SO I've become a bit obsessed with Instagram lately. It's like I get this front row seat to view the final, long awaited for embrace of whole grains. When I was running my bakery-- from 1994-2008--I was intent on changing peoples perception of whole grains-- that the whole wheat bread of the 1970s was not really bread, and that approached with freshly milled flours, and cultures to naturally leaven one's dough-- a level of sophistication could be found in a simple loaf of real bread. And now, fast forward to 2016 and the bakers of today are knocking it out of the field. (And we have the honor of milling for some of them.) But Instagram shows me more than just the professional bakers-- I get to see what home bakers are doing with our flour! One of my favorite home bakers to watch these days is @Brooklynbreadnerd -- he's doing some lovely breads with our flours (and Anson Mills flours) and last week he posted a picture of Chocolate Rye Brownies made with our Wren's Abruzzi! I reached out to him for the recipe, so now i present to you, our guest recipe submission from @Brooklynbreadnerd:

I have always found rye flour to have a lovely grassy flavor which pairs beautifully with dark, earthy chocolate. These brownies are rich and decadent, but not too sweet.

150g (2/3 cup) unsalted butter

300g (11 ounces) dark chocolate (60-70 percent cocoa solids), broken into pieces or chopped

50g (1/2 cup) cocoa powder

200g (1 1/3 cups) whole grain rye flour (I used Wren’s Abruzzi Rye)

2g (1/2 tsp) aluminum-free baking powder

8g (1 tsp) sea salt

200g (1 cup) granulated sugar (feel free to use unrefined cane sugar as well)

200g (1 cup plus 2 tablespoons) light brown sugar

200g (4 large) eggs

12g (1 tablespoon) pure vanilla extract

about a teaspoon of flaky salt to sprinkle on top - Fleur de sel (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter a 9X13-inch baking pan, line with parchment, and butter the parchment as well. You could let some of the parchment hang over the sides of the pan so that you can remove your brownies more easily once they are baked.

Melt your butter and chocolate together in a heatproof bowl over simmering water or using short bursts in the microwave. Stir occasionally as this mixture melts.

In another bowl, whisk together the cocoa, rye flour, baking powder, and salt.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, using the whisk attachment, whisk together the sugars, eggs, and vanilla until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Switch to the paddle attachment, and slowly add the chocolate mixture, followed by the dry ingredients. Mix just enough to combine, then pour the batter into the prepared baking pan.

Smooth the top with an offset or rubber spatula, and sprinkle with the flaky sea salt.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the brownies are set. Be careful not to over bake. Let the brownies cool completely before cutting them. I cut my brownies into twelve.