Most of us lead very busy lives.

We do our errands, wash the floors, and generally try to be good people. Usually, we don’t think much about rewards. We just buckle down, and try to get the jobs done.

Unfortunately, our culture makes it easy to ignore simple pleasures. There are so many advertisements that put fancy cars and perfumes in front of us. When we think of wanting niceties, they are too often luxury items, far beyond our daily reach.

Because we can’t go out and get them, we do without any goodies at all. However, no matter how stoic we seem, there are times when all of us need to be spoiled, just a little bit, by something special.

This Brownie recipe will do that. If you are on a diet and want to limit your intake of sweets, have one luscious piece and share the bounty with your neighbors. Can’t you do the same thing by getting one at the bakery?

No.

There are few things quite so yummy as a rich and fudgey brownie, fresh from the oven. For total hedonism, try topping one with French Vanilla Ice Cream. If someone that you love could use a bit of pampering, invite them over to share the feast. I promise you, that if you spent a million dollars, you could not buy anything more sumptuous than these.

Ingredients
2 cups Brown Sugar
1 1/4 cups Self-Rising Flour
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons Cocoa Powder
A pinch of Baking Soda
1 tablespoon instant Coffee Powder
1 cup melted Butter or Margarine, lukewarm
3 eggs
1 tablespoon Vanilla extract

Method
In a large bowl, thoroughly mix the dry ingredients.

In another bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients.

Beat the wet ingredients into the dry ones, until smooth.

Bake at 325 degrees, in a greased and floured 9-inch square baking pan for 25 minutes. Do not overbake; they should be a little soft.

A hint for gift-givers:
Mix the dry ingredients, place in a jar, and seal. Write the rest of the recipe on a self-stick label, and put it on the jar. Tie a ribbon around the top and give someone a smile.