On Saturday afternoon I found my self standing in my kitchen, sipping a hot cup of milky Ovaltine. As I stood there, I started reading the Ovaltine canister… you know, like you read the box of cereal as you eat breakfast.
It turns out that my unassuming canister of Ovaltine had a recipe for me. I paused. I raised an eyebrow. I set down my mug of Rich Chocolate Ovaltine and I decided to bake their Ovaltine brownie recipe.
Let me stop here to answer the questions that have undoubtedly formed in your mind.
Yes, on rare occasions, I’ve been known to enjoy a cup of warm Rich Chocolate Ovaltine. A girl can only drink so much tea.
No, I will never again enjoy a warm cup of Rich Chocolate Ovaltine.
Why? I’ve discovered that Rich Chocolate Ovaltine is neither rich, nor chocolate. I’m not even convinced that it’s food. It should not be baked into brownies. Ugh. God. Ick. No! Mistake.
What happened? My ‘brownies’ came out of the oven bubbling with butter and chocolate-ish preservatives. Brownies are not supposed to bubble with butter. My house didn’t even smell like warm brownie goodness. It wasn’t a pretty picture. I felt sorry for the two sticks of innocent butter that I subjected to such torture.
But I learned something- something that I had already known, but my judgement must have been clouded by artificial chocolate flavoring. Use real ingredients. There is no substitute. Ovaltine is not chocolate. It might say it’s chocolate. It might strive to be chocolate, but it’s not, and it has no business in your brownie pan.
Sigh.
Don’t get it twisted. I’m not entirely hating on Ovaltine. Ovaltine rocks the house in my Chocolate Buttercream Frosting.
{ 23 comments… read them below or add one }
The only time I’ve used Ovaltine in baking is for a double-chocolate & malt cookie recipe (think from Dorie Greenspan). It was really good but there was a lot of other (good, dark) chocolate in the recipe.
Boo to bad brownies! :)
Oh wow, that sounds like it ought to be good but wasnt. I did a malted chocolate cake for a friends birthday and was very happy, as I also was with dorie’s malted whopper drops.
http://www.chow.com/recipes/12230
http://forayintofood.blogspot.com/2008/09/sunflower-cake-and-blogiversary.html
http://forayintofood.blogspot.com/2008/04/chocolate-malted-whoppers-wow.html
I loved ovaltine when I was a kid but I did not get the real thing very often and carob (sp). however, with my fond memories of ovaltine I can’t imagine them made into brownies.
I’ve been known to down a mug or two of Ovaltine in the cold winter months up here. Thanks for warning us about the brownies, though. I would have fallen for the recipe too. It’s a nice thought though; too bad it didn’t execute.
Joy! I am now forewarned about Ovaltine. Thanks for posting yesterday’s Chicken Paprika with noodles. The weather here in Portland is horrendous now and your chicken will be perfect to warm my body and soul. As always….THANK YOU!
Hmmmmm…never even had Ovaltine, so shocked they even have recipes on the back. Butter abuser!
sounds like you were reminded of why you enjoy real ingredients so much! I’ve never had ovaltine (I know I think I must be weird or something), so I can’t imagine the flavor. Too bad 2 sticks of butter had to be sacrificed!
Yes people, Joy’s Best Chocolate Buttercream is amazing with Ovaltine in it. It gives it something extra. Its the only choc frosting recipe I use!
I just can’t get past hearing the squealing chorus of children’s voices: “More Ovaltine, please!” I don’t buy it just to avoid the reminder. But you have it in a chocolate buttercream? See, now I HAVE to buy it. You have single-handedly inspired me to bake. Like for real bake. Not just make my chocolate chips cookies and the occasional pan of bread pudding. Cakes and cupcakes and homemade icing and brownies not from a box. And my sweet little Japanese mother-in-law just gave me her collection of pastry tips, stored in an old-as-dirt metal BandAid container. Between the two of you, I see myself perpetually covered in flour.
Years ago we found a GREAT use for Ovaltine…..we used it as the dirt in my oldest son’s California mission model. The consistency of the ovaltine powder makes perfect dirt!
It’s a shame about the brownies. I always try the recipes on the box, it was like my mother’s cookbook, so I guess I picked up the habit. My favorite lasagna is still the one that’s on the back of the noodle box!
OK…I will admit it. I like Ovaltine with cold milk. I guess in my delusional mind it is a healthier chocolate milk. LOL I have never had it hot. That being said, I don’t think I would have ever thought to make brownies with it. I have never even seen the recipe on the can after all these years. It just seems like it would be icky and not chocolately enough for me.
I do think I will try your frosting though. That might be my solution to the frosting for my family’s Dobos Torte recipe that I can’t seem to get quite right. (I did once…the very first time I made it, but I am convinced that was because of an act from God since it was for a huge family reunion.)
The best brownie recipe I have found, thus far, is on the Nestle Toll House Cocoa container. Perfect every time if you follow it to a “T”. One pan doesn’t last a day in our house.
I can picture the disgust of your discovery, like Ralphie on A Christmas Story after he decodes the message from the radio: “Drink…your…OVAL-TINE?!” Hmm, well Ovaltine brownies don’t sound quite right but a cold glass with milk is classic.
Ack! This really bothers me – I drink Ovaltine with cold milk every morning for breakfast and I have for a long time! Ha! Maybe I’ll switch to oatmeal…
I’ve never tried your buttercream frosting with Ovaltine, but I’m looking forward to it! Sorry the brownies didn’t work out this time.
Oh man, I love Ovaltine…doesn’t it actually have a few vitamins in it?
I don’t think I would like Ovaltine brownies, but it is great sprinkled over ice cream!
I’ve decided that if it claims to be “cheesy” it will have no cheese. If it claims to be “buttery” it will have no butter. If it claims to be “chocolaty” it will have no chocolate. Beware!
No! It works, really! Try mine – even Godzilla loves it!!
http://justjennrecipes.com/ovaltine-brownies/2008/10/16/
Plain Ovaltine is great to add to baking since it is just malt.
one of our granddaughters brought us some homemade Ovaltine/Malt powder Choc. Chip cookies and they were to die for–you know, one of those ‘fight for the last one’ kind! Soooo, baking with Ovaltine isn’t All Bad in my book!
Question: I’m trying to duplicate a cookie that was made by Archway during the Christmas season. I believe it was called Pecan Nougat…lucious little “snowballs” rolled in confectionary sugar that seemed to “melt” in your mouth which led me to believe there was malt in the ingredients. Do you have any ideas?
I found a great chocolate banana bread recipe on the back of an Ovaltine can. It was so moist! I wish I had saved it.
My step-dad made Chicken Mole with Ovaltine. Kind of scary right?!? but he was so proud of it my mom couldn’t say a bad word about it. We did get a good chuckle over it and he IS getting Ovaltine for Christmas.