These brownies have secrets! I baked them, passed them out to my family, my neighbors and my friends to see what they thought. I didn’t say anything, just asked for their honest opinions and this is what I got… “they are so RICH,” “beyond decadent,” “Amazing,” “Great, can I have another one?” (he is 9) and on and on. Not a bad review in the bunch. No one guessed that they were gluten free and from a King Arthur Flour mix.
Yep, two things I rarely play with are gluten-free desserts and mixes. The reason for this tasty little experiment has to do with a young boy I met in upstate NY when I was teaching classes at the Battenkill Kitchen. He suggested that I make them and I couldn’t refuse. I added some dark chocolate ganache, blackberries and possibly the best Mint Leaf Ice Cream I’ve ever had. Gluten-free or not this is one fabulous dessert!
If you want to make brownies from scratch, here’s my brownies recipe.
I’ll start with my ice cream which actually tastes like fresh mint, because that is exactly what it is made with. No hyped up extracts that resemble Trident Spearmint Gum, just natural, summery mint.
Brownies with Ganache + Mint Ice Cream
To make the Mint Ice Cream:
I used a Mortar & Pestle to muddle (mash) the mint. You want to release the oils and essence of the leaves, so they will flavor your ice cream base. *this lovely mortar and pestle was designed by my friend Suvir Saran.
Mash the mint in a couple of small batches to make sure all the leaves are broken up.
Add the mint to the cooled down ice cream base and refrigerate overnight. I prefer to add it when the base is cold so that the mint doesn’t have a cooked leaf flavor.
Once you are ready to churn the ice cream you want to strain the mint leaves out. I used Chinois Strainer
How I came to bake King Arthur Flour’s Gluten-Free Brownies…
Last month I was invited to teach classes for the non-profit organization Battenkill Kitchen, which supports local farmers and educates children about the importance of great food. It was a community event and King Arthur Flour (just a few towns over in VT) donated the flour, baking stones and pizza peels for the classes. We went to pick up all the donated goods from Mike, the GM of flour at King Arthur. As we were loading up our 50 pound bags Mike’s son arrived with a tower of boxes in his hands. He presented them to me and said “you have to try these, they are REALLY good!” By the look on his father’s face I could tell his son had come to this plan all on his own and Mike couldn’t have been prouder. I had to explain to the young lad about the airline’s cruel weight limit and that I wouldn’t be able to get that tower of boxes in my suitcase. He said he’d get his dad to ship them to me and that is exactly what he did.
He sent me their entire line of KAF Gluten-Free products to try, so far I’ve only had a chance to make the brownies. Based on that mix alone, my sons are eager for me to try them all. There are also flours and other ingredients to create the breads from our GF chapter in Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day. The recipe for our Gluten-Free Crusty Boule is a perfect match for the new line of KAF flours, give it a try!
One bowl, a couple of eggs, butter and water is all you need to get the job done. I used an 8″ non-stick cake pan to bake them in.
After they were cooled off I made the ganache. Heat the cream and salt in a medium sized sauce pan to just barely a simmer, turn off the heat and dump in all the chocolate and the butter, swirl the pan so the chocolate is all submerged in the cream, allow it to sit for about 3 minutes then gently whisk the ganache until smooth. Pour the ganache over the brownies and spread it smooth. Allow it to set up. If you refrigerate the brownies they are easier to get out of the pan in nice shape. You can eat them cold or let them warm up to room temperature.
Add a big scoop of the mint ice cream and some berries.
Ingredients
- 1 box King Arthur Gluten-Free Fudge Brownie Mix
Ganache
- 6 oz bittersweet chocolate finely chopped
- 6 oz heavy cream
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter cold
- pinch salt
Mint Ice Cream
- 1 cup mint leaves
- 1 batch Ice Cream Base
Instructions
- Prepare your brownies and your ice cream base. Chill both.
Mint Ice Cream
- Mash the mint in a couple of small batches to make sure all the leaves are broken up. I used a mortar and pestle for this.
- Add the mint to the cooled down ice cream base and refrigerate overnight. I prefer to add it when the base is cold so that the mint doesn't have a cooked leaf flavor.
- Once you are ready to churn the ice cream you want to strain the mint leaves out. I used Chinois Strainer so that the ice cream would be free of leaves, but any fine mesh sieve will do the trick. Freeze according to your Ice Cream Maker's directions.
Ganache
- Heat the cream and salt in a medium sized sauce pan to just barely a simmer, turn off the heat and dump in all the chocolate and the butter, swirl the pan so the chocolate is all submerged in the cream, allow it to sit for about 3 minutes then gently whisk the ganache until smooth. Pour the ganache over the brownies and spread it smooth. Allow it to set up. If you refrigerate the brownies they are easier to get out of the pan in nice shape. You can eat them cold or let them warm up to room temperature.
I have never tried Gluten Free recipes but am “game” where brownies are involved!!
Zoe!
Oh dear! You have made me a baker! I love your new book I got from Food Blogger festival this year, you are amazing, and I can’t stop experimenting – how fun. I’ve always loved to cook, but never bake. Look out world! Would love to try the brownies!! Bacione, Claudia
Delicious…but it is hard to get those things where I love. I will definitely be trying the ice cream.
I love brownies! I’ve been on a quest lately, to find the best brownie ever… so far my boyfriend’s are the best, but I would definitely give the King Arthur mix a try with that mint icecream!
Yumm!
I love mint and chocolate together. This looks like a winner!
mmmm…the hubby and I have not tried GF brownies yet…but we love GF baking!
Even though I just made Dave Lebovitz’ Supernatural brownies…I’d never turn down an opportunity to try any promising brownie recipe…mix or not!!! Time to get out the ice cream maker as well!
Wow, I would love one of these right about now!! Your mint ice cream looks amazing as well!
those look so good! i want them now! =]
This looks so good! I’ll have to wait until July to try them (can’t buy King Arthur in the Middle East!) but will definitely put the brownies at the top of my holiday to-do list. Perhaps I can find a made-from-scratch recipe for gluten-free brownies in the meantime. . .
Do you know, is there a way to make the mint ice cream without a machine? I’ve made a yummy chocolate ice cream by putting the mixture in a container in the freezer and giving it a stir every 20-30 minutes until it sets. Would that work for the mint ice cream with the custard base?
p.s. I like the new look of your website!
Those look sooooo delicious! I think I found my cheat for the week! YUM!
How intriguing! These look sooooo yummy!
Yummy!! King Arthur Flour products are the best! : )
Wow. Those looks amazing!!
Your photos just keep getting better! I have a friend with celiac that will be happy to hear about these.
Mmmmm…cool, cool mint ice cream. Just in time. Love your books!
A friend is just starting a gluten-free diet and is pretty lost. I’ll bet these brownies would make it all better!
can never have to many brownies 🙂
I like brownie and other dessert which are my fatal temptations.
Mint and chocolate together…..yum. One of my favorite combos.
These look wonderful. Cant wait to try them!
I am drooling just looking at the pictures. I love any form of chocolate.
We made vanilla bean ice cream this past weekend. I have mint growing in my garden I will have to try the mint ice cream next.
Everything looks delicious. I love your Artisan Bread book, and browsing your recipes here!
i like brownies. all kinds. gluten free or not
The brownies do look completely fabulous! I have been putting off making the gluten-free breads in your book for no good reason, but I must say these brownies are giving me a reason to begin with the gluten-free diet.