Ina Garten's Brownie Pudding is our March bonus recipe for Barefoot Bloggers, thank you to Tia of Southern, Eh? who picked this delicious treat! Now I have to be completely honest and say that Brownie Pudding is a dessert that I probably wouldn't have picked on my own. A few years ago I tried a similar sounding recipe for Chocolate Pudding Cake that was cooked in the slow cooker, and while I'm sure there are great crock-pot Chocolate Pudding Cake recipes out there, the one I tried was awful. I haven't had the desire to do any kind of treat like that since. I'm also not a crazy chocoholic, I would rather make (or order if dining out) a non-chocolate dessert, although I do enjoy chocolate in moderation and every now and then a chocolate splurge. This dessert is the perfect chocolate splurge :)
I am so glad that I gave Ina's Brownie Pudding a chance, it was amazing! A really rich, chocolate, decadent treat. I halved the recipe but kept the cooking time the same, so maybe my Brownie Pudding was overdone just a touch and more like a Pudding Cake, but that was just perfect for us. I do not think I would have enjoyed a total liquid layer on the bottom, and no worries, that didn't happen with this recipe. The top was crackled and crispy like a brownie, and break through that thin shell and you have ooey gooey warm brownie goodness. I prefer my brownies a touch underdone rather than overdone, and that is just the texture this recipe yields. Think warm brownies, fresh from the oven, too hot to hold with your hands to eat or even cut. Yum! I am one of those that prefer brownies from the middle of the pan (I leave the edges for my husband who loves those) and this dessert was like all brownie middles.
Ina Garten's Brownie Pudding
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, plus extra for buttering the dish
4 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup good cocoa powder
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
Seeds scraped from 1 vanilla bean (I didn't have a vanilla bean and used 1 tsp. vanilla)
1 tablespoon framboise liqueur, optional
Vanilla ice cream, for serving
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly butter a 2-quart (9 by 12 by 2-inch) oval baking dish. Melt the 1/2 pound of butter and set aside to cool.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs and sugar on medium-high speed for 5 to 10 minutes, until very thick and light yellow. Meanwhile, sift the cocoa powder and flour together and set aside.
When the egg and sugar mixture is ready, reduce the speed to low and add the vanilla seeds, framboise, if using, and the cocoa powder and flour mixture. Mix only until combined. With mixer still on low, slowly pour in the cooled butter and mix again just until combined.
Pour the brownie mixture into the prepared dish and place it in a larger baking pan.
Add enough of the hottest tap water to the pan to come halfway up the side of the dish and bake for exactly 1 hour. A cake tester inserted 2 inches from the side will come out 3/4 clean.
The center will appear very under-baked; this dessert is between a brownie and a pudding. Allow to cool and serve with vanilla ice cream. 
My only changes were swapping out the vanilla bean for vanilla, and halving the recipe. We all loved the results and if we are even in need of a chocolate fix I will make this again for sure. What an easy, homey, comforting, and delicious dessert, yum!
