Here they are, the brownies I’ve always wanted and never found. I didn’t know my brownie life was lacking; for years, I’d been melting chocolate in a double boiler along with some butter to make the Martha Stewart version. Those were always good. So were all the other brownie recipes I attempted with a similar technique: melt chocolate and butter, stir in sugar, eggs, flour, and voila, brownies. The resulting brownies were always enjoyable–fudgy, flat–but never reminiscent of the brownies that made me love brownies in the first place. Until I came upon this recipe.
I saw it last week on Food52. It came to them by way of dessert guru Alice Medrich’s cookbook. But even though this brownie recipe was news to me, it’s been kicking around for a while. Smitten Kitchen’s made ’em. Bon Appetit featured them with a slight twist: they browned the butter first. I’m not claiming to have discovered this recipe by any means, but I will claim this: these are the best brownies I’ve ever made, hands down.
And who would’ve guessed that the secret is what you see in the image above: cocoa powder. Good old fashioned cocoa powder. No expensive bars of Valrhona chocolate, no imported European butter. Just cocoa powder. What the cocoa powder gives these brownies is structure; whereas, the melted chocolate brownies are kind of slumped over like stoner teenagers watching “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” on the couch, these cocoa powder brownies sit up straight in their chairs, raising their hands first to answer the question. Sure, they’re obnoxious, but they’re also the best.
The process is so easy, I can’t imagine making brownies any other way going forward. You put butter, cocoa powder and sugar into a double boiler and turn up the heat until the butter melts and you have a thick, chocolate paste. You let it cool and then add vanilla and eggs.
At the end, you add the flour and, if you like ’em, chopped walnuts. You know, it’s funny, as I’ve gotten older I’ve started appreciating walnuts in my brownies. When I was a kid, I hated them, but now I like the texture and flavor it adds. Plus, back on my Mediterranean diet kick for a second, it makes the brownies healthy! Ahem. Per Food52’s advice, sprinkle with flaky sea salt and bake for 25 minutes (confession: I added a splash of coffee and that upped the baking time to 40 minutes; give it a try, if that sounds intriguing) and there you are.
Look, I know what you’re thinking: “Here he goes again with one of his ‘best of your life’ posts.” But did I steer you wrong with broccoli? I did not. And I still stand by this chili as the best of my life. So make these brownies and we’ll talk. I wager that you’ll find them delicious; and perhaps, as happened with me, this’ll become your go-to brownie recipe forevermore. I’m ready to sign the papers.
Recipe: The Best Brownies of Your Life
Summary: From dessert guru Alice Medrich by way of Food52.
Ingredients
- 10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter
- 1 1/4 cups sugar
- 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (natural or Dutch-process)
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 cold large eggs
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour (2 1/2 ounces)
- 2/3 cups walnut or pecan pieces (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325. Spray an 8 X 8 baking pan with cooking spray, then line it with parchment paper so the parchment hangs over the sides (this way you can lift the brownies right out). Spray the parchment too.
- Combine the butter, sugar, cocoa and salt in a medium metal bowl and fit the bowl on top of a pot of simmering water. Stir, watching the butter; if it’s not melting quickly enough, turn up the heat. Keep stirring until the butter’s all melted and you have a paste. Stick your finger into the paste and when it’s hot enough that you’re like “ow,” remove the bowl from the pot and allow it to cool a bit.
- Stir in the vanilla with a wooden spoon. Add the eggs one at a time, stirring vigorously after each one. Add the flour and stir until it disappears, then beat vigorously for 40 strokes with a wooden spoon (I suppose this develops the gluten a bit and helps give those brownies structure? Just a guess). Stir in the nuts and spread evenly in your lined pan. (At this point, you can sprinkle the batter with flaky Maldon sea salt, if you’re into that kind of thing.)
- Bake until a cake tester comes out mostly clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool on a rack.
- Lift up the parchment on to a cutting board and cut the brownies into squares. Food52 says 16 or 25 squares; I say, “Bigger brownies are better” so make 9 big brownies.
