61/99: Barcelona Brownie Bars

These little guys were quite the experience.  Here's why:

One of my friends, Betsy, is a journalism major and has a video project due for one of her classes.  I made her a cake this weekend (just wait till you see it) for a bridal shower and so she had the brilliant idea of creating a cooking show / expo for her assignment.

At 5:30, Betsy walked in and shouted hello.  A few seconds later I turned around and saw the professional Hollywood sized camera looking me in straight the eye.  I was expecting a hand held camcorder with a janky tripod but this thing was probably taller than I am.  Microphone included.


Kitchen cleaned, ingredients prepped, and oven preheated, I put on a smile and introduced myself and my hobby to the camera.  We walked through the process, step by step, until the brownie bars came out of the oven and were ready for tasting.  The tasting part was probably the most awkward thing on the camera.  I think it took four tries.  I really don't know how Paula and Ina do it so gracefully every time.  The first time I took too big of a bite and couldn't swallow it fast enough to speak.  The second time some of the crumbs didn't quite make it in my mouth, and the third time we felt so cheesy that we couldn't stop laughing.

Betsy is putting the video together later this week so as soon as I get it back I'll post it (assuming I didn't make a fool out of myself).

The brownie bars ended up being a success.  The secret ingredient is cream cheese which makes them extra moist.  They are also filled and topped with ganche which really makes them gooey and delicious.  Elizabeth put one in her mouth and exclaimed, "this is divine!!" That means a lot too because Elizabeth will tell you what she really thinks.  I really liked them as well.  I haven't had brownies in a long time and they were a perfect treat for the end of a long day.

Here's my cooking show pose: