The best brownies I’ve ever made. Ridiculously fudgy, chocolaty brownies made with ingredients you probably already have on hand… a recipe to keep forever.
It came to my attention recently that I have a number of different brownie recipes scattered across my blog, entwined with other recipes for brownie-cookie hybrids and brownie-ice cream mish-mashes. However, what this space was lacking was its own, stand-alone brownie recipe.
I decided that it was about time I provide one of those, and so I recently embarked on a mission to develop the very best brownie recipe I possibly could. Rich, chocolaty, fudgy squares so saturated with chocolate they nearly melt in your mouth… the epitome of brownie perfection.
There was a lot of frustration and a lot of disappointment along the way. Batch after batch of sub-par creations were tossed in the trash (the more edible creations were pawned off on family members, who always seem eager to devour my recipe fails).
Finally, the recipe that succeeded and proved itself to be a winner (which, after developing, I then proceeded to make it 3 more times just to make sure it was really as perfect as it seemed to be) turned out to be only a few shades different from one that I’ve developed in the past in my Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownies. A few tweaks and this brownie stands alone proudly in fudgy, crackly-topped wonder.
This recipe uses both cocoa powder and semisweet chocolate. In order to get the most chocolate flavor possible, the cocoa powder is “bloomed” in near-boiling water. By stirring the cocoa powder into the hot water, the powder’s full chocolate flavor potential is released in a way that simply stirring it into butter and sugar fails to do.
I also used instant coffee to complement the chocolate and make these brownies as rich as possible, but my brother said he could detect the coffee flavor and didn’t like it. The rest of my family did (and I personally loved it), but decide for yourself whether you like a hint of mocha to your brownies or not and leave the coffee in or out accordingly.
I prefer to make these brownies in an 11×7 pan because they come out thicker and even fudgier, but they come out just fine in a standard 13×9 pan as well (just with a few more minutes of cook-time… it’s all addressed in the recipe below).
Best Ever Brownies
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup water
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder dutch-processed
- 4 oz semisweet chocolate chopped into pieces (or semisweet chocolate chips, not chopped)
- 1 1/2 tsp instant coffee optional
- 1 cup butter cut into pieces, 2 sticks
- 2 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 eggs lightly beaten + 2 yolks (room temperature preferably)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350F
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Grease and lightly flour 11 x 7 pan (or 13x9 pan if you do not have 11x7) and set aside
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In small saucepan, heat ⅔ cup water until it just begins to boil. Add cocoa powder, semisweet chocolate, and instant coffee. Immediately remove from heat and stir constantly until mixture is smooth and silky.
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In large microwave-safe bowl, melt butter on 15 second increments, stirring at intervals until completely melted.
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Stir in sugar and vanilla.
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Stir in chocolate mixture, stirring until completely combined.
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Add eggs and egg yolks, stirring until completely combined.
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Sprinkle salt over batter and stir in.
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Gradually stir in flour until completely combined.
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Spread batter into prepared pan and bake on 350F for 30-35 minutes if using 11x7 pan and 25-30 if using 13x9 pan (time may vary depending on your individual oven. To check if brownies are done, insert a toothpick into the center of the pan. If it comes up wet with unbaked batter return it to the oven and continue to check every five minutes. When the brownies are completely done, the toothpick will be slightly fudgy and may have a few crumbs, but it will be a a fudge-like consistency and not a wet batter consistency.
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Wow, these look incredibly fudgey and delicious! Yum!
Thank you, Marsha!
The title makes me really curious to see how good these brownies are. They definitely look perfect. I pinned them and they will be my very next brownies.
Ooh, let me know how you like them, Adina! 🙂
These are definitely the best brownies ever Sam!!! They look amazing! So moist and delicious. Love it!
Thank you so much, Harriet! I couldn’t stop eating them!
These look so good and fudgy! My favorite kind of brownie. And coffee in brownies sounds wonderful to me.
Thanks, Amanda! 🙂
I’ll take your word for it- these look amazing! Pinning 🙂
Thank you, Medha! 🙂
Wow, these look spectacular Sam! I love the tip for the cocoa.. that was new to me. I also love adding coffee to chocolate flavors… heavenly! Thanks for sharing!
Glad you liked the tip, Amber! Thank you! 🙂
Well, if they’re the best ever, I definitely need to make them! I love coffee in brownies 🙂
Thanks, Sues! 🙂
These look so rich and fudgey – all that testing was worth it! I love the hint of coffee in chocolate desserts too, so I’m with you on keeping it in 😀 Now I realllyyyyy want a brownie! ;p
Thanks so much, Beeta! 🙂
Indeed these brownies are BEST ever. Love how chewy, rich and fudgy they look.
Thank you, Anu!
I love how dedicated you are to your recipes! After 3 batches I would decide to stop and try a different recipe for that post! These brownies totally look worth your effort though! So fudgy and delicious!
Haha that was three batches of this recipe AFTER I got it right just to make sure it was really perfect, so the total count is actually higher! Thank you, Shelby! 🙂
These honestly look…perfect. Like just the ULTIMATE. Pinned immediately. Your taste testers are a lucky group!
Haha, thanks so much, Dani!! 🙂
These brownies look perfect, Sam! So fudgy! Wish I had a plate of these right now! 😉
Thanks so much, Jess! 🙂
So happy to have found your recipe!
I made them and it was love at first bite!
Just the perfect chocolatey fudgeness I was looking for.
Yay! So glad you loved them, Anna! 🙂
Just made these. Found the recipe on Imgur. Taste as good as they look. Great recipe.
Awesome! Thanks, Maddie, I’m glad you loved them 🙂
Great Recipe! Used an 8×8 pan instead and ended up baking for around 55 mins (used the toothpick test every five mins after the 35 min mark)
So glad to hear that you enjoyed, Amar!!