Variations
As I mentioned in the post itself, I added a splash of coffee because I had some leftover. That upped the baking time but gave a subtle hint of coffee flavor. For a quicker way to introduce coffee flavor, stir in some instant espresso. Just a little bit’ll do the trick.
Preparation time: 25 minute(s)
Cooking time: 25 minute(s)
Number of servings (yield): 8
My rating
Other “Best Of Your Life” Posts:
The Best Broccoli of Your Life
The Best Chili of Your Life
The Best Curry of Your Life
The Best Beans of Your Life
The Best Cookies of Your Life
The Best Dinner Rolls of Your Life
I am a fan of your broccoli, and I too have been searching for an awesome brownie recipe. I will have to give this a try!
Ok i tried these brownies today followed the directions other than I made a double batch 8×8 seemed a waste of time. I read every review almost all positive yet their was little instruction or suggestion on anyones experience. I made a decision to cook them just over 20 minutes thinking that would make them more chewey and not so dry I also went with pecans.They were done in 22 minutes I let them cool and dove right in. I’m sorry to say but their is nothing exciting nor memorable about these brownies they were very bland if youre looking for fudgy this isn’t for you….honestly i wish I had stuck to the 8×8 recipe. I do have a suggestion refrigerate them for a few hours before you go to eat one something I learned from an ina Garten recipe. It did make them more palatable but still nothing to write home about. I hate to be debbie downer its not like me. My sugestion try the 8×8 if you like them as others do double up I for one wont be clicking the favorites icon.
I’ve traditionally used cocoa powder for my brownies and always wondered what would happen if I used melted chocolate. Thanks for sharing! FYI, brownies are great with dark chocolate cocoa powder too. :)
Hey I always make my brownies w/cocoa, too. They come out so much better and because there is less fat than using solid chocolate their texture is much chewier. I wouldn’t make them any other way. BUT if you want to use espresso, always melt it in a tiny bit of boiling water to get the full effect. Don’t just stir it in. We have a Nespresso and I use half a pod.
As a self-professed chocoholic, I will probably have to give these a try! Come to think of it, my favorite brownies that my grandma always made for me as a kid used only cocoa powder. I’m sold.
yUMM!
I just rose from the computer and made a batch. That’s fresh, right? Couldn’t help it, you said they were the best and it’s that kind of day.
Melting the butter with the cocoa “blooms” the flavor. Cooks Illistrated has a chocolate cookie recipe that taught me the importance of that “bloom”! Also note the cocoa to flour ratio; there’s more cocoa! Yesssssssss!
I can vouch that this is the best brownie recipe ever! It’s been my go to ever since I saw it in Bon Appetit a few years ago :)
I’m still unclear as to why cocoa powder would make brownies better. Wouldnt chocolate make them chocolatier and more gooey?
Something to do with the fat that comes out of the melted chocolate… for a more thorough explanation, click the link to Food52 in the post.
Check out my new book, SECRETS OF THE BEST CHEFS (Artisan Books), available in book stores now!
No sir, you were absolutely right on the broccoli. Better go bake a batch of these.
I’m happy for this recipe! It’s rare to come across a legit good brownie recipe. I can’t wait to try this out this weekend!
I am going to make these solely because your best broccoli IS the best broccoli as my friends will all attest to.
Oh, wonderful. I’ve been making Smitten Kitchen’s melt-the-chocolate kind, which are veeeeery good, so I’m going to see what these do to me. I guess I’m going to have to try that broccoli too!
The best brownies that I’ve had were in the Leon restaurant chain in London. They’re made with ground almonds instead of flour, and contain plain chocolate, espresso and cold pressed orange oil. They’re just the right balance between cakey and fudgey, and the orange oil really elevates the flavour. Thankfully, the recipe is in their cookbook, and helpfully, appeared in the Guardian newspaper: http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2008/oct/06/foodanddrink.recipe
We’ve been making these for couple years–originally from SK. They truly are the best. We like toasted pecans in ours.
Great timing, Adam! I JUST read the very same article on Food52 last night, and had made it a point to make these soon.
Made them…couldn’t agree more.
