Gluten Free Casually: Bordeaux Brownies

Bordeaux Brownies! The taste of See's famous Bordeaux chocolates mingled with brownies. Yummy! Rich! Exciting!

We absolutely love See's chocolates at our house. (If you live on the west coast then you know what I am talking about! If you don't then you are missing out!) My husband's favorite is the Bordeaux candy. As we were driving around town running errands...we passed a See's candy store. He said his mouth was watering for a Bordeaux candy. (It was early Sunday morning and the store wasn't open so I wasn't able to indulge him!) I told him that I was going to make brownies today. He said he preferred his brownie frosted. Hmmmm.....my brain started thinking about a new combination that might be tasty. The rich Bordeaux style candy topped on a brownie in lieu of frosting. The only problem is that I had to find a recipe for Bordeaux candy. Although my husband would have loved the original See's chocolates just plopped on top of his brownie....that is too expensive for me unless I was only making a single serving brownie!

My online search found a recipe for Bordeaux candy at theterrycookbook.blogspot.com. (It is a See's copy cat version and it was very close to the real thing!) I was very impressed with the results and I will be making them again this year as little truffles for the holidays. However, today I wanted to transform the delicious little candy into a frosting for my brownies. It does require cooking it on the stove top but it was worth the effort! I usually make my brownies from scratch but I wanted to try out the Trader Joe's version of their gluten free brownie mix so that is what I used today. It was quick, easy and very dense. I will be buying them again! Although I love to bake....sometimes the convenience of a boxed version is great to have on hand for last minute desserts. (I have tried the following gluten free brownie mixes with good results so far: Trader Joe's, Betty Crocker & Baker's Corner from Aldi). If you don't have a gluten allergy then you can just use your favorite brownie mix or homemade recipe instead!

Bordeaux Brownies:

8x8 pan of brownies, prepared (if you are making a 9x13 recipe then either double the Bordeaux candy recipe or just put a thinner layer on your brownies. My husband likes his thick just like the candy version!) I used Trader Joe's Gluten Free brownie mix in today's recipe, 8x8 pan size
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup real butter
1/4 cup whipping cream (also called heavy cream. This is NOT Cool Whip or cream that is already whipped and fluffy. This is liquid! It is found in refrigerator section near the milk)
1/2 tsp. instant coffee granules (don't worry these won't have a coffee flavor at all!)
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups powdered sugar (also called confectioner sugar)
10-12 oz. semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips (If I have any left over melted chocolate then I just throw some yummy things like nuts, gf pretzels, raisins, cranberries, etc into the chocolate and drop onto waxed paper until set).

Prepare and bake the brownies as directed on the package (or make homemade version). My recipe today is based off of 8x8 pan size brownies. Cool brownies to room temperature. (See my blog for a gluten free brownie recipe if you want to make a batch from scratch!)

I suggest having all your ingredients measured and ready to go because once this starts boiling you need to move quickly. Combine the brown sugar and butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a full boil. Boil for 2 full minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in heavy cream, coffee & salt. Bring back to a boil and boil for a full 30 seconds, stirring constantly. The mixture will be still fairly runny. Remove from heat and cool for 10 minutes before adding powdered sugar. Mix well until no lumps are left. It should now have a heavier texture similar to fudge or fondant. Spread onto brownies. (If you want a thinner layer on your brownies then you can roll the extra Bordeaux candy into balls and dip into melted chocolate for candy!) Melt the chocolate chips in microwave in 30 second intervals, remove & stir at each 30 seconds until smooth. (If you are having a hard time getting the chocolate to melt smooth, add 1 teaspoon of Crisco) Spread over brownies. It will take a couple of hours at room temperature for the chocolate to set. You can harden the chocolate quicker by putting it in the refrigerator but then the brownies will also chill. Leftovers can be frozen for a treat at a later date! :)

Keep in mind that these are very sweet & very rich brownies! If you chose to just make the candies instead of spreading it onto the brownies....just follow the recipe (minus the brownie). Let the candy mixture cool. Roll into balls and flatten slightly. Dip into melted chocolate and you can roll into chocolate sprinkles to mimic the See's Candy version. Place on waxed paper to set.