Forevermama's Heirloom Brownies

These Brownies have basically become a part of my family. I've been making them since I was about 13 or 14. On one occasion when I was a teenager, I made them in a 9 x 13" pan and while they were cooling I went over a friends house on my street, when I came back about 45 minutes later, the only thing left in my pan were crumbs. My 3 bratty nephews gobbled it all up! Ohh the memories. They derive from a 1954 Sealtest cookbook called "641 Tested Recipes from the Sealtest Kitchens." The pages are yellowed, fraying and falling apart, but I love it so, especially because my sister Edna gave it to me and she has since passed away. These bake beautifully and create a chocolaty crust over the top and a chewy center. It is a basic recipe that surpasses in flavor many other "fancified" brownie recipes I have tried.

• Ready In: 50 mins
• Serves: 9

Ingredients

• 1⁄2 cup butter
• 2 (1 ounce)  unsweetened chocolate squares (no substitutions)
• 2  eggs
• 1  cup sugar
• 1⁄2 cup  sifted flour
• 1⁄4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1⁄4 teaspoon salt
• 1  cup  chopped walnuts (or other nuts of choice) (optional)
• 1  teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. Butter an 8 x8 x 2" pan.
2. Melt butter and chocolate together over a double-boiler.
3. In a medium bowl, beat eggs well. Add sugar gradually and beat thoroughly until incorporated. Add chocolate mixture and beat well.
4. In a separate bowl, mix sifted flour, baking powder and salt. Add nuts (if using). Stir into chocolate mixture and add vanilla. Mix well.
5. Place in buttered pan and bake for about 25 minutes. Cut into squares while still warm. Makes 9 squares.
6. NOTE: If you want to make it in a 9 x 13" pan, triple the recipe. This I normally do when making it for parties or to feed 3 hungry nephews.
7. Note that the chocolate squares noted in ingredients above are 1 ounce for each square, therefore the total is 2 ounces.