Im snowed in. Well, that’s what the weather man said would happen, so I didn’t go to work. They’re never right. I have a batch of these in the oven as I type this and I cannot WAIT to dig in!
Just had one- amazing! Topped it with ice cream and whipped cream!
The proportions are slightly different, but this is nearly exactly the same as this recipe that Fine Cooking published in 2006: http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/rich-fudgy-brownies.aspx
Thank you, despite the heat in Mumbai, these brownies were completely worth it. Next up, I’ll try and make it with gluten free flour given that it needs so little!
I followed the original recipe as posted on food52 and while they were delicious I think perhaps I waied too long for the “ow” part? The melted butter separated. It did come together again one the eggs were added but the finished result was much more fudgey / lava-cake like than cakey.
I made these yesterday. Your brownies have a gloriously smooth and shiny top whereas mine (and Smitten Kitchen’s and Food 52’s) have a more textured and dull-looking top. What explains this difference? I put my butter/sugar/cocoa together over simmering water–did you melt the butter and sugar together over direct heat….?
Hi NS,
I used a double boiler over a pan of simmering water (I think Food52 says to do it with the bowl directly in a pan?). Really not sure what accounts for the difference; oh: maybe I baked mine longer because of the coffee I added? Next time I make a batch I’ll see if it comes out the same way. Adam
Very nice brownies; I made them yesterday with my kids. But those American measures are a drag. So many dirty measuring utensils. Give me a metric recipe and an electronic kitchen scale any day!
Making them today! These look awesome, Adam.
I´ve been researching brownie recipes for a few months now, but I´m looking no further. I have to agree with you Adam, these are incredible. I added raspberries and chocolate chips to mine. I blogged about it too. http://mylittlechequeredkitchen.blogspot.nl/2013/03/raspberry-chocolate-fudge-brownies.html#
I have been making these since I was in high school. I graduated high school in 1972. They have always been the best brownies ever.
I will never make another brownie recipe. These are the perfect brownies. I’ve made them twice and both times I’ve had to cook them 10-15 minutes longer than the recipe says.
I tried these brownies and asked my three kids if they thought they were the “best brownies of your life.” We all agreed that they were the best brownies I had ever made and this recipe will now be my go-to brownie recipe. We have nut allergies in our family, so I didn’t use nuts, but I did use some Heath bits and they were delicious. Thanks for sharing this awesome recipe. It is so easy to make also, but next time I will double it.
You are aware that Heath bars have nuts in them?
“Sugar, Butter, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Almonds, Salt, Cocoa Butter, Artificial Flavor, and Soy Lecithin”. Sure enough!
Almonds arr a fruit not a nut
you are kidding me, right? almonds are indeed classified as ‘tree nuts’ on every allergy list I could find.
I made these, and I found that they required a longer cooking time even without added coffee. I subbed chocolate chips for nuts, though. That wasn’t worth the bother, as they melted into the batter before it set. I just despise nuts in brownies.
I found these to be tasty, rich, and pretty dense while moist. These are the perfect brownie sundae brownies. Once they’re in season, I will try mixing in fresh raspberries to the batter — I expect good results.
I made brownies a few years ago for a friend, and use cocoa as I didn’t have any chocolate. Praying to the baker gods when they came out, I was gobsmacked that they were hands down, the best. They were fudgey, sticky with structure and rich without being cloying. My husband went nuts stating he wanted fudgy brownies but never got them. Thanks for reminding me, I should get some baking, me thinks!
This is my go-to brownie recipe as well! I love how fudgy they turn out. And they always procure compliments… that is, when I decide to share.
I made them today. Fudgy wudgy goodness.
I have also been making the Martha Stewart version while searching for the perfect brownie! It’s so funny to hear someone else say that! I can’t wait to try these.
i really didn’t want to make these brownies. I saw them on your site, smitten kitchen, and the wednesday chef. they always looked super dark and unappealing. But I was desperate for brownies and had only cocoa powder. I must confess these are so delicious and I am so happy I finally caved and made them. They do turn out very dark and un-pretty looking but the taste far outweighs that… thanks for convincing me! and you didn’t steer me wrong with the broccoli either. I eat it probably 3x a week now!
