On weekends at Findlay Market, you’ll find a new vendor this summer: The Cottage Bakery. Alice Dunn makes the most ridiculously good homemade cinnamon rolls in her home kitchen. Alice’s cinnamon rolls taste like a leisurely Sunday morning.
For The Findlay Market Cookbook, Alice shared this vanilla brownie recipe, one of her favorites. She says her friends often call them “butter brownies” because they melt in your mouth like a bit of sweet butter. (Get a sneak peek at a few other recipes from the cookbook.)
I tinkered with the glaze slightly when I made the recipe this weekend, because it’s so dang hot, and I feared that a buttery glaze would melt into a hot mess. I had about 3 tablespoons of white chocolate chips left from making the brownies, so I melted them, added about a tablespoon of cream and a splash of vanilla, then whisked in as much powdered sugar as I needed to make a glaze. (The glaze layer is thinner on the brownies in the photo than what Alice recommends, but it’s a little more stable on a hot day.) If warm weather isn’t an obstacle, then by all means go with the double recipe for the vanilla glaze, as Alice advises.
buttery vanilla brownie recipe
makes 16–20 brownies
For the brownies:
1 package (10 oz.) vanilla milk or white chocolate chips (1 2/3 cups)
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. salt
3 large eggs
Preheat oven to 350°; grease and flour a 9-in. x 13-in. baking pan (or quarter sheet pan). In a heavy 2-quart saucepan, melt the vanilla chips and butter over low heat, stirring frequently, just until melted (the mixture may appear curdled). Remove from heat; cool. Stir in the flour, sugar, vanilla and salt. Stir in the eggs, one at a time. Spread the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 30–35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer the baking pan to a wire rack; let the brownies cool.
For the vanilla glaze (can be doubled):
3 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups powered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 to 2 Tbsp. heavy cream
In the bowl of a stand mixer, or in a medium bowl using a hand mixer, cream the butter until it’s smooth. Add the powdered sugar and mix until combined. Add the vanilla and heavy cream (add enough cream to create a spreadable glaze). Spread the glaze over the brownies.
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