Family Favorite Brownies

These family favorite brownies are buttery and fudgy and never fail to impress. Best of all, they’re easy and only take about 30 minutes. The ease of preparation belies their lush appeal.

The only degree of difficulty is waiting for them to cool completely, which takes hours. You can rush it if you’re ok with crumbly edges. But for clean(ish) cuts, it’s best to be patient.

The recipe is adapted from the Brownies in Mark Bittman’s “How to Cook Everything.” It’s a recipe I know by heart. For 20 years now, they’ve been my go-to brownie. While the original recipe was buttery and delicious, I wanted more chocolate intensity.

Initially I started increasing the amount of unsweetened chocolate by 50%. But I disliked the odd bits of leftover chocolate bar in my pantry and the brownies tended towards too fudgy. So I gave cocoa powder a try and found 1 tablespoon does the trick.

Some say that cocoa yields deeper flavor than chocolate in a brownie. I’m not sure that’s true, at least when butter is the base. But this way, I’ve got it covered. The butter flavor still predominates. (As it should!) But there’s plenty of brownie flavor to please an ardent chocolate lover.

Family Favorite Brownies work best in an 8-inch square pan for a taller, fudgier result as compared to a 9-inch square pan. It helps to make a foil sleeve to facilitate removal from the pan for easier slicing. My preference for serving is to cut into 16 squares (4×4), then cut each of those squares diagonally in half for 32 just-right triangles.

More Please?

Here’s another tip that I learned from the winners of Season 1 Food Network Star. Slice and freeze the brownies for a truffle-like texture. It’s a great strategy if you’re cooking ahead for a dinner party. The brownies stay fresh and transform into lush velvety nuggets. They’re good right from the freezer.

(Fun footnote: I actually submitted an audition cooking video to be a contestant on Food Network Star circa 2006, an actual VHS video tape which fortunately has been lost. The experience helped me realize that perky is hard and blogging is more my style!)

Family Favorite Brownies

These family favorite brownies are buttery and fudgy. Intense chocolate flavor comes from both unsweetened chocolate and natural cocoa. Best of all, they're easy and quick, done in about 30 minutes. The only degree of difficulty is waiting for them to cool completely, which takes hours. You can rush it if you're ok with crumbly edges. But for cleaner cuts, it's best to be patient. Adapted from the Brownies in "How to Cook Everything" by Mark Bittman.

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Author Margie

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Total Time 35 minutes mins

Servings 32 small pieces

EQUIPMENT

• microwave safe bowl
• 8-inch square baking pan
• foil

Ingredients

  

• spray oil (for pan)
• 2 ounces 100% unsweetened chocolate
• 1 stick chilled unsalted butter 1/2 cup
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 Tablespoon natural unsweetened cocoa
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 8-inch square baking pan with foil, leaving some overhang over the edge of pan. Spray the foil with cooking spray.
• Put butter in a microwave safe bowl, medium sized. Break up the unsweetened chocolate into several pieces and add to the bowl with the butter. Microwave the butter and chocolate for one minute on high power. Remove from the microwave and stir for about a minute or so until all the chocolate and butter is entirely melted and no lumps of chocolate remain.
• Add sugar to the butter-chocolate mixture and stir until thoroughly combined. Add eggs and stir until thoroughly combined.
• Stir in salt and vanilla. Add cocoa and stir to combine.
• Add the flour and stir until flour is incorporated into the batter.
• Pour batter into the prepared pan. Spread out the batter as needed to evenly cover the bottom of pan.
• Bake in the oven for 25 to 30 minutes until brownies are set in the center. When done, there's no jiggle in the brownies and toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with fudgy residue. If the toothpick emerges with wet looking batter, I give it another couples minutes.
• Once brownies are done, allow to cool completely in the pan for several hours. Once cooled, use foil sleeve to remove brownies from pan to cutting board.
• Then remove foil: 1) Either hold slab perpendicular to the cutting board, peel off foil, then set brownies down. 2) Or flip brownies upside down on cutting board, peel off foil, and flip slab right side up. You can use a second cutting board to help with the flips if you prefer.
• Slice brownies into desired size for serving.

Notes

1. I use a 2-quart Pyrex bowl to melt the butter and chocolate in the microwave. Then I add the remaining ingredients and mix right in the bowl. Alternately, melt the butter and chocolate in a small saucepan over low heat, transfer to a mixing bowl and continue.
2. An 8-inch square pan is best for height and fudgy texture. Though occasionally I grab my 9-inch square pan in a hurry and it works fine. 
3. The foil sleeve helps facilitate easy removal from the pan and transfer to a cutting board for easier slicing. If you prefer, skip the foil liner and grease the baking pan directly.
4. Spray oil is convenient though any neutral oil works for greasing the foil or baking pan.
5. Test doneness by giving the pan a slight shake. Brownies should not jiggle at the center. Furthermore, a toothpick inserted to the center of the brownies should emerge clean or with fudgy residue, not wet-looking batter.