You were right. Best of my life. Husbands only words “holy hell” and then a lot of groaning. I made them with Hershey Special Dark cocoa and the brownies are nearly black and so amazingly rich. This one is a keeper!
can you use cocao instead of coco powder?
Very fudgey, deep chocolate flavor. But—- not chewy enough. Sigh, I am still looking for that perfect chewy ala box mix texture.
Just made these. Awesomest & easiest i’ve ever made. Btw, just met you at literary orange. We talked about chicken adobo. :)
I originally got this recipe from my oldest son’s Cub Scout leader and have been using it ever since. He’s now 45 so its been in use at my house a very long time. I also found it in an old Hershey’s cookbook from the 1940’s that originally belonged to my mother.
These were great, I overbaked them a tad and so they ended up being a bit too solid for my liking, but they taste phenomenal and I’ll be making them over and over again! Thanks!
I agree with the author: I didn’t know my brownie life was lacking until I made these brownies. They are absolutely fantastic. My roomie has to eat gluten free so instead of using flour I substitued with finely ground toasted almonds – equal amount. The brownies were absolutly awesome and my friend went gaga over them. Thanks you for sharing this wonderful recipe!!! Whoo hoo.
made them. outstanding. didn’t have enough granulated so the last 1/4 cup of sugar was confectioner’s (gasp)…not a problem. perfect texture, taste even better the next day.
I have to agree…I´m from Czech republic and I wanted to try american brownie, but I was scared of result. I don´t have to be scared anymore!! Thanks to this recipe I made even best brownie than I expected. My brownies are dense and it has so great taste of Holland cocoa. It´s really THE BEST BROWNIE. Thank you so much for this recipe! :)
nice…
thanx..
They look delicious, really tasty. I will have to give them a go at the weekend! I made some super healthy gluten free brownies and they turned out really super tasty. Here is the link to the recipe http://bit.ly/12Zks7Y :)
I will definitely give these a try! I’ve made a few from scratch versions, but have never been impressed as I always go back to the box of ghirardelli dark chocolate brownie mix. (And I’m not a lazy baker! All other baked goods are from scratch in my kitchen. But the mix has worked better than my melting chocolate attempts. Your write up is so convincing though…) One trick I do to my brownies is break up a couple of milk chocolate bars (I usually use Hershey) and lay them evenly across the top of the mix once I put it in the pan. I then push the chocolate pieces down a little (to about halfway) and use a butter knife to evenly re-spread the mix across the added chocolate pieces. When baked, the brownies have a delicious contrast of creamy milk chocolate in the middle of a cakey dark chocolate bite. I’ll try with your recipe!
Hello, I doubled this recipe yesterday and these are definitely the best brownies!!! Thank you so much
This will be my one and only brownie recipe
Mine are in the oven as we speak Found sn amazing brownie recipe a few months ago, but I am always on the lookout and camr across this site. I’ll give s report sfter tasting- which should be in about 30 min.
Someone asked about getting a nice shiny top. The secret is to not let your butter/sugar/cocoa mix get too hot. You can also just blend the cocos and butter, let that cool, and thrn stir in the sugar. Either way works- the secret is the temperature, whicj for me is still cool enough to taste without the “ow!”
hi adam, i have to say that this is the best and simplest brownie recipe since i always keep cocoa powder in hand. anyway, can i leave the eggs? coz one of my kids is allergic to eggs. thanx for sharing :)
You definitely need the eggs to make the brownies moist, or they’ll be dry as all get-out. How do you usually substitute eggs when you bake? Are they allergic even when they eggs are fully cooked into something else?
Sounds delicious!
Apparently you can use vinegar as an egg substitute its in the amazing book I have on all the uses for vinegar :)
Haha are you kidding?You’re kidding right? These are the most god-awful “brownies” I’ve ever had. Do you think just dumping a load of chocolate and sugar in a bowl makes a brownie? I’d rather eat a yankee biscuit.
I made 2 batches and sent them out for sampling, 2 comments came back as the best brownie they have ever tasted thanks will share and make again
WOW. I like cooking ,baking.plz
help me to improve my self.
