Good luck (and a good brownie, too)

First things first. The winner of the beautiful Rusted Chain cupcake necklace is entry no. 36 (generated with random.org)... Diana! Her favourite sweet treat is red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting. I can't say I blame her.

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I had the best week last week. It was a week that disproved the superstition that breaking a mirror brings seven years of bad luck. In fact, I think it brings seven days of good luck.

On Monday morning I had just finished doing my makeup for a job interview while watching BBC Breakfast when, in typical clumsy Hilary fashion, I knocked over the freestanding mirror I had leaned against the coffee table for the purpose. It broke into three pieces. Oh great, I thought. I'm not going to get the job now. But over the next week:

1. I got the job.
2. I got an offer of some freelance work which had previously looked unlikely.
3. I got another university offer, so I now have two to choose from within commuting distance of my house.
4. I found out that Series 4 of The Tudors was finally starting on the BBC.
5. I went to a book group mainly made up of my fellow boarding school "faculty wives" and actually enjoyed it.
6. I caught up with the local farmers' market, which though small, features dairy and vegetables and bread and baking and honey and more free range, organic meat than you can shake a stick at.

I also made these really good Ottolenghi brownies. After the unwelcome coffee and walnut cake from last week, I had promised Ed something he would like. And he really likes anything chocolate.

I knew that the brownies in the Ottolenghi shops have a big following, and now I can see why. These have all the hallmarks of a really great brownie in my book: dense, moist, fudgy and not too sweet. Ottolenghi also add stuff to their bars - toffee, jam, chestnuts, macadamia nuts, white chocolate... I love the principle of brownie add-ins so I've written this recipe so you can add whatever you want. This time around I went with mini marshmallows, dried cranberries and dark chocolate pieces, but it's infinitely flexible.

Ottolenghi Brownies
Adapted from Ottolenghi: The Cookbook

200 g unsalted butter
280 g plain (all purpose) flour
1/2 tsp salt
300 g dark chocolate (at least 70% cocoa solids), broken into pieces
2 large eggs
220 g granulated or caster sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
375 ml "additions" (chopped nuts, dried cranberries, dried sour cherries, mini marshmallows, white chocolate chunks, toffee bits, etc.)

Preheat the oven to 175C / 350F. Grease a 22cm / 8in square baking pan and line with parchment or baking paper, leaving some to overhang the edges of the pan on two sides.

Whisk together the flour and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.

Put the butter and chocolate in a saucepan set over very low heat. Leave to melt, stirring from time to time. Turn off the heat.

In a large bowl, combine the eggs, sugar and vanilla. Beat vigorously for about a minute, until the mixture becomes pale and foamy. Fold in the melted chocolate mixture, then fold in the flour, just until combined. Add your chosen additions and fold in until well distributed.

Pour the batter into the pan and smooth the top. Bake in the centre of the oven for about 25 minutes, until a knife inserted in the centre comes out with gooey crumbs sticking to it. The brownie will feel thicker but not entirely set in the middle - if it seems like it isn't quite ready, then it's probably time to take it out! Allow the brownie to cool completely before cutting into squares - you may want to give it some time in the fridge if you want it to set very dense and fudgy.