Best Fudgy Brownie Recipe

I am sitting here eating one of these brownies because that is how you’re supposed to manifest inspiration for a great blog, right? Right. Let me keep it short and simple for you. The taste. The texture. The perfect brownie! Trust me.

We have all had those disagreements right? They kind of sound like this: Fudgy or cake-like? Frosting or no frosting? Middle or corner piece? I am here to tell you to throw all of those out the window because whatever your question might be, these brownies will ALWAYS be the answer. Again, just trust me. 🙂

I used to be a skeptic myself. I was a firm believer that brownies were just not one of those desserts that could ever be as good as the boxed ones at your local grocery store. I know, that statement should get me kicked out of the kitchen, but I said what I said. Now that I am telling on myself I might as well go all in. Sadly, I used to go so far as to put powdered sugar on my homemade brownies just to cover how dull and boring they looked. Forget getting kicked out of the kitchen, might as well take all my baking tools away from me forever. In my defense, I just could not find a recipe that i enjoyed the taste or the look.

That was until I found this recipe from the sugar geek herself.

Fudgy Homemade Brownie Ingredients

Butter & Oil – The hot butter and oil mixture helps to rehydrate the dry ingredients which will guarantee a moist brownie instead of a dry one!

Chocolate – Chocolate is chocolate basically so it is completely up to you which flavor you prefer. A dark chocolate chip / baking bar will contain less sugar which means you may need to adjust the amount of granulated sugar added. In this recipe I used semisweet chocolate chips solely because it is what I often have in my pantry.

Granulated & Brown Sugar – Sugar is pretty self explanatory in regards to adding that sweetness, however, it also adds moisture! I love recipes with a bit of brown sugar in it because that is what makes the brownie chewy, and what is a brownie without a bit of a chewy texture?

Eggs – What do you think I am going to say here? You’re right, eggs add moisture, big shocker! Eggs play a bigger role though as they also add the structure to brownies. The more you whisk, the more air that is incorporated into the mixture.

Cocoa Powder – This adds to the richness of the brownies and since we don’t have to worry about using baking soda or powder you can really use whatever type of cocoa powder you’d like! I used Hershey’s for this recipe but feel free to use dutched cocoa powder as well.

Flour – I use all purpose flour for this recipe but cake flour can also be used for a more tender brownie. The main trick for adding the flour is to fold it in rather than letting your kitchen aid do the work! Over mixing the flour with the wet ingredients will result in a dry brownie…gross.

Mix – ins – After you fold in the flour, you are free to use your imagination and fold in any other fun mix ins you can think of! Chocolate chips, caramel kisses, the options are ENDLESS. Have fun with it!

How to make the best homemade brownies

Step 1 – Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking dish with parchment paper.

Step 2 – Sift the flour, cocoa powder, and salt together to remove any lumps

Step 3 – Create a double boiler by filling a pot half way with water and bringing it to a simmer

Step 4 – Add butter, oil, and chocolate chips to a heatproof bowl and place it over the double boiler. Once the butter has melted it, remove the mixture from the heat.

Step 5 – In the bowl for your stand mixer whisk together the white sugar, brown sugar, vanilla, and eggs on medium-high for about 4 minutes or until the mixture is thick and glossy.

Step 6 – Add the hot melted chocolate mixture to the egg/sugar mixture and whisk for one minute. Rub the mixture between your fingers, if you can still feel the granules then keep whisking.

*PRO TIP – to make the crinkly top you need to keep mixing until you do not feel the granules between your fingers. To achieve this faster you can place the bowl over the simmering pot once again and mix!

Step 7 – Fold in the flour mixture and any mix ins you will be adding!

Step 8 – Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish and cook for about 20-22 minutes.

What kind of pan should you use to make brownies?

Dark metal pans – These pans get A LOT hotter which means they will bake your brownies faster. Check for doneness about 10 minutes earlier to avoid burning them. Truthfully, I never use these pans but if it is all you have now worries, just be aware the baking time is much less!

Light colored metal pans – Very lightweight and is great for distributing heat evenly. Probably the most ideal pan to use if you are in the market for buying new pans!

Glass pans – Brownies baked in a glass or ceramic pan tend to take longer. For this recipe, I used a glass pan so my time is adjusted for that. I usually keep my brownies in the oven for 22 minutes and they come out perfect.

How do you know when brownies are done?

The biggest mistake people make when baking brownies is they leave them in the oven for longer than necessary. What most do not realize is that brownies continue to bake once taken out of the oven so it is key to take brownies out when you still see moist crumbs on the toothpick or knife! If you wait until your toothpick comes out completely clean then you will have overcooked and dry brownies, which isn’t the worst thing in the world, but we want those fudgy chocolate brownies so avoid doing this!

So again, once you put your toothpick you are looking for moist crumbs to stick to it. That is the perfect time to take them out and let them cool or dig right in!

How to get brownies with a crinkly top?

1. Make sure your butter/chocolate mixture is very hot and your eggs are at room temperature. If you are like me and can never remember to take the eggs out ahead of time, no worries, just put some warm water in a bowl and let the eggs sit in it for about 5 minutes!
2. After you add the chocolate mixture to the sugars make sure to mix it on medium high speed for about a minute. Once this is done, rub the mixture between your fingers and if you can still feel the granules then keep mixing! To ensure the mixture stays warm, I place the bowl over the simmering water pot and continue to mix, checking the batter often to see if the sugar granules are dissolved!
3. Using white granulated sugar in the recipe
4. Using melted chocolate in the recipe