I love it! I just tried the recipe..it’s too sweet though..i’m thinking of reducing the sugar..thanks for this recipe!
There’s not one ounce of exaggeration here – hands down the best brownies of your life. I love warm brownies as much as the next person but throw them in the fridge after they’ve cooled a bit and leave them there till you’re ready to eat. They’re insanely delicious cold, right out of the fridge.
Can I use Rice Flour instead of all purpose wheat flour?
I follow a Fitness Lifestyle and anything with sugar isn’t good for my diet but these brownies looks delicious and I eat a ”cheat meal” of these. I will try this recipe soon! Thanks for posting these!!! :)
i just tried these….my best brownie batch ever.Thank you! :)
Can i add baking powder on this because i want my brownies look taller.
I just found your blog today – you are the most amazing food writer bar none. I love your writing!! Can’t wait to try your recipes!
Gave it a try to the master fussbudget of brownidom.. Passed with a five star rating and a second batch had to be made for the next days dessert for company with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce! WOW! Delish! better than his mom made!
I am looking forward to try these brownies. What would 11/2 sticks of butter translate to in lbs or grams. We do not get them in sticks in my country – comes in bars. Do you ever use baking powder for brownies.
I’ve made so many brownies in my life. Made these today and they are awesomely fudgy, very yummy. The best? Who know if such a thing exists. I will for sure make these again.
Amazing brownies! And to me they tasted even better the 2nd and 3rd day!
I Made these tonight and they were fabulous!!
I can honestly say without a moment’s hesitation that these are THE best brownies ever!! Moist and flavorful! I have tried many recipes but these are awesome.Don’t overbake is the key too I think.Also..I made a mocha fudge icing..just 3 tbsp hot strong coffee in my icing recipe.DIVINE!!
Just tried these today. Not too sweet, perfect for dark chocolate lovers, had to taste them right out of the oven but much better a few hours later. Only thing would change is a method, melt the butter then add the cocoa etc. I dumped the dry ingedients all together which delayed reaching the paste stage. Anyway great brownies, wish I had thought about having some vanilla ice cream in my fridge!!!,
I have made these brownies several times now, and they are truly the best. My friends and family are blown away. They are incredible. I add salt to the top before baking and I add instant espresso powder to up the chocolate-y flavor. I dissolve it in the vanilla per an America’s Test Kitchen trick. Bravo, Adam, and thank you!!
Ok…I made these last night and I agree!! THESE ARE THE BEST BROWNIES I’ve ever had! And, I’m a picky brownie girl. ;) I did add a 1/2 a table spoon of decaf instant coffee crystals to the melting butter mixture. AMAZING!!! Oh, and I added chocolate chips (but I add those to other brownie recipes and they have never turned out like this before!!!)
My grandaughter asked me to make brownies. I had never made them before so i looked up many recipes and yours looked to be the simplest.
I skipped the nuts and added choc bits as my son in law in allergic to all nuts.
My grandaughter said they were the best brownies she has ever had. It is now my job to keep up the supply.
Many thanks
ok i have no idea what went wrong i followed your recipe word for word and the brownies just like separated into liquid and mush is there a certain reason for this?
What dows making brownies going forward mean????? A useless phrase used time and time again with absolutely no meaning. I will try the recipe
I USUALLY PURCHASE GHIRADELLI BRAND BROWNIE MIX BUT WANTED TO MAKE SOME HOME MADE. MY OH MY….MY SON SAID THESE TASTE BETTER!! THEY WERE THE BEST I EVER HAD IN MY LIFE!!! I ALSO USED SPECIAL DARK CHOCOLATE!!
I use this recipe everytime and I love it. Its not super fudgy but if you use a good cocoa its got a great taste and texture. I dont use pecans in it because I guess I’m still a kid and I think that nuts are just an obstacle in the way of my chocolate… but I do use spelt flour which is a little grainy but makes me feel a little healthier… I’ve also been known to make a chocolate ganache to go over the top, if I’m feeling extra naughty :)
I’ve been baking brownie forever and this is one of the best! Batch in over right now. They recipe was indeed delicious. Mine were very moist and shiny. I think the trick it to really beat the mix. I beat hard for about 80 strokes. It looks glossy going into pan. First batch, I found took much longer…more like 40 minutes. This batch I increased oven to 350 degrees.
