mmmmmm ...ISU Buttermilk Brownies...mmmmmmm

Do you love chocolate? Do you love brownies that don't come from a box? Do you love recipes that include buttermilk?

Then you'll love ISU Buttermilk Brownies. Check these out!

When I went to college at ISU, this was always a must when having lunch on campus. My absolute favorite brownie recipe in the entire world. It's also a very old and sort of secret recipe. The consistency is more like cake and the frosting is like a thin layer of heaven. I guarantee you that one piece of this will satisfy your chocolate craving for at least an hour ;o)

The recipe is kind of interesting in that it's given in weights instead of volumes, so to make it easy for people without a scale I went through and measured everything in volumes. I'll give it to you both ways so that kitchen ninjas with scales can have fun, too.
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ISU Buttermilk Brownies (yield 2 lbs., 3.5 oz. or one 9x13 of chocolate goodness):

Ingedients by weight and volume (if measurement appears in black, you can just measure it out as is):
 Brownie Batter
6 oz all purpose flour 1 1/3 C
.18 tsp salt dash
3/4 tsp. baking soda
12.06 oz. granulated sugar 1 4/5 C
6 oz. water 3/4 C (liquid measure)
2 3/4 oz. canola oil ~3/8 C (liquid measure)
3 oz margarine 6 Tbsp
2 1/3 Tbsp + 1/2 tsp sifted cocoa 2 1/2 Tbsp
2 1/2 oz frozen whole eggs 2 whole eggs, lightly beaten
3 1/4 oz buttermilk ~ a tiny bit more than 3/8 C (liquid measure)
3/4 tsp vanilla extract

Buttermilk Frosting
1 1/2 oz. melted margarine 3 Tbsp
1 2/3 Tbsp + 1/2 tsp cocoa ~2 Tbsp
1 1/2 oz. buttermilk ~1/4 C (liquid measure)
6 1/2 oz powdered sugar 2 C
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

Methods
1. Preheat oven to 325. Sift flour, salt and baking soda together. Add sugar to sifted dry ingredients in mixing bowl. Combine water, oil, margarine, and cocoa in a steam kettle; heat to boiling. I don't have a steam kettle, let alone know what one looks like, so I'm guessing a double boiler will work just fine. If you're lazy like me, you just use a small saucepan and watch it closely so you don't scorch the mixture.

2. Add boiling water to flour mixture 1/3 oz. at a time. Mix well after each addition. Batter should have smooth consistenecy. Add buttermilk and vanilla. Add eggs. Mix well. Instead of mixing the boiling mixture into the flour mixture 1/3 oz at a time, I mixed 1/3 of the mixture in at a time. Also, my husband warned me that adding the eggs to the hot mixture might cook the eggs. I didn't have any trouble.

3. Pour into greased 9x13 baking dish. Bake at 325 F on center rack for about 25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center.

4. For frosting: Melt margarine in steam kettle. Add cocoa and buttermilk. Bring to boil. Remove mixture from kettle. To do this right, don't make the frosting until after you take the brownie out of the oven and let it cool. Again, a double boiler would probably sub just fine for the steam kettle, but I just used a sauce pan and then removed it from heat.

5. Add 1/3 of cocoa mixture to mixing bowl. Add powdered sugar and vanilla to mixture in mixing bowl. Using flat paddle, beat mixture until cream and all lumps have disappeared. Add remaining 2/3 of cocoa mixture to frosting. Mix well. Caution: Overmixing will cool frosting and it will not spread easily. Frosting should be glossy, forming a glaze. Caution: Making the frosting too early and then reheating in the microwave because you didn't read through the instructions in the first place can cause your frosting mixture to crystallize, giving it a more fudge-like consistency.
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I hope you enjoy making this recipe (and especially love eating it). If you see any mistakes or have any questions or comments, substitutions, or want to share the way you made it or how much you loved (or hated) it, please make sure to leave a message below!