What’s that mess, you ask? That’s the beginning of this weekend’s delicious baking project: Strawberry-Habanero Brownies! Remember the jam lady who I spoke so highly of last week? Well this weekend I broke into my stash of jam to put a new spin on a classic recipe.

When it comes to brownies, there is one recipe that has become irreplaceable in my house: Alton Brown’s Cocoa Brownies Recipe. I tried it on a whim one day, and Frank begged me never to use another brownie recipe ever again. If you like your brownies crisp around the edges and slightly gooey in the center (which, if you don’t… we’re probably going to have issues), this is really the only recipe you’re ever going to need.

This variation couldn’t be more simple: I made the brownie batter, poured about half of it into my prepared pan, globbed out the jam on top of the batter, used the tip of a knife to swirl it around, and covered it with the rest of the batter. Then just bake as usual. Just be sure to create a thick foundation of batter before you add the jam, and try not to let the jam sink to the bottom of the pan — it will make the brownies fall apart when you cut them up.

I used the brilliant strawberry-habanero pepper jam that I bought from Coyote Kitchen, which is really the perfect combo of spicy and sweet. You can use any flavor you happen to have on hand — I’d like to try mixing in a bit of powdered ginger with apricot jam and swirling it into these!