I’ve had quite a few jobs in my life. It’s not a particularly varied CV nor anything particularly exciting but Dear Reader, if you are so inclined, please guess which job of the following do you think was the hardest and which one was the most fun?
1. Telephone market researcher
2. Teaching English to Japan Air Lines flight attendants
3. Teaching English to Japanese children
4. General Manager of a chain of five designer shoe stores
5. I.T. Account Manager
6. Media assistant/planner/strategist
7. Food blogger
If you guessed that being the GM of a designer shoe store was the most fun then I am afraid that you would be wrong. I hate to shatter any illusions but playing with $1,000 pairs of shoes isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be. Presumably my image of prancing around a store trying on designer heels was just a quixotic fantasy. In reality it ended up being the most difficult job I’ve had. I had to visit one of the five stores every day and oversee the staff and help them with sales. Sounds easy? Well not for me. Sales doesn’t come naturally to me and I only find myself genuinely waxing lyrical if I absolutely adore something. And sales doesn’t call for conditional raves.
I wished I had the uncaring, cursory compliments of one of the store managers who would stride by a customer, look down at her and say “Stunning, just stunning” and then turn away on one heel with the sale sewn up. Somehow the customer would be immediately convinced that the shoe was in fact stunning and Carrie Bradshaw was mere moments away. Being able to sell is a gift and sadly one I am not keenly bestowed with.
Despite this, I am going to give you the hard sell on these brownies. I saw them one morning on my friend Celia’s site and knowing of her obsession with perfecting things (among them brownies and biscotti) I was intrigued. I had a mental checklist of the things in my pantry and their corresponding expiry dates and I knew that I had a small packet of sealed chestnut powder that I needed to use soon.
I only had two hours until a hairdressing appointment at @stevieenglish so what better to do than bake them a batch of the brownies. This would mean that I could give them away if they were too irresistible making them effectively safe from my hungry jaws. I’m so glad that I did because pretty much as soon as I sliced the cooling brownie open the knife caught on a few of the chocolate drops. I ran my finger along the knife and it was gooey and gorgeous, just like how a brownie should be inside. I licked my finger and it was deliriously good. The top was crunchy and the inside was gooey yet somehow this was achieve with just two eggs and not a truckload of butter.
Sure there was a lot of chocolate inside these but there’s nothing quite like sinking your teeth into a gooey, slightly sticky brownie and hitting a tidy chunk of chocolate. My friend @carmr who just happened to be at the salon at the same time tweeted “I have one word only, ok 3, BETTER THAN SEX”. So Dear Reader, that’s my last sales pitch. They are better than sex.
So tell me Dear Reader, what is the least enjoyable job that you’ve had?
Chocolate Chestnut Brownies (Gluten Free)
Adapted from Fig Jam and Lime Cordial
- 90g (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter
- 225g (8oz) 50 – 60% cacao semisweet chocolate (I used Callebaut 54%)
- 150g (¾ cup) sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 large (59g) eggs, at room temperature
- 40g (¼ cup) chestnut flour (sifted)
- 135g (1 cup) toasted and chopped nuts, OR 150g (1 cup) chocolate bits (I used Tollhouse chocolate bits that my lovely friend Faith sent me)
- 1-2 tablespoons Dutch process cocoa to sift over the top
Buyer’s tip: chestnut flour can be found at Simon Johnson stores. Store in a sealed container in a cool place as it spoils easily. Use within a month if possible or store in the freezer for 6 months.
1. Preheat oven to 175C/350F or 160C/320F with fan.
2. Measure out all your ingredients and have them ready to go. Line a 20cm (8″) baking pan with parchment paper.
3. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter, then add the chocolate and stir over low heat until melted and smooth. Remove from the heat and stir in the sugar and vanilla until combined.
