Brownies, Jessica's recipe, USA

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup flour (unbleached)
4 heaping tablespoons cocoa powder
1 1/2 sticks of butter (unsalted)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (make sure it's the real thing, *not* imitation) 3 egg

Method:
* Preheat oven to 350F

* Grease a 9"x9" glass baking dish with a bit of butter.

* Beat together sugar and butter. If you have an electric mixer, beat until slightly fluffy, if not, just beat by hand until well-mixed. * Beat in cocoa, vanilla, and eggs until well-mixed.

* Add in flour and beat just until mixed in.

* Batter should be pretty thick.* Pour the batter into the greased pan.

* Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the center of the brownies is set and a toothpick (or small piece of raw spaghetti) inserted in the center comes out clean.

* The top of the brownies should have a very slight crust, and the centers should be very cakey and dense.* Let cool for as long as you can stand it, then devour with a big cold glass of milk.

**My favorite modification: add a big pinch of ancho chile powder and 2 big pinches of cinnamon to the batter when you add the cocoa. It adds a great spice!