Coffee Meringue Brownies

I made some chocolate doughnuts the other day. They were hard work from start to finish and I really didn't think they were going to be very nice. I baked them, filled them with chocolate custard, topped them with chocolate glaze and stared at them with disappointment written all over my face. They were a lot of work and they didn't look very pretty at all. I harrumphed a lot and then put them on a serving platter, fully expecting my kids to tell me politely that they were "nice".  Much to my surprise, the boys raved about them. Apparently they were "awesome".  My 11 year old son Joey asked when they were going on the blog. He was devastated when I told him I was so convinced they were going to be terrible, I didn't take any photographs. Fast forward to these Coffee Meringue Brownies. I cut Joey a slice and asked him how it was, he replied "blogworthy".


Coffee Meringue Brownies
adapted from Donna Hay

For the Brownie:
200g dark chocolate, chopped
250g unsalted butter
150g caster sugar
175g light brown sugar
4 eggs
200g cake flour
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 tablespoon Kahlua

For the Coffee Meringue:
4 eggwhites
220g caster sugar
1 tablespoon cornflour
2 teaspoons white vinegar
1 teaspoon Kahlua

Make the Brownies:
Preheat the oven to 160 C. Lightly grease a 13cm x 37cm loose-bottomed tart tin and set aside.

Put the butter and chocolate into a small saucepan over low heat and stir until they have melted. Set aside to cool slightly.

Place both the sugars, eggs, flour, cocoa powder and Kahlua in a bowl with the chocolate mixture and mix well. Pour into the prepared tin and bake for 25 - 30 minutes, or until set. Allow to cool in the tin.

Make the Coffee Meringue:
Put the eggwhites into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whisk until soft peaks form then gradually add the sugar and whisk until the mixture is glossy and thick. Add the cornflour, vinegar and Kahlua and whisk to combine. Spoon the meringue over the cooled brownie and blast it with a kitchen blowtorch (or grill (broil) on high for a minute), until toasted.