We love our chocolate over here at Bells Up. Both Dave and Sara are card-carrying chocoholics (please, no 12-steps for this addiction).
So, when we were sharing our highly reviewed 2015 Titan Pinot Noir with Urban Bliss Life blogger-photographer-social media influencer extraordinare Marlynn Jayme Schotland and she announced, “This wine is fantastic on its own, with BBQ, and I’d totally take this cabin camping. But it would also be AMAZING in – and with – Pinot Noir Chocolate Chip Brownies,” we weren’t going to argue.
She featured the wine and the brownies in a post a few weeks ago—right as harvest ramped up—which turned out to be great timing for our harvest volunteers, but not for OUR blog. Anyway, not only did Marlynn put 2-3 (no more than three!) tablespoons of 2015 Titan into this recipe, she sampled it as well. (We assume in the spirit of Julia Child’s famous quote, “I enjoy cooking with wine; sometimes I even put it in the food.”) Here’s her thoughts on the wine in the glass (as opposed to in the recipe):
“The 2015 Titan Pinot Noir from Bells Up Winery is a great example of what can happen to Oregon Pinot Noir grapes when they get very little rain and several consecutive days of 95-degree heat. They jump up and get in your face (in the friendliest, Oregon way) with a richer, more intense fruit forward pinot. I swear I could hear the dark cherry fruit trumpeting a jubilant parade march as I uncorked the bottle.”
You’re probably wondering if we’ve made these brownies yet. Indeed we have. Four times in the last two months. And, although we really wanted to eat every single one, we did not. Instead, Sara slapped Dave’s hand every time he reached for the pan and made him share with our harvest 2018 volunteers. They are truly amazing and we hope you love them as much as we do.
Photos courtesy of Urban Bliss Life.
Urban Bliss Life Pinot Noir Chocolate Chip Brownies
These brownies have a hint of red wine sweetness and double chocolate, making them a delicious, decadent dessert!
Ingredients
- 1 stick of butter
- 9 ounces of semi-sweet baking chocolate chopped
- 1-1/2 cups sugar
- 2 tablespoons pinot noir wine
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup chocolate chips PLUS about 2 tablespoons for sprinkling at the end of baking (see Notes section)
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9×13″ baking pan. Set aside.
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In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and the chopped chocolate together. The chopped semi-sweet baking chocolate is what gives this recipe it’s ultra gooeyness and chocolate love. Once the mixture is almost melted, add in the pinot noir wine. Reduce heat to low, stir ingredients until the butter and chocolate have completely melted. Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly.
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In a mixer with the paddle attachment, mix together the sugar, vanilla and eggs on medium-high speed until you get a light yellow creamy consistency (about 4-5 minutes).
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Lower the mixer to slow speed and add the flour and salt until well blended.
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Add the slightly cooled chocolate mixture to the mix until well blended, about 1-2 minutes.
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Pour mix into a greased 9″ x 13″ baking pan and then sprinkle the chocolate chips evenly. Some will sink, some will remain on top.
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Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 22-27 minutes. To test: poke a toothpick into the center — at 25 minutes, if it comes out with a small amount of moist crumbs attached to the toothpick, it’s done. If you try to wait until your toothpick comes out clean, you’re going to totally overbake these brownies into bricks, so set aside your conventional knowledge of brownies and know that these are DONE usually at or around 25 minutes.
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Cool brownies in pan at room temperature for about 15-20 minutes before slicing.
Recipe Notes
MARLYNN: At about 10 minutes left on the baking time, I sprinkle a few more chocolate chips on top. These are the ones you see sticking out of the brownies. Adding them later allows them to still melt slightly and stick to the batter, but gives the brownies a pretty look and added crunch to each slice.
SARA: I followed Marlynn’s recipe exactly, EXCEPT I didn’t have any semi-sweet baking chocolate on hand. So I just used the semi-sweet chocolate chips I had in the pantry instead. I also substituted a Gluten Free flour blend for the wheat flour. Both substitutions worked great.
Marlynn also shot some Instagram Video from her kitchen that is super fun too. Enjoy!
