These brownies are great because they can be made a day or two earlier, stored in cling wrap and served, warmed, drenched in chocolate sauce and topped with a dollop of whipped cream when you’re ready. However, nothing beats a freshly baked brownie so if you’re at all able to do so, make a batch of these (they’re so quick and easy) and serve with seriously good coffee for that extra special breakfast this Valentine’s Sunday. For those of you that have children and families, include them too so that they don’t feel left out and so that they learn, at an early age, that love truly makes the world go round. Have a super day!

Ingredients

• 90 g plain flour
• 150 g icing sugar
• 20 g unsweetened cocoa powder
• 150 g dark chocolate, 70 % cocoa solids
• 90g unsalted butter, melted
• 2 tbsp golden syrup
• 2 large eggs
• 1½ tsp vanilla essence
• 70 g hazelnuts, roasted, skinned and very roughly chopped – you don’t want it fine

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180 C.
• Grease a 25 cm square baking tin.
• Sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl and mix.
• Melt the chocolate gently in a bowl over a saucepan of gently simmering water before adding the butter and the golden syrup and stirring until everything is well blended.
• Set aside and allow to cool until it is lukewarm before stirring  in the eggs and vanilla essence.
• Fold in the dry ingredients and stir briskly until it’s smooth and then fold in the nuts – pour the mixture into the tin.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 30-45 minutes – the top and the sides will be crusty and the inside will be a little gooey.
• Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin, before serving.