Anne Bourgets Brownies

Preheat oven to 350. Melt the chocolate with 1 stick (4 oz.) of butter and the salt. Put the remaining 4 oz. unsalted butter in the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat until soft, grandually adding the sugar until well blended. Dump in the vanilla. Add next. Add the melted chocolate-butter (I prefer NOT to let it cool, but add it while it is still quite warm) and mix until well blended. (No need to wash the pan yet, for you will be using it to make the frosting.) Add the flour and mix at low speed until just blended. Turn the batter into a prepared (greased and floured 7x11-inch) baking pan and bake for 35, 45 minutes, depending on your oven and your preference for moist brownies. Cool in a baking rack. Fudge Frosting: 1 cup sugar 1 oz. unsweetened baking chocolate 1 pinch of salt 1/2 cup heavy (whipping) cream* vanilla extract Gently melt the chocolate with the sugar, salt , and cream. Take care not to overstir, as it may cause the fudge to "sugar". Cook to the soft-ball stage and transfer to the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat at medium speed until it has cooled and then add the vanilla. Beat until it loses its shiny sheen and becomes thick frosting. Frost cooled brownies with the fudge frosting. *If I have whipping cream which has soured or creme fraiche on hand I prefer using them, as I like the tang they impart to the frosting. These are *very* rich. I cut them into rather small squares. Serve in a bowl with vanilla ice cream to be really, really bad. ;-) File ftp://ftp.idiscover.co.uk/pub/food/mealmaster/recipes/mmkah001.zip