Frangelico Nutella Brownies

It's winter in the South Pacific, today we started talking about Christmas and the desserts and treats we enjoy in the winter. Fudge and brownies and rugelach and divinity and peanut brittle were all on the list. This was a favorite back when we could shop at duty free and I had a pantry with nutella in it. 

Frangelico Nutella Brownies

Prep 15 m Cook 25 m Ready In 2 h 40 m

INGREDIENTS

• 115 g / 1/2 cup butter 
• 60 ml / 1/4 cup hazelnut liqueur (such as Frangelico)
• 60 g / 1/4 cup chocolate-hazelnut spread (such as Nutella), or more to taste
• 1 cup all-purpose flour, sifted
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt 
• 2/3 cup white sugar
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips (optional)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease an 8-inch / 20 cm square baking pan or line with parchment paper. Parchment paper helps dense batters come out of the pan easily.
2. Melt butter, Frangelico (hazelnut liqueur), cocoa powder, and Nutella (chocolate-hazelnut spread) together in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until starting to bubble, about 5 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat and cool slightly. This step cooks the cocoa, giving the dessert a richer flavor. If the Frangelico is added at the very end there will be a stronger alcohol flavor in the finished product. 
3. Whisk flour and salt together in a bowl.
4. Beat white sugar, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract together in a large bowl using an electric mixer until smooth and creamy; slowly mix in butter mixture until smooth. Creamed butter and sugar make air bubbles that make the dessert lighter and less dense
5.  Stir flour mixture into butter-sugar mixture just until batter is combined; fold in (optional) chocolate chips. Pour batter into the prepared pan. Don’t mix the flour too much, a barely mixed dough is fluffier and lighter
6. Bake in the preheated oven until the top is dry and the edges have started to pull away from the sides of the pan, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool brownies in pan for at least 2 hours before cutting. The brownies should cook through, but just barely. Letting the brownies cool before serving will let them finish baking from within.