Triple Chocolate Olive Oil Brownies for Chanukah

The other day I was looking through the Food section of the New York Times, and I saw an article and recipe for Olive Oil Brownies for Hanukah. What a great idea. Perhaps this will be a new Chanukah tradition. After all, Hanukkah celebrates the miracle of the oil that lasted for eight days.

I have my own olive oil brownie recipe (below), but I like Melissa Clark's tips, and I'm going to try her recipe this weekend. From the article and recipe, I think her brownies will be much fudgier than my recipe. You might want to try both recipes and see which you prefer. And, you have eight days to celebrate.

Olive Oil is a great substitute for butter or vegetable oil in your brownies. If you planned to use vegetable oil anyway, olive oil won't change the texture of the brownies. And, if you use a fresh fruity olive oil, you'll be able to taste the olive oil which is a great complement to the chocolate in the brownies. Olive oil also gives the brownies a bit of a peppery note. If you want to be close to the taste of classic brownies, use a mild olive oil. Please, please, don't use the olive oil that's been sitting in your pantry for three months and that might be rancid.  

Olive oil might be healthier than butter, but don't kid yourself. There's a lot of chocolate and sugar in  these brownies, so don't substitute olive oil for health reasons. One more thing, I add Sea Salt to the finish these brownies because I love salt and chocolate! It's optional, as would be adding the chocolate chips to the batter  for Triple Chocolate Olive Oil Brownies. You can also add chopped walnuts for texture. And, as always, use the very best freshest ingredients.

Triple Chocolate Olive Oil Brownies

Ingredients 
3/4 cup mild or lightly fruity olive oil, plus more for oiling the pan
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
Chocolate Chips
Sea Salt

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Line 9-by-13-inch baking pan with foil, leaving 2-inch overhang on   2 sides. Oil foil (don't include overhang).
Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, and salt in medium bowl. Melt chocolate with oil in medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently. Let cool slightly. Stir in sugar and eggs. Add flour mixture, and stir to combine.
Pour batter into prepared pan.
Bake until toothpick comes out with just a few crumbs -- 30 to 35 minutes.
Sprinkle Sea Salt on the Brownies while they're still hot (that way the salt will stick)
Cool brownies completely in pan on cooling rack.
Use foil overhang to help lift them out of pan.
Cut into squares.