I’ve been baking brownie forever and this is one of the best! Batch in over right now. They recipe was indeed delicious. Mine were very moist and shiny. I think the trick it to really beat the mix. I beat hard for about 80 strokes. It looks glossy going into pan. First batch, I found took much longer…more like 40 minutes. This batch I increased oven to 350 degrees.
I’ve been baking brownie forever and this is one of the best! Batch in over right now. They recipe was indeed delicious. Mine were very moist and shiny. I think the trick it to really beat the mix. I beat hard for about 80 strokes. It looks glossy going into pan. First batch, I found took much longer…more like 40 minutes. This batch I increased oven to 350 degrees.
I’ve been baking brownie forever and this is one of the best! Batch in over right now. They recipe was indeed delicious. Mine were very moist and shiny. I think the trick it to really beat the mix. I beat hard for about 80 strokes. It looks glossy going into pan. First batch, I found took much longer…more like 40 minutes. This batch I increased oven to 350 degrees.
I’ve been baking brownie forever and this is one of the best! Batch in over right now. They recipe was indeed delicious. Mine were very moist and shiny. I think the trick it to really beat the mix. I beat hard for about 80 strokes. It looks glossy going into pan. First batch, I found took much longer…more like 40 minutes. This batch I increased oven to 350 degrees.
I agree! These were absolutely delicious!!!
These are amazing. Ive had a lot of brownies in my life but none come close to comparing with this recipe.
I’ve made this recipe ever since it was featured on the cover of Bon Appetit! It is so rich and the browned butter adds such an amazing dimension! They are super rich, so I like to serve them with lots of walnuts in them, with strong coffee. I also prefer to make them in a 9×13 pan, but I truly think that it’s all up to personal preference! :) They’re so incredibly moist and fudgy! Next time I MUST try it with the splash of coffee in the batter! That sounds really good!
I added the splash of coffee, but used a wonderful orange coffee that was begging to be married to chocolate. I used Hershey’s Special Dark. A bit of extra baking time, although not much and ohemgee, these are soooo good!!!
Dark, fudgey and delicious. mine took about 30 to get to the “still moist on toothpick” spot… and they didn’t puff till the very end either (they loose this puff as they cool but this puff told me the eggs were doing their job. I was worried after 20 minutes as they still looked mostly like batter in the pan)… I realize afterwards that I only put 8 TBL of butter in instead of 10. I put it in to melt and forgot to go back to the fridge and grab two more. Just ate them after cooling and they are still moist. Tomorrow will tell to see how moist they are. But honestly, I don’t miss those 2 TBL of butter that I forgot.
My grandaughter tells me that these are THE BEST BROWNIES that she has ever had.
OMG! These are the BEST ever brownie’s!! I was looking for special brownie’s and came upon this recipe. I figured if they claim “The best brownie’s of your life, I’m going to try it. They are like tasting a little bit of heaven in your mouth! If you FOLLOW THE RECIPE, the claim made in the title, in my opinion, is spot on! I’ve shared this recipe with everyone and make them ALL the time. This is will be my forever brownie recipe for ever. And I am 59 years old! THANK YOU FOR THIS YUMMY FIVE STAR BROWNIE RECIPE!!
Would love to try these, but am bamboozled by “cups”. Please can someone translate the quantities into ounces or grams (Brit here: we don’t “do” cups!).
I was not a fan of brownies either. Followed recipe have baked a lot in my years just not a fan. Bakers one bowl brownies far above these.
Delicious! Turned out perfect, very moist and rich.
I have to agree with everyone that says these brownies are ANAZING!!! Simple to make and delicious to eat. MAKE THESE BROWNIES, follow the recipe–and they will taste great. I read the comment from the person who doubled the recipe–that doesn’t always work. Sometimes you have to modify ingredients when doubling recipes. I am not a professional baker, but you won’t know after eating these brownies!!
