These are very good. I made these for Father's Day for my father, and he absolutely LOVED these. He said that out of all the brownies that he has ever tasted, these are the best , hands down. Little does he know that these only took 10 minutes to make. Who has to know? :)
The frosting is optional, but it really complements the taste of the brownie and makes all the difference. I strongly recommend making the frosting, unless you are counting calories. These are FUDGY brownies; not cake-like brownies!!

1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs (or whatever your brownie box calls for. Ghirardelli brownies call for only 1 egg, but most call for 2 eggs.)
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons instant espresso powder
1 (19.8-oz) box brownie mix
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, room temperature

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF; grease a 9 x 13 inch baking pan.
2. Whisk 1/3 cup water, oil, eggs, 2 tablespoons espresso powder, and 1 teaspoon vanilla in a large bowl to blend. Add brownie mix.
3. Stir just until moistened, about 40 strokes. Stir in chocolate chips.
4. Bake for about 35 minutes or until a few moist crumbs cling to a toothpick or knife when inserted 2 inches from the edge.
5. Meanwhile, dissolve 2 teaspoons espresso powder in 2 tablespoons water in a medium bowl. Whisk in 1 teaspoon vanilla.
6. Add powdered sugar and butter and whisk until smooth.
7. Pour glaze over brownies and refrigerate until set.

Yield: about 2 dozen bars