This is a recipe for Spiced Chili Beer Brownies. Every single one of those words are delicious. The results are more so.

Ingredients:

Wet team:

2 large eggs
2 cups of sugar
250 grams of butter, melted (if unsalted butter is used, add a pinch into your final batter at step 4)
1 cup of beer

Dry team:

1/2 cup of flour
1 cup of cocoa powder
1 pinch of salt
1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper
2 tsp of garam masala

Step 1: Proper Pan Preparation

Prepare an eight by eight inch baking tin. There are many ways to do this, I personally think the best way is to line the bottom with baking paper and then lather it up with no-stick spray. The batter for these brownies is incredibly sticky, so be sure to prepare your pan properly. Another method is to grease the inside of the pan with plenty of corners and coat it with flour.

Even if your baking equipment claims to be non-stick, please prepare your pan.

Step 2: Sift Together the Dry Team

In a large mixing bowl sift together the dry team: flour, cocoa powder, cayenne pepper and garam masala.

Step 3: Whisk Together the Wet Team

In another large mixing bowl whisk together the eggs. Then add the sugar, beer and melted butter.

A note on melting butter. Be sure to melt the butter slowly - either on a stove stop or in the microwave. If the butter is too hot when added to the other wet ingredients, it will 'cook' the eggs resulting in an unpleasant final product.

Step 4: Add the Wet Team to the Dry Team

Combine the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Mix together to create a thick batter. The batter is quite stiff, but this means a denser brownie. A denser brownie is a happier brownie.

Step 5: Pan and Bake

Transfer the batter into the prepared baking tin and place it into a 150° C oven for 40 to 50 minutes. Check doneness by sticking a toothpick into the centre of the brownies. If the toothpick has no batter on when it is pulled out, the brownies are done.

Step 6: Cool, Divide and Devourer.

Remove the baked brownies from the oven and let them cool for 45 minutes in the pan. Once cooled, turn them onto a cutting board and divide them into 9 pieces (12 if you’re really hungry). Open a beer and enjoy them all at once (or store them in a plastic container for about four days if you have the will power).

Notes and things to think about:

The beer choice is completely up to you, so have fun deciding. I do recommend something a bit darker and headier (like a strong brown ale or perhaps a milk stout). The paler brews can disappear a bit behind the chocolate and spice combination. In this tutorial, I opted for the ‘whatever-was-in-the-fridge’ option.
On the subject of spices. Please feel free to try your own combination of spices for the recipe. The garam masala mix I used here is my own, homemade, concoction. On occasion I have been known to just use only coriander. Closer to Christmas, I spring for extra nutmeg and cinnamon.
The amount of cayenne used is determined exclusively by your own bravery, but I don’t recommend anything above a full teaspoon as it will obliterate the flavour of the beer and the spices.