a bowl with the maple syrup and pecans. Mix and set aside.
Step 3
Put the butter and sugar into a large heatproof bowl and sift in the cocoa powder. Put bowl over a pan of barely simmering water (make sure the base of the bowl doesn't touch the water) and heat until the mixture is melted and smooth, stirring occasionally - initially it will look like the mixture won't come together, but it will. Lift the bowl off the pan and set aside to cool slightly.
Step 4
Beat the eggs, one at a time, into the chocolate mixture. Sift over the flour and beat vigorously until the mixture is shiny and smooth. Stir in most of the bacon mix.
Step 5
Scrape the chocolate mixture into the prepared tin, level and scatter over the remaining bacon mixture. Bake for 20-30min or until set. Leave the brownie to cool completely in tin before cutting into squares.
An experienced and highly skilled team of food writers, stylists and digital content producers, the Good Housekeeping Cookery Team is a close-knit squad of food obsessives. Cookery Editor Emma Franklin is our resident chilli obsessive and barbecue expert, who spends an inordinate amount of time on holidays poking round the local supermarkets seeking out new and exciting foods. Senior Cookery Writer Alice Shields is a former pastry chef and baking fanatic who loves making bread and would have peanut butter with everything if she could. Her favourite carb is pasta, and our vibrant green spaghetti is her weeknight go-to. Lover of all things savoury, Senior Cookery Writer Grace Evans can be found eating crispy corn and nocellara olives at every opportunity, and will take the cheeseboard over dessert any time (though she cannot resist a slice of tres leches cake). With a wealth of professional kitchen know-how, culinary training and years of experience between them, they are all dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work (and if they don’t – we’ll have the answer for why*) every time (*90% of the time the answer is: “buy an separate oven thermometer”!).