4. Stir in the eggs one at a time. Add the sifted chestnut flour all at once and stir vigorously until you can feel the batter “snap”. The batter starts out grainy and fairly loose. As you beat it by hand, it will initially feel like nothing is happening, and then it will suddenly feel a bit stiffer – that’s when you’ll know a state change has occurred. This might take one minute, or it might take several. Stop occasionally to check how it’s going. Unlike true fudge, it’s not a huge “snap”, but the texture will definitely change noticeably – it will feel stiffer, look smoother, and pull away from the sides and bottom of the pan. Gently stir in the inclusions.
5. Scrape the batter into the lined tin and smooth out the top. Bake for 25 minutes until just firm. Do not overbake. Allow the brownies to cool completely before lifting them out of the pan and sifting over with the cocoa and slicing.
Plate by Noritake in “Hampshire Platinum”
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89 Comments | Add your own
Those look incredibly tempting! What a decadent treat.
Cheers,
Rosa
Chestnut flour? Wonder if I can find it at Whole Foods? I’ll check when next I go. Anything that is advertised as better than sex must be pretty damn good.
Wowww that looks crazy good!
I agree! I think sales is one of those things that you can work at, but it’s just like another gift–one is more prone or not so prone to being a successful sales/man/woman.
Aaah, aren’t you sweet to try these out for me, thank you! Hopefully all the gluten-intolerant folks out there will find this useful. I have to point out though that I adapted the recipe myself from one in David Lebovitz’ Ready for Dessert – credit where it’s due!
One thing girl, I don’t know if it’s wise to talk about brownies that are better than sex, and then ask people what’s the least (or most) enjoyable job they’ve ever had..
Rinsing, cooking/bleaching and packing tripe. Did this for three months in my uni holidays. Would spend one week packing tripe and the alternative packing offal. The people I worked with were lovely and the money was good too.
These look sooo rich and fudgy! I know just the person to make these for!
LOL – I’ll take your word for it Lorraine. They look delightfully gooey and fudgy.
Wow, how odd is it that I just posted a choc-banana brownie recipe last night! But yours look deliciously decadent… Where can you get chestnut flour?
I’ve only ever had 2 jobs, and my least favourite is the one I’m in now, results and enquiries at a pathology lab
these look amazing! will have to try them out soon… but where can you get chestnut powder?
YUMMMMMM, I will be trying this one out for sure!
I’m sold! I don’t think I have ever seen chestnut flour.
Your funnest job has to be eating,oooops, I mean blogging!
oh . my . goodness! they look perfect!
ps – and where did you get the chestnut flour from?
Yes, certainly more fudge than Brownie
Nom.
My least enjoyable job would have to be when I discovered that being an in-home companion for elderly women involved wiping bottoms and giving sponge baths. Not the thing you want to discover AFTER you’ve accepted the job.
Love these brownies though. I’m excited to try chestnut flour for the first time. 
Wow, those look amazing! I love when you can tell from the photo how delicious fudgy they are…
You taught English in Japan? That’s like my dream job!! Did you do it with JET? (I have a friend who taught in Japan via JET).. would loove to live there one day..
I think the least enjoyable job I’ve had would be as a retail assistant! Stressing over lack of hours and then standing up for 12 hour shifts, ouch!
Ohmeohmy those look so good. I definitely cannot make them because 1) I’ll never find chestnut flour here (I haven’t even seen chestnuts!) and 2) I would eat the entire thing!
And my worst job was cleaning a stadium after events. It was crazy hours (midnight – 4am) and I saw things I hope never, ever to see again. It didn’t last long, eventhough the pay was awesome. It just wasn’t worth it.
Oh my gosh! They do look absolutely gooey and sticky and utterly delicious! I really shouldn’t be food blog hopping when all I’ve had is a skim chai latte for breakfast! *tummy rumble*
It’s never good to look at your blog at 9am. Damn those look good!
I have been a maths tutor, DJ’s Ralph Lauren pimp and auditor. To be honest DJ’s pimp was probably the worst. Customers can be oh so rude.
I’m going to take this as a sign that I need to find some chestnut flour cause I’ve been craving these brownies since I saw them on Celia’s site!
The job I’ve liked least would have to have been working in a coffee shop. I never seemed to get the smell out of my nostrils. I still smell it when I think of it now.
