Bouchons

Bouchon...French for a cork, a stopper, a plug. Also, the highly acclaimed restaurant of Thomas Keller.

Quoting Wikipedia..."According to Le petit Robert this name derives from the 16th century expression for a bunch of twisted straw. A representation of such bundles began to appear on signs to indicate restaurants, and by extension the restaurants themselves became known as bouchons. The more common use of "bouchons" as a stopper at the mouth of a bottle, and its derivatives, have a different etymology".

They do like little corks!

Whatever the derivation of the word bouchons, this recipe belongs to Thomas Keller and is from his cookbook Bouchon. My daughter, who is the Director of Catering for one of Milwaukee's finest restaurants, had the pleasure of meeting and talking to Thomas Keller in person last year when he did an special event here. She said he was a very nice person.

Recipe, great! Kind and nice person attributed to that recipe makes it delightful!

I made these for my son-in-law's birthday this week. They were -

Delicious! Tiny bites of buttery, brownie goodness.

My Bouchon mold. 

Bouchons

Adapted from: Thomas Keller "Bouchon"
Printable Recipe

3 1/2 ounces (3/4 cup) all-purpose flour
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (use the best you can afford)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3 large eggs
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
24 tablespoons (3 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and just slightly warm
6 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped into pieces the size of chocolate chips (again, use the best possible)

Confectioner's sugar for dusting

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray the molds with baking spray and set aside.

Sift the flour, cocoa powder, and salt into a bowl; set aside.

In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in another large bowl if using a handheld mixer, mix together the eggs and sugar on medium speed for about 3 minutes, or until very pale in color. Mix in the vanilla. By hand, add about one-third of the dry ingredients, then one-third of the butter, and continue alternating with the remaining flour and butter, mixing with a spatula. Add the chopped chocolate and mix to combine.

Put the bouchon molds on a baking sheet. Fill each mold about two-thirds full. Place in the oven and bake for about 20 minutes. A toothpick inserted into one of the molds should come out clean but not dry (there could be melted chocolate from one of the chocolate pieces that remain). Transfer the bouchon mold to a cooling rack. After a few minutes, invert the molds and let the them cool upside down. They should release quickly.

To serve, dust with confectioners' sugar and serve with ice cream and berries, if desired.

But I guarantee you, they didn't taste like corks, they were delicious bites of buttery, brownie goodness!

My petit bouchon molds. I think you could use a variety of molds for this recipe - just adjust the baking time.