I feel like these brownies which evolved from cheesecake brownies are the height of summer decadence. However, I am all about balance these days and when shared with friends these are the perfect treat for those lazy Sunday lunches we all love in the Summer. I actually tend to use the reduced fat mascarpone in these as I genuinely cannot tell too much of a difference. Adding vanilla bean paste to these adds a rich sweet dimension that goes perfectly with the strawberries. However, I part baked these and then had to finish them off in my Uncle’s oven so they aren’t as attractive in the final pictures are they initially were in the earlier ones. However, when I make these again I am pretty tempted to retake some of the final photos so you can see some of the beautiful swirl patterns going on.

To make 12-16 brownies (depending on size preference) you will need:

100g cornflour

200g dark chocolate (Bournville is good for these ones)

250g caster sugar

3 eggs

100g butter

6-10 strawberries depending on size

1 teaspoon vanilla paste or 1 vanilla pod

250g mascarpone (or reduced fat mascarpone).

Preheat your oven to 180°C and line a baking tray with grease proof paper. Whisk the eggs and sugar until thick and the mixture leaves a trail on the surface when you lift the beater. Melt together the chocolate and butter. Set aside to cool while you sift in the flour. Gradually add the chocolate mixture while you continue whisking your eggs. Once all this has combines pour into your baking tray.

In a separate bowl combine the vanilla and mascarpone. Swirl this over the top of the brownie mix. Half your strawberries and dot these on the top of everything else. Bake for about 40 minutes until a skewer comes out of the brownie almost clean.

Cut into squares and serve warm with ice cream or cool as they are.

This is what they will look like when you drive them across a hilly town, but they still taste amazing! I certainly felt pretty decadent eating these.