Just wow! I may be trying the gluten free thing, at least now I know I won’t have to completely suffer while doing it if I have these as a treat =) I think my worst job has to have been waitressing, such hard work with so little compensation and the people can be so awful.
I LOVE brownies and after the few weeks I’ve had, I need them right now. I’m definitely trying this recipe.
Regarding the brownies, I do agree with MC’s Matthew! Regarding jobs I would have thought you’d hate the telephone market researcher bit and absolutely love teaching the very polite but sweetly giggly Japanese children – besides food blogging, of course! For me, I adore retail, tho’ I can’t tell a lie for quids – even white ones are difficult!!
Oh yummy! These look so delicious! I’m definitely going to have to give them a go. I love the gooeyness of them.
I have to say the least enjoyable job I have ever had was working as a checkout chick for minimum wage. It was the repetitiveness of the job and the lack of creativity that killed me. Even pretending I was a witness protection candidate on the run from the mafia wouldn’t help me get through a shift…
Just looked at your heading again – better than sex? Don’t quite buy that?!
OMG these look amazing! I love brownies. Where do you get chestnut flour from? I have to make these for myself
wow – they look so moist and absolutely frigging awesome! it would go down so well with my coffee right now
These brownies look amazing I want to make them for my friend who is celiac. Do you think I could replace chestnut flour with almond meal ???
I refrain from claiming anything to be better than sex… My partner may get jealous over it:.:D but these do look gorgeous!
It’s great that there is a brownie recipe that doesn’t require a ridiculous amount of butter and eggs. As a health-conscious slave to chocolate, these brownies look quite reasonable and devilishly decadent!! Can’t wait to try them myself!
I think you should feel proud for not being fake with your opinions and compliments, my dear! It’s much nicer to know that you’re someone who means what you say
And you know Imean it when I say I must make these brownies soon! Except I just splurged on coconut flour so should probably use that before I buy chestnut flour…
I just clicked here from looking for a flourless chocolate cake recipe. I’m baking for a gluten free employee’s birthday. Oh, if I had chestnut flour in hand I’d be making these tomorrow!
XO
Can you use almondmeal instead ?????
I’m guessing being a food blogger is the most fun for you!
I hate retail…People are cranky or snobby, and you just get sick of the whole business.
it looks like fudge! mm chestnutty fudgeywudgey.
know where a girl can get chestnut flour from?
’cause i might try this, but i every time i have baked brownies they have failed D:
YUM! Who does not love a “OOEY GOOEY RICH AND CHEWY” brownie, TRUE!
Your photos make my mouth water for one NOW too!
LOVED making “all things food” at an exclusive country club in the USA…
F-U-E-L-E-D my passion for experimenting with recipes and presentation in a VERY BIG way! WHOO HOO!
I MUST make these! The chestnut powder in it is the most intriguing ingredient. I love chestnuts in sweets! Another great recipe Lorraine!
Im a fully qualified nurse who is now working in fashion.. does that say much?
These look like the perfect brownie! When I read the title, I automatically assumed chestnut chunks (they are the forgotten nut..)These brownies look so deliciously sinful!
How yummy, I love having nuts in my chocolate goods!
How on earth did you get a job teaching English to Japanese flight attendants? That sounds the most fun (after food blogging of course!)
I say 7 is hardest but MOST fun!~ The rest is just hard work, period. the title of this recipe leaves me absolutely no choice but to make one too
Yum, Lorraine!!
PS: having heard a couple of teh war stories on your job as a telemarketer, I’d be tempted to say this was was both the hardest one and the funniest one
I am absolutely always on the hunt for a new brownie recipe…and my darling Lorraine, I am completely sold!
These look amazing, and I can imagine the subtle nutty flavor that the chesnut flour lends is nothing short of amazing. (And yay, fabulous use for the chocolate chips!!)
gosh!! tempting!!
