My BEST Brownies

Brownies. True comfort food for me.  Over the past month, my daytimes have been  filled with meetings, even during lunchbreaks!  I get to check and respond to emails, make presentations and all that stuff, only in the evenings.

Feeling stressed,  and guilty as well (the kids just started summer holiday and I've been working mostly),  I decided to bake brownies. It could lighten my guilty conscience. 

Maybe the feelings of love and good intentions that were poured into it helped make those brownies truly terrific – moist, fudgy  and super chocolatey. Not far from the brownies I buy in Voelker or L'uisine (and friendlier to my wallet!).

My kids tell me they're "awesome" and "yummy".  Their actions speak louder than words - they've been devouring it.

What I used and did :
Berry Crocker’s Ready Mix Brownies - Dark Chocolate

-  mixed per pack directions (with ½ cup melted butter, ¼ cup water and 2 eggs)

Plus 3 tbsp of Van Houten unsweetened cocoa powder and 1 egg (for more fudgy, cake-like brownies)

I made 3 trays 

      1st tray - plain

      2nd tray - I added chopped Lindt dark-chocolate-mint

      3rd tray - I topped with chopped toasted cashew nuts

I baked the brownies at 170 degrees Centigrade. After 20 minutes, I turned off the oven.  (I actually forgot to take them out as I was checking emails. Felt so relieved the brownies still turned out great.)

The kids and I have been playing a game (similar to taboo) this morning,  munching on them continuously,  especially the younger boys.  Guilty conscience now officially relieved.

Simple and Healthy Fruit Salad

My son D hates cream,  he hates the taste.  It was a surprise to me then when, a couple of weeks back, he asked "Mom,  can we make fruit salad again?"  The one with the cream?!  He enthusiastically nodded with a big grin on his face. 

I wasn't able to make some then;  these past couple of weeks,  someone in the family got seriously sick,  and I was too tired to do anything in the kitchen. That sickness in the family served us a wake up call for us to eat healthier.

With an hour to spare and knowing I have all the ingredients in the pantry, I prepared fruit salad for tonight's dessert,  and made it healthier  -  instead of cream, I used strawberry yogurt.  Here's my simple recipe.

   2 big cans of mixed fruits  

   2 packs of strawberry yogurt

   3 tbsp of condensed milk
   1/4 c grated cheddar cheese

what I had in stock

Strain the mixed fruits for half an hour.  In a big bowl, mix the yogurt,  cheese and condensed milk together; add more condensed milk if a sweeter salad is preferred.  With a wooden spoon, mix in the mixed fruits and refrigerate. 

I added mango slices before serving; everyone in the family love mangoes and they are in season right now.  We love nata de coco in our fruit salad,  but I can't find good nata de coco in the supermarkets here in Ho Chi Minh City.  Nevertheless,  this was wiped out in no time.