Goat Cheese Brownies

We have a winner for Riley's April contest! Congratulations to Stacy from Louisville! You've won the Williams-Sonoma’s Ultimate Grilling Rub Collection. We hope you enjoy it and thanks so much for entering the contest. We'll be emailing you soon with more information. Thanks!

And now...

I just had the most wonderful time at the Malice Domestic Mystery Conference in Virginia. I met all sorts of wonderful readers and authors. What a blast! [For pictures of the conference, check out my website and view the slideshow: Avery Aames. Most of the pictures of are my Sisters in Crime Guppies pals. ]

For the event, I made a treat for some of my girlfriends and my editors (and other important people) and thought I'd share that recipe today.

As a girl, one of my favorite things was making brownies. Not eating them. Making them. I remember the bowls, the spoons to mix with, the smell of other kitchen. From brownies, I moved on to chocolate cream pies. I tried to turn making pies into a neighborhood business. I made these incredible pies (all with mixes, of course--chocolate pudding, chocolate chips, graham cracker crusts, Dream Whip) and sold them to my neighbors. I made a "fortune."

But it's the brownies that got me started. Now, because I need to eat gluten-free, I make brownie mixed from scratch. I use my own flours that aren't wheat (like rice flour, potato starch, etc.) and I stumbled upon this incredible brownie recipe. But I wanted to add cheese to it. I saw a Food Network show about brownies with goat cheese, and thought, aha! Yes. To make it my own, I added ground coffee. Oh, yum! Something novel, fun, different.

Remember, this was an experiment. After making all the segments of the recipe, I looked at the cheese mixture and decided it was too "liquid" to add it to the brownies. I cut it in half and poured it on top, then cut it with the knife. It still looked liquid, but it baked like a dream. I made another batch this week and it came out the same. So it works. Enjoy!

GOAT CHEESE AND COFFEE BROWNIES

Ingredients:

Brownie:

7 oz. dark chocolate

2 sticks butter, unsalted

1 ¾ cup brown sugar

4 eggs [For gluten-free make this 3 eggs and 2 egg whites]

1 1/3 cup flour [For gluten-free make this 1 1/3 cup gluten-free flour plus 1/2 teaspoon Xanthan gum]

¼ tsp. baking powder

1/3 cup cocoa powder

Goat cheese topping:

2 oz. cream cheese, softened

2 oz. goat cheese [used Laura Chenel’s Chevre]

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons ground espresso coffee

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Place chocolate and butter in a saucepan over low heat and stir until melted.

In a large bowl combine sugar and eggs. Slowly stir into chocolate mixture.

Sift flour, baking powder, and cocoa powder into bowl and combine with chocolate and egg mixture.

Pour batter into a greased, 9-inch square baking pan and set aside.

Whip together softened cheeses and sugar until smooth. Add coffee and stir.

Place large spoonfuls of mixture on top of batter and swirl with a butter knife.

Bake for 45-50 minutes until set. Brownies will still be gooey in middle

Let cool before cutting.

If you want to know more about

A Cheese Shop Mystery series and even become a "fan", check out my website by clicking this link:

Avery Aames.

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Julie's May Contest!

Julie’s first book in the Manor of Murder Mystery series, Grace Under Pressure, debuts June 1st! To help launch the book and to celebrate its release, she's running a very special contest: Pre-order Grace Under Pressure any time before May 31, 2010, and you're eligible to win a $25 gift certificate from Mystery Lovers Bookshop! (and if you've already pre-ordered, you just need to let Julie know!) No receipts required. Just email Julie at JulieHyzy@gmail.com with the date that you pre-ordered and the name of the bookstore you ordered it from, and your name goes in! (Please put "CONTEST" in the subject header. Thanks!)

Here are a few helpful links to get you started: Mystery Lovers Bookshop (free shipping on book orders over $10!) - Centuries & Sleuths Bookstore (my local bookstore - autographing available) - Barnes & Noble - Amazon.com