What’s chestnut flour? Don’t think I’ve seen it around here in Malaysia. I thought you added chestnut chunks to the brownie.. yum
sound excellent! I think your selling powers as a blogger are amazing – which is probably why I also guess that this is your favourite job – after all you just sell us all the food you love and who could resist – especially when it is a gooey chocolate brownie – I have chestnut flour that is probably past its best but maybe I can find an occasion for this!
Chestnut flour is a great idea! I love the subtle flavour of chestnuts. You’ve sold me!
I taught English to kids too, in Korea though. Not a bad job but didn’t like the work hours which were during woine toime hours of 4pm to 10pm.
They look SO fudgey and gooey! Yum!
Three fantastic reasons: Gluten free, better than sex, and I just got a bag of chestnut flour today! Win Win for me.
Best job, Cheffing,almost all the time.
Worst job, Boss finding out I had a baby same age as theirs and making me childminder instead of doing my job. So I was being paid to watch someone else kid while I paid someone to watch mine. They even made me tie on a load of roses to the pram on Valentines day and walk around the restaurant tables selling them. I quit!
Better than sex… im sold! I love a good brownie. I can actually have so much of it that sometimes I get quite sick.
I worked some temp job at MET while trying to find my first job… OMG.. so boring!
Yum, I love a gooey soft centred brownie with the awesome crispy topping. Thank you for sharing this recipe, you’ve definitely sold it to me!
Somehow I was going to guess that the designer shoe store job was the hardest. It would be just too good to be true if it was the easiest and best job of the bunch.
My hardest job? Baby-sitting the next-door neighbors’ two young sons when I was a teen-ager. Oh my, they were terrors! I still have nightmares about it.
Lovely brownies you have and no, I do not have a :least enjoyable job” yet. Done only two so far!
No prizes for guessing that one…we all know what a great job you have! As for those brownies…phew, gained a kilo just looking at them!
just love looking at my mail in the morning and finding you there!
Catchy heading, I notice you said a friend tweeted it and not you, so I’m sure MR NQN will forgive you it. I do love a gooey brownie.
Your brownies look soooo moist and chocolaty…I need a bite (probably even more
). I think working as a telephone researcher would be quite hard – because you would find people who would be very rude or would just directly hang up the phone when they notice you’re trying to survey something. Well, at least that’s my understanding of what telephone researchers do (one the jobs at least). But I guess when you work with people, you would always somehow meet rude people…
Oh wow these brownies look so amazingly fudgy and chewy and delicious!
Even just plain “best chocolate brownie” would have convinced me, but with this name, how can anyone resist???
Love chestnuts, love chocolate, sadly can’t do eggs unless they’re fully cooked through but I’m salivating anyway. I’m happy to say that I have never had a job that I didn’t like – people I had to work with is another thing! Nice people make a bad job still worthwhile.
They look gorgeous, Lorraine! Could eat one for breakfast…
Chestnut flour is available in David Jones in Sydney in the food hall, also in some delis (especially Italian ones).
Love these Lorraine must try the recipe soon,especially as my mum adores both chocolate and chestnuts.
Worst job was in my younger days working in accounts at NAB, no computers then but ledger machines . OMG, mine would break down consistently and I would be the last one going home late. Not a happy chappy and I soon left.
LOL this reminds me of the one time that i wrote about a burger being better than sex and of ALL days that was the day my bf’s mates decided to check out my blog. Poor guy copped so much flack!!! Brownies… it ain’t hard for them to be better than sex
My SIL would love this!
OK then…., well they sure look pretty dam good, in fact they look great, I’m going to have to make these. Better than sex you say!!!!
Oh wow, I have GOT to try these brownies.
My worst job? I’d say being a cashier at Walgreen’s when I was in high school. It was right next to a retirement home, and all I felt I ever did was sell laxatives to cranky old people.
*kisses* HH
As soon as I saw that first picture I could tell it was gooey. You’re not at all bad at sales because you’ve just sold these brownies to me
Too bad I don’t have a usable kitchen where I am right now. 
