Mint Brownies

This is a bit of work to make and dirties a lot of dishes, but it's worth it.  It makes a ridiculous amount of brownies, so the next time I make it, I will probably scale it down ... and hopefully remember to update this post with the scaled down version!

Grasshopper Brownies from Smitten Kitchen (from Gourment)

Ingredients

For brownie layer
3/4 cup unsalted butter
10 1/2 oz fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not extra-bitter or unsweetened and no more than 60% cacao if marked), finely chopped
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
3/4 teaspoon salt

For mint ganache
1/3 cup heavy cream
10 oz fine-quality white chocolate, chopped (see recipe notes)
4 drops green food colouring
1 teaspoon peppermint extract

For chocolate ganache
2/3 cup heavy cream
10 oz fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened), finely chopped

Make brownie layer:
1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2. Line a 9x13 baking pan with foil and butter.
3. Melt butter and chocolate with brown sugar in a 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Remove from heat.
4. Whisk in eggs and vanilla until combined. Whisk in flour, cocoa, and salt until just combined.
5. Spread batter evenly in baking pan and bake until set and a wooden pick inserted in center comes out with moist crumbs adhering, about 20 minutes.
6. Cool completely in pan on a rack, about 1 1/2 hours.

Make mint ganache:
1. Bring cream to a simmer in a saucepan and remove from heat.
2. Pour over white chocolate in a bowl. Let stand 1 minute, then whisk until smooth.  If chocolate does not melt entirely, you can stick it in the microwave.
3. Stir in mint extract, food colouring, and chill, covered, stirring occasionally, until thick, about 1 hour.

Make chocolate ganache:
1. Bring cream to a simmer in a saucepan and remove from heat.
2. Pour over bittersweet chocolate in a bowl. Let stand 1 minute, then whisk until smooth. If chocolate does not melt entirely, you can stick it in the microwave.
3. Chill, covered, stirring occasionally, until thick, about 30 minutes.

Assemble layers:
1. Spread mint ganache over top of cooled brownie in a thin even layer using offset spatula, then chill until firm but still slightly sticky, about 30 minutes.
2. Spread chocolate ganache over mint and chill until firm, about 2 hours.

Scaled-down Ingredients for a 9x9 pan


For brownie layer
1/2 cup unsalted butter
7 oz fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not extra-bitter or unsweetened and no more than 60% cacao if marked), finely chopped
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

For mint ganache
1/4 cup heavy cream
7 oz fine-quality white chocolate, chopped (see recipe notes)
3 drops green food colouring
2/3 teaspoon peppermint extract

For chocolate ganache
1/2 cup heavy cream
7 oz fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened), finely chopped 

Also note, cooling the ganauche seems to make it too difficult to pour at these levels, but it firms up nicely.  From now on, I'll let it cool some, but not completely before adding it to the layers.