Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Line an 8x8 cake pan or baking dish with parchment. Set aside.

Combine the chocolate, butter, half and half, and granulated sugar in a double boiler. OR you can use a medium glass bowl resting on top of a large saucepan that is half-full of water. (make sure the bowl doesn’t touch the water)

Heat over the simmering water (not a rolling boil) until everything is melted and combined. Gently stir occasionally.

Remove from the heat and allow the mixture to cool to room temperature for 15-20 minutes.

Once it has cooled, whisk in the eggs and vanilla.

Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl. Stir and then fold a HALF CUP AT A TIME of the dry mixture into the wet mixture. Once folded in, you can whisk to get out any lumps.

Transfer to the prepared baking pan. Bake for 50-65 minutes or until the toothpick test returns clean. If the top is browning too much towards the end of the baking time, you can cover it loosely with foil to continue baking until done.

Cool to room temperature on a wire rack before using the parchment to lift it out of the pan and decorate.