Does cleaning bathrooms count as a job
Your brownies look irresistible. xoxo Mum
They look really good! I have been meaning to try some gluten-free baking, and what’s better than brownies to kick start that idea. Thank you for sharing the recipe! Your blog is really fun to read.
You had me at hello… I’ve lived with Americans most of my life so it would be wrong of me not to road test this. Abstinence fueled by brownies ?
ohh.. damn i got sucked into thinking that being GM of designer shoe stores would be awesome! ehhee gosh these brownies look very fudgy moist rich and comforting like a brownie should be!
Been seeing so many chestnut/chocolate combinations lately, I must really try this. Now to find chestnut flour…
OMG these look amazing. I’ve been into brownie baking recently. So dense, rich, delicious. Perfect for a chocolate craving! I have had many jobs in hospitality. The worst would be at this one bakery – let’s not even go there. I really enjoyed working with this one chef at a vineyard (he was English but specialised in French cuisine). It was just me and him in the kitchen
Heidi xo
This may be a stupid question but is there a substitute for the chesnut flour? I have all of the other ingredients at home already and I want to make them now now now!!
Hi Tess,
You can use almond meal (ground almonds) or plain flour if gluten isn’t a problem for you. The texture might not be exactly the same but it will still be good I think. Please let me know how you go-I’d love to hear how they turn out!
for awhile, i had to call alumni of my college and ask for donations. i found out quickly just how rude people can be!
LOVE these fudgy bars!
These brownies look perfectly decadent and so wonderfully chocolaty!
These do look incredibly fudgey, Lorraine! BTW, the munchkins are my grandchildren:) Have a great weekend, Sue
Looks so fudgy delicious! Haven’t come across chestnut flour yet but might try this recipe with almond flour.
Better than sex? What happens if you take them to bed with you?!
My least enjoyable job was a teenage weekend job in a pre-packed sandwich factory. It was vile. In fact I may have to write a blog post about it…!
Oh Lorraine you fabulous lady! I’m currently not allowed any gluten, but I am allowed chocolate. I am also pretty sure I’m allowed anything described with those three words. omg. Thank you
Regarding the chestnut flour, just a heads up – David Jones Sydney City Food Hall does *not* have it… I spoke to the buyer at lunchtime (I was the second one to ask today! Was it other NQN readers asking?)
They may look at getting some in.
You must be a better salesperson than you think because I’m finding these brownies irresistible after reading your post and looking at these photos. I found my first job working at a cafe to be most challenging because of our boss’s personality.
I found chestnut flour at the deli in Castle Towers. Last bag…though the owner said he might keep stocking it!
These brownies aren’t as thick as the brownies I usually bake but their gooey-ness and richness make up for it!
These sound delish NQN! If I can’t find chestnut flour, do you think hazelnut meal would be ok?
That’s one lucky hair salon. If I could find chestnut flour here, I will give these a try. Any excuse to make my house smell like chocolate and I have lots of friends who are always waiting for my left overs.
9 years in hospitality, I thought I hated it until I started my own business (in construction).
Rude customers who refuse to pay, the non-stop stress of failing, breakdown of a 5 year relationship, and aging 50 years in the space of 2 years. But I must say the worst part is the collective ‘thought’ from both customers and employees that because you own a business, you’re rolling in money and can afford to give them free stuff. I earn more now making minimum wage in a cafe
Those look gorgeously sinful. Bookmarked and stumbled!
Wow! I made these this weekend (with almond meal…I scoured the eastern suburbs for chestnut flour to no avail). They turned out lovely: moist, dense and chocolaty. Delicious and easy…this is my new favourite recipe!
Made these yesterday – sooo very good! Chestnut flour available at the deli near Coles in Chatswood Chase…
I have been wanting to try this for so long and yesterday I finally did.
As my son is dairy intolerant I swapped butter to alpha one oil and used almond meal instead of the chestnut flour as I cannot get it here, chocolate was dark chocolate.
The result was sooo moist and gooey and extremely delicious.
Another bonus thing was that I made it all in one pan.
Thanks for another winner Lorraine
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