Seal the deal with this chocolate brownie recipe

GODFREY SETWE’S HOMEMADE CHOCOLATE BROWNIE

Wild Coast Sun sous chef Godfrey Setwe guides a team of 34 to maintain high culinary standards at Sun International’s four-star seaside resort on the border of the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal.

Born and raised in Rustenburg in the North West, the 51-year-old’s journey with the group began in 1997 when his late uncle Michael Bogatsu, who was a pastry chef at Sun City, introduced him to the world of hospitality.

Still celebrating the festivities of February? We've got a delectable chocolate brownie recipe from Setwe and executive chef Georgina Hill that will keep the romance alive in the month of love.

Baking ingredients:

• 800g Chockex dark 
• 400g butter unsalted 
• 900g sugar white/brown 
• 1kg cake flour 
• 10g baking powder 
• 15ml vanilla essence 
• 300g pecan nuts 
• 2 eggs

On the plate ingredients

• 10g almond flake 
• ½ tsp honey 
• 10g chocolate shavings 
• 6g red cherry 
• 30g chocolate dark ganache 
• 15g chocolate white ganache 
• 12g buttercream 
• Pinch of gold dust

Method:

1. Place the chocolate and butter in a saucepan and melt over low heat, stirring until smooth.
2. Set the chocolate aside to cool.
3. Use an electric mixer on high speed to whip the eggs in a large bowl.
4. Continue for several minutes, until they turn pale in colour and the batter is thick and velvety, then mix in the vanilla extract.
5. Put away your electric mixer and use a rubber spatula or a whisk for the remaining steps.
6. Pour the cooled chocolate into the egg mixture and stir gently.
7. Stir in the flour, but do not overmix as that will make the brownies dense and tough
8. When a little bit of flour is still visible, stir in the chocolate chips.
9. You can add nuts at this point, too.

Bake

1. Use a metal pan lined with parchment paper.
2. Pour the brownie batter into the parchment-lined baking pan and spread it smooth, pressing the batter into the corners.
3. Use an instant thermometer and remove the brownies when the centre is between 82-91°C.