You can see Charlotte Ree prepare this dish at the Perth Good Food and Wine Show from Friday 21 to Sunday 23 July at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre. View the Kleenheat Kitchen chef schedule here. 

Ingredients:

• 300 g caster sugar
• 80 g cocoa powder
• 150 g plain flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 250 g salted butter, melted
• 3 large free-range eggs, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
• Pinch of sea salt flakes
• 180 g 70% dark cooking chocolate, roughly chopped

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C. Line a square baking tin with baking paper. (You can also make this recipe in a round springform cake tin or rectangular brownie tin, or even as individual brownie muffins or cupcakes.)
2. In a mixing bowl, combine the sugar, cocoa powder, plain flour, baking powder and melted butter. Add the eggs, vanilla and salt, whisking by hand until combined. Stir in the chocolate. Pour the batter into the tin and bake for 40 minutes. The batter will still be a little wobbly and a skewer won’t be clean when you insert it because of the chopped chocolate, but trust that it will harden as it cools.
3. These brownies are best served warm with vanilla bean ice cream. You can keep them stored in an airtight container for up to a week. To serve, place a piece of brownie in the microwave and heat for no more than 30 seconds.

This recipe is from Charlotte Ree’s book Heartbake. Heartbake is available in all good bookstores and online. To find your nearest retailer visit charlotteree.com

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Meet Charlotte Ree

How did you become interested in cooking?

I became interested in cooking as a way to deal with a stressful period in my life – when I was going through a divorce. Cooking became meditative, healing in a lot of ways. It grounded me and brought me back to myself.

What are your favourite ingredients to incorporate into the food you cook?

I cook seasonally and often locally. I go to my local markets every Saturday for fresh produce, followed by my cheesemonger. My favourite ingredients though would have to be butter, salt and cheese!

How often do you experiment with creating new meals?

At least once a week, more often than not on weekends where I have the time to indulge and play. I recently made tortellini in brodo. It was a two-day process but my goodness was it worth it.

What’s a go-to dish you’d prepare for yourself?

At the moment I am making chicken soup for myself each and every week, I have started roasting the garlic and ginger in the oven before adding them to the stock and the flavour is sensational.

What are some of your favourite cafes or restaurants?

I live in the middle of the city in Sydney. My go-tos are my little locals. Gypsy cafe for porridge, Pina for espresso and Japanese eggs, and my ultimate is Bar Vincent. It is like my second home!