Coconut almond brownies

I found this recipe in a Ladies Home Journal cookbook, and it made me wonder why I'd never thought of it before. Chocolate, coconut and almonds are an obvious combination, and I've been missing out on it for years.  Nevermore, I say.  Nevermore.

I used my own standard brownie recipe as the base for these (shhhhh...it's the one on the inside of the Baker's Unsweetened Chocolate box).  You could use this one, too, or whatever basic brownie recipe you like best.  Different people like different qualities in a brownie.  There's the fudgy camp versus the cakey camp, and all manner of gradations in between.  No doubt this would even work with a brownie mix, but you can test that for yourself.



Brownie layer:
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate
3/4 cup butter
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup flour (whole wheat is great!)
1 cup coarsely chopped almonds, toasted

Coconut layer:
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 Tbsp. flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. vanilla
7 ounces sweetened shredded coconut

Heat oven to 325 degrees.  Line a 9"x13" pan with foil and spray with baking spray (or grease and flour).

For brownie layer:  Combine butter and chocolate in a large microwave safe bowl.  Microwave on High for 1 minute.  Add 30 second intervals until butter and chocolate are nearly melted (a few lumps are good and mean you haven't burned it).  Stir together until the mixture is smooth.  Mix in sugars, eggs and vanilla and beat well.  Then stir in flour.  Spread mixture into greased pan and sprinkle chopped almonds on top of the batter.

For coconut layer:  In a smaller bowl, whisk together sugar, egg, flour, baking powder and vanilla. Stir in coconut.  Spoon evenly over brownie layer.  Don't be afraid to use your fingers to redistribute the coconut as necessary.

Bake 40-45 minutes, until golden and just set in the middle.  Cool completely on a wire rack.  If you want nice clean edges when you slice the bars (let's pretend you're making them for a party rather than devouring them all yourself in front of the latest episode of Sherlock), put the pan in the refrigerator for 30 minutes before cutting.