incredible weekend. in part because of these...

Sweet husband and I enjoyed our long weekend together.  It was just the two of us.  Well...on Sunday we enjoyed worshiping with and having lunch with our youngest son, Drew.  But, other than that...it was just the two of us.  Everyone else was out of town.

To be perfectly honest...we LOVE it when our kids come home for visits.  And we also LOVE it when we have long weekends...just us two chickens.

We walked...we talked...we laughed...we cried...we grilled...we ate...we slept...we...well, you get the picture.  It was wonderful!!

Typically on long weekends like this I get the itch to bake something special.  This weekend was no exception.  Even though the eaters were few.

We went out to the Mayfield Farm & Nursery...GREAT STUFF!!!  I've purchased many fresh strawberries from Michael Mayfield this season, and was excited to buy some more.  My heart was broken when we drove up to the sales room and it was shut tight as a drum with signs on both doors that said, "SOLD OUT TODAY".

So...I had to drop back and punt.

One of Sweet Husband's favorite desserts is "Perfect Chocolate Cake".  I happened upon the recipe on the back of the Hershey's Cocoa container one day and Sweet Husband has never been the same since.  If I go too many months without making one, he begins dropping hints.

It has been awhile since I baked him a cake...so it did cross my mind.  But...no.  I wanted to try something new.  ...and something chocolate was sounding pretty good.

I got on the internet and began a hunt for something new...something yummy.  Where I landed was on a brownie recipe.  I know...that sounds so unoriginal and not so special.  But, I've never made homemade brownies from scratch.  Betty Crocker or Duncan Hines or other various and sundry box-mixes have always assisted me in their own special way.

First I read the recipe to make sure I had all the ingredients.  Check.

That's all I needed.  While Sweet Husband was grilling our delicious steaks (I NEVER order steak at restaurants ever ever ever.  Nobody can grill a steak like Sweet Husband!!!), I whipped up some brownies.  They were one-bowl quick.  Super easy.  And the end result was...

AMAZING!!!  Sweet Husband groaned and moaned and declared "THIS RECIPE IS A KEEPER!"  They really are very moist and super-chocolaty...especially since they're frosted.  Add a glass of milk and you might think you've died and gone to heaven!

Here's the recipe... ENJOY!

Ingredients for "Best Brownies"

Brownies

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder

Frosting

• 3 tablespoons butter, softened
• 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tablespoon honey  (I didn't have any honey...I just used a little milk for moisture)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour an 8 inch square pan.
2. In a large bowl, melt 1/2 cup butter. Stir in sugar, eggs, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Stir in 1/3 cup cocoa, 1/2 cup flour, salt, and baking powder. (stirring instead of beating is important...beating the batter will make the brownies more cake-like because it whips the eggs into more of a frenzy :-) )
3. Spread batter into prepared pan. (I added walnuts on top of the batter...Sweet Husband like nuts in his brownies)
4. Bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Do not overcook.
5. For Frosting: Combine 3 tablespoons butter, 3 tablespoons cocoa, 1 tablespoon honey (or a tablespoon or 2 milk), 1 teaspoon vanilla, and 1 cup confectioners' sugar. Stir all ingredients together until creamy.
6. Frost brownies while they are still warm.
7. Eat brownies while they are still warm.  Do. not. skip. this. step.  Very important!  You'll see!

 (recipe from www.allrecipes.com...except #7 and all comments in italics)