Who Knew?

Last night I made a batch of brownies. My family loves brownies. I made brownies all of the time last summer. It got so bad that Bear told me not to make any more brownies because we were killing a batch every night...yeah, they were that good. He didn't want us walking around looking like the Klumps.

I made the brownies last night also because I needed to take dessert for my lunch bunch at school. Three students bid on a lunch bunch with me and a friend, where I bring the dessert, for my school's PTA silent auction. So, I get the brownie mix...I know you are not surprised that I am not a totally bake from scratch girl...the cake/brownie mixes with some enhancement go a looong way. The way I see it, they are still homemade since I make them in my home:)

Anyway, I put the kids to bed, participate in the the monthly teleconference with Rev. Beckwith (that's another post...so powerful...and I got through with my question AGAIN! I've gotten through the line three out of four times that I've participated. There are about 1500 people on the line and I seem to always get through), and I start making my brownies. I preheat the oven to 350 degrees. I read the directions (actually I glimpse at the pictures). I pull out my mixing bowl, get two eggs from the refrigerator, and measure my oil. I add everything to the mix and begin stirring. I think to myself, "wow this mix is awfully thick, I'm glad Princess isn't helping tonight because it would be too tough for her to stir." Nothing clicks. I pour the mixture into the pan, put it in the oven, and go on about my business for the next 30 minutes.

When I go check on my brownies to see if they need to cook about five minutes longer, I notice that the center of the brownies looks like regular brownies, but the edges look really dense. Uh-oh, as Juciy Boy says, I realize that I forgot to add the water to the mix! I tell Bear and he starts laughing at me and saying that he knew I couldn't read. He proceeds to go on asking how I can teach second grade and not know how to read. He says that I ask kids to read things in class because I can't read them myself, not because they need practice with fluency. He's got JOKES for days!

I don't know what to do to fix the situation. I suck it up and say to myself, "hey, it's late, that's what I made and that's what they'll get." When I woke up this morning and cut the brownies, they were dense, but extremely moist. I tasted a corner of the brownies and knew that I had a hit! The brownies were sooooo good! They were crusty on the edges and chewy gooey in the center like I love! The kids in the lunch bunch loved them. They asked me to make some for the entire class for the last day of school. Princess loved the brownies. She said that she ate her whole lunch so she could eat her brownie. She had a brownie for snack before dinner and got a little upset because she wanted a bigger piece. Yes...I have a new baking secret and I am sharing it with you...leave the water out of the Betty Crocker brownie mix. Try it, I'm sure you'll thank me for the tip...Watch out Food Network!!