Okay folks, grabbed the cottage cheese this morning thinking, “Three ingredients? Seriously?” Sounded way too easy not to try. My kitchen counter looked kinda bare anyway. Here’s how it went down, step by messy step.
The Gathering Mission
First, hunted in the cupboard. Found the cocoa powder stashed behind the oats – score! Grabbed the big container. Then, stared at the cottage cheese tub sitting in the fridge. Full fat? Low fat? Recipe didn’t say, so I grabbed the tub we usually get, which is the 2% kind. Figured it wouldn’t kill it. Last, dug out the maple syrup. Almost used honey by accident – close call. Eyeballed the syrup; seemed like a decent amount. Didn’t bother measuring, just trusted the vibe.
Mixing Mayhem
Dumped that whole tub of cottage cheese into a big bowl. Plopped it right in. Added the cocoa powder next – WHOOSH! Forgot to hold the container steady. Cocoa dust went everywhere. Counter, floor, my shirt… lovely. Brushed myself off best I could. Next, glugged in that maple syrup. Went a bit heavy-handed, to be honest. Figured extra sweetness never hurt anyone. Then got the hand mixer ready.
Started mixing on low. Instantly regretted wearing a dark shirt – cottage cheese splatter flew! Upped the speed. Fought those little curds for a good minute or two. Finally got it mostly smooth, kinda like thick, lumpy chocolate pudding. Licked the spoon – tasted surprisingly decent! Not super sweet, kinda tangy from the cheese, but chocolatey enough.
Baking & the Big Wait
Preheated my oven – remembered to do that before mixing this time, miracle! Greased an 8×8 pan with butter; the last scrap in the dish. Used a spatula to scrape every bit of the brownie batter into the pan. Smoothed the top. Slid it into the oven.
Set the timer for 30 minutes. Paced. Smelled that chocolate goodness start wafting after about 15. Torture! Timer finally dinged. Pulled it out. Top looked firm, set, maybe a little crispy around the very edges. Jiggled the pan slightly – center looked solid, not liquid underneath. Whew! Not undercooked.
Results & Honest Thoughts
Let it cool, like, forever. Seriously, waited a whole hour. Finally couldn’t stand it any longer. Sliced a small piece. Texture was… interesting! Denser and thicker than regular brownies, for sure. A bit like super fudgy chocolate cake? Bottom was slightly crusty, middle was moist and fudgy. Taste?
- Chocolate Hit: Good! Cocoa saved the day.
- Cottage Cheese Factor: You could kinda sense it? That background tang. Wasn’t bad, just… different.
- Sweetness: Maybe because I poured extra syrup, it was okay, but borderline not sweet enough for a classic brownie fix. Needed something more.
Hot take? It’s quick. It’s dead simple ingredients. Would I make it again? Maybe if I was stuck in a cottage cheese avalanche and wanted chocolate. It’s not the gooey, super sweet brownie dream, but hey, for dumping three things in a bowl and baking? It works! Next time? Maybe toss in some vanilla or chocolate chips. Trust me on this, those extra couple ingredients? Might just save the day. For now, it did the job and cleaned out the fridge a bit!
