Thank you in advance for taking the time to read this and answer my questions. I have made this recipe (and the whole wheat version) no less than 10 times. I have followed the recipe and instructions EXACTLY at least 8 of those times (exceptions were twice in attempts to troubleshoot). Only 1 time did I ever get the shiny, flaky top. I have read through EVERY post on both the original and whole wheat recipes and their blogs. I have seen many people who also are not having luck with this "guaranteed" recipe, despite following the recipe exactly. Many times, conflicting advice is given out by the different KAF bakers answering the questions. I even see above in one case where the KAF baker scolds the person for being obsessed with the shiny, flaky top! I have some questions about the instructions and the advice I've seen given here that I hope someone can answer in a straightforward way. First: There's a lot of confusion about the butter/sugar technique. I've seen that the mixture should "simmer", I've seen that it should "reach 110-120F", I've seen that the sugar should "melt" and that the sugar should "dissolve". I don't think that the butter/sugar mix can both "simmer" and stay at 110-120F, so which is correct? Sugar cannot "dissolve" in an oil or fat such as butterfat: there is a small amount of water in the butter, though not nearly enough to "dissolve" all of the sugar in this recipe.On the other hand the temperature at which sugar "melts" is quite a bit higher than 110-120F, and presumably, the sugar would re-solidify upon cooling anyway. So neither of these explanations of what is happening during the butter/sugar heating makes sense to me. Can you please explain to me what exactly is going on in this step? Perhaps understanding what is really happening, or supposed to be happening, will help all of us who cannot seem to get the shiny top that you are "guaranteeing" us!!! Side note: I tried a different technique from another recipe in which the author said the key is to "dissolve" as much sugar as possible into the eggs (which is where most or all of the water of brownie recipes comes from). She said to beat the sugar/eggs until the mixture becomes smooth, thick and ribbon-y. When I used this technique, I got spots of flakiness on my brownies, but not total success. I noticed that despite all my mixing and beating of the eggs/sugar, there remained much undissolved, grainy sugar in the final batter. A few other questions about other variables: what type of oven do you use in your kitchen? Does the heat come from the top (as in many electric ovens) or all from the bottom (as in gas ovens). At what position is your oven rack for baking this recipe? I've also seen conflicting advice about oven temperature: so would too hot or too cool of an oven prevent the flaky top? Thanks again.

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