Disney Does Something Right

There are very few things I like about the Disney empire: Walt was a card-carrying member of the Nazi party; birth records in the ‘90s and now playgrounds everywhere are drenched with little girls (over)named Jasmine and Ariel, and when our daughters do finally tire of all those fucking princesses, we have High School Musical and The Jonas Brothers to look forward to. I shudder to think how far a 3-year-old’s capacity for consumerism might extend if we actually took her to The Most Commercial Place On Earth.

Nevertheless, when my mother-in-law handed over Walt Disney’s Mickey Mouse Cookbook as part of her nostalgic cookbook bounty the other week, I gleefully encouraged my daughter’s enthusiasm for this relic of the Mighty D. When her grandmother told her of her father’s love of one of the particular recipes, Bee was enthralled. For the rest of the weekend, Bee told anyone that would listen that, as soon as we were home, we were going to make The Big Bad Wolf’s Brownies, her Daddy’s favourite.

I’m not sure if she were more into the story of her Daddy as a child or the idea that she would soon be eating chocolate brownies, but either way, we went shopping first thing Monday morning for the ingredients we did not have on hand (unsweetened baker’s chocolate), and went straight to the mixing bowl as soon as Dove was down for her nap.

Now, Bee is always my sous chef, and a great one at that, but there was an extra bit of sparkle in her during this particular task. Giddy with the anticipation of licking the bowl, Bee helped me prepare the brownies quite efficiently and was practically purring when offered the reward for her efforts.

As for the brownies themselves? Well, they were as tasty as my mother-in-law had promised and we did our best to ensure that we finished them off before they could, uh, get stale. Three little pigs, indeed.

The Big Bad Wolf’s Brownies

1/2 c butter or margarine
2 oz unsweetened chocolate
1 c sugar
1/2 c unsifted all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 c pecan or walnut pieces (optional)
2 eggs

• Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9x9x2 baking pan.
• Melt the butter and chocolate in a large saucepan over low heat. Remove the saucepan from the heat.
• Stir in the sugar, flour, baking powder, vanilla and nuts. Add the eggs and beat well with an electric mixer.
• Pour the batter into the baking pan. Bake for approx. 30 min.
• Blow your house down, which should cool the brownies nicely.
  

*SoundBITE*
You’re gonna like this: a little bit of chocolate is good for you. Not only does chocolate stimulate the secretion of endorphins, but it has also been found to contain seratonin, a neuro-transmitter that acts as an anti-depressant. Chocolate also contains a good amount of vitamins and nutrients, including potassium, magnesium, vitamin B1, B2, D and E, and is one of the snack foods least likely to cause tooth decay, thanks to its generous stores of phosphorus. Still and all, brush up and indulge in moderation. 

 

Comments

[katie ~ motherbumper]

Are they really that easy to throw together - because they sound yummy. And of course chocolate does the body good, it's in the bible (in the Old Testament under The Book of Motherbumper).

[nomotherearth]

Moderation? What is this thing called moderation? No speaka such language.

[J]

My sisters and I would make this recipe all the time. I loved the texture of the book, and the pages with old drips of batter from years past. It was virtually the only recipe we used from the cookbook, but it is still well-loved and regularly made by us!