Mug Brownies

We love Colorado.  I can't emphasize that enough. 

We also love Colorado's annual winter encore (usually right around my birthday at the end of March), but this year we enjoyed 18 inches of snow, beginning on April 15th.  When it snows this late in the spring, it's almost like a second chance at the holidays.  So this year, we celebrated our snowstorm with desserts.

Little J is a bit too small for snow shoeing, so we admired the fluffy day from inside our warm, chocolatey kitchen.

Since the snow continued to fall for several days, we had multiple opportunities for snuggly, sugary celebrations as a little family.  My favorite dessert to make (and by far the easiest that I know of) is Mug Brownies.

These are sooooo easy and always end up tasting delicious.  And, since there are no eggs in the recipe, the batter can be consumed raw (if you're really in a hurry for something sweet)!

Ingredients:

1/4 C. Sugar
1/4 C. Flour
2 T. Cocoa
Pinch of salt
2 T. Oil
3 T. Water










Directions:

Mix dry ingredients in mug.  Once combined, mix in wet ingredients (I switch off between olive oil and vegetable.  I can't taste the difference, honestly).  Mix very well. Once smooth, scrape down sides of mug and microwave for 2 minutes. Mug will likely be very hot.  Use caution when removing and allow to cool for a couple minutes before devouring. 

Seriously, mix the batter really well.  Otherwise you may end up with a really salty bite right at the bottom and be left with such a salty taste in your mouth that you are forced to bake another brownie to wash down the salty flavor.

After the brownie has cooled slightly, I add some chocolate syrup right over the top.  It will melt and ooze down through the brownie (making it super duper moist and rich).  I've also done this with caramel syrup - equally heavenly.

Then I pull out some of my favorite fridge friends.  This step is never necessary (but trust me, it's worth the extra calories).

 

I make our brownies as pretty as I can, because once we dig in they don't last very long.   And they were mmmmmm... perfect for a snowy day indoors.  I can't wait till Little J is old enough to enjoy this treat!