Orange Filled Dark Chocolate Brownies

I have always loved the combination of deep, dark chocolate with oranges. I think it's one of the best flavor combinations around. Also, if you have never made your own brownies from scratch, please know that they are very quick, very easy and taste wonderful! I apologize for the less than stellar pic-the filling and ganache kept spilling out when I tried to cut the brownies for photos. Trust me, the filling got spooned up very quickly.

Ingredients (for 12 filled brownies):

Topping:

½ cup granulated sugar (I’m using sanding sugar)
Grated zest of 1 orange

Brownies:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
½ cup dark chocolate chips (for the entire recipe, you’ll need one 10 ounce package, divided)
¾ cups granulated sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
½ teaspoon vanilla
1 cup all-purpose flour
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
½ teaspoon instant espresso powder
1/8 teaspoon salt

Filling:

½ cup orange marmalade (more or less)

Ganache:

1 cup heavy cream
1 ½ cups dark chocolate chips
2 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa

Directions: Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Spray a 12 count muffin tin with cooking spray and set aside. Mix the topping ingredients together in a small bowl and set aside.

In a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium low heat and then add the chocolate chips. Once the chips melt, remove the pan from the heat and add in the sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Whisk in the flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder and salt. Whisk until well combined.  Fill each muffin cup about ¾ of the way full. Bake for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick in the center of a brownie comes out clean. Remove to a rack to cool.

While the brownies are baking, make the ganache by warming the cream in a small saucepan over medium low heat. Pour over the chocolate chips in a small mixing bowl. Whisk in the cocoa powder until smooth and set aside.

Now for the fun part—line up wax paper on your work surface and place wire cooling racks on top. Spray both sides of a teaspoon with cooking spray. Using the bottom of the teaspoon, gently dent each brownie a bit in the center (to hold the filling). Remove the brownies to a wire rack (the best way to do this is to run a butter knife around the edges and use your teaspoon to lift each brownie out) and fill each indentation with orange marmalade. Spoon the ganache over the top, letting it drip down the sides. Let the brownies rest for about 10 minutes and then sprinkle with the topping.