Made these with special dark cocoa powder…. WOW! “Best chocolate flavor/dessert I’ve ever had!” Said my husband who never eats chocolate :) I also used a Madagascar vanilla paste instead of regular old vanilla ( makes creme brûlée a million times better!). Thank you for posting! I’ve made these 4 times in the last month – everyone has loved them! I’ll try toasting the pecans or walnuts next time :)
Rockin’ recipe. I made a double batch. Added hazel nuts. Did half in a pan, the other half I did little one bitters for the kids. Both turned out awesome. Great taste, great texture. Thank you
What the heck is 10 tablespoons or 11/4 sticks of butter in pounds and ounces please? I’d love to try this recipe but I’ve fallen at the first hurdle:( A stick of butter in GB is like 8 ounces, it can’t be that much can it? /boggle
I added a tablespooon about of instant coffee in just enough hot water to disolve it. I didn’t taste coffee in the brownie though, BUT this recipe is now my go to Brownie recipe. With a glass of cold milk it’s heaven in your hand nom nom nom….!! Yummy. oh and the butter mixture wasn’t melting properly for me but once i added the instant coffee to it the consistancy was perfect.
DO NOT do what I did: use coconut oil and coconut flour instead- I toasted the pecans, threw them into the bowl and something ODD happened.. No brownie texture, instead something that looked like ground beef…Great ingredients, just not what I was expecting…
I really like this recipe since it’s pretty simple and not too much grunt work, with solid results.
I have to admit, I cut back a lot on the butter. I normally only use maybe half of the recommended amount since the first time I made this it was way too oily (not really sure what I did wrong…) I’ve used this recipe with less butter about four or five times now, and have had consistent success, so if anyone else is having trouble with it being too oily… (but it didn’t seem like anyone was, looking at the reviews)
I also cook it for longer than suggested, but I’ve been baking them on a cookie sheet, so that might be why. The texture is my favourite part of these brownies since I hate brownies that are too gooey. These are nicely chewy all the way through and don’t turn into bricks at the edges.
All around, it’s a nice brownie recipe that’s easy to customise. (I’ve done mocha brownies and peppermint brownies and such by adding in a little ghiradelli mocha mix and cutting down on the sugar or putting in a 1/4 teaspoon extract. I’ve been meaning to try putting some orange extract in too since I love the chocolate orange combo, but I don’t see it done as a brownie very often…)
Really good! I always assumed brownies made with melted chocolate would be better but these were just as rich and satisfying. Plus I never have chocolate in my cupboard (otherwise i’d just eat that instead of making brownies) so this recipe is much more convenient!
Made these a few days ago. Were good, but alas, I’m still searching for that perfect CHEWY brownie – these were a bit too much on the dense, fudgy side.
Yup this was good!!
These brownies were very flavourful. Mine verged on bitter but they were nice and chewy. I usually like a bit of crispiness on the corners that I was missing in these. I actually crumbled mine over vanilla ice cream and added some strawberries for complete decadence. I cut mine small after realizing a little goes a long way. Enjoy!
sheesh – put away the double boiler and stop that melting-ingredients-first waste of time. Sift dry ingredients: cocoa powder (btw ALWAYS use Fry’s), flour twice into a dry bowl. Soften butter (not melted) in the microwave – say 30 seconds for 1/2 lb, add eggs and sugar – white death is best – add vanilla and almond extract and – and this is key – add about 1/4 cup of superstrong good black coffee.. and then to quote Bob Marley: stir it up, folding in whatever nuts you prefer – sliced or slivered toasted almonds are great, walnuts ok, pecans yummy..whatever ya like. Bake at 350 for 45-50 mins – your cake tester’ll come out gummy – not dry.. the trick is to watch and see the edges pull away slightly from the pan.
These are just as good – my five lovely wise children tell me they’re the best on the planet – as any of these complicated fiddly recipes – also don’t measure – get a feel for texture, kinda like mixing concrete – makes cooking way way way easier and faster – I learned this watching a cook in logging camp – and his desserts rocked my world..