Brownies Recipe
This Brownies Recipe is the one that ends the search for the perfect brownie. Rich, dense and deeply fudgy with that iconic crinkled shiny top and an intensely chocolatey flavor that stays with you long after the last bite. Furthermore, this Brownies Recipe uses melted chocolate rather than just cocoa powder. Consequently, the chocolate flavor is deeper, richer and far more complex than any other method.
Additionally, these brownies keep beautifully for several days and actually taste even better the day after baking. For more indulgent desserts, explore our classic Cheesecake Recipe, our golden Apple Pie Recipe and our full Desserts collection.
The Secret to This Brownies Recipe
The secret to an extraordinary Brownies Recipe lies in three things. First, using real melted chocolate rather than relying solely on cocoa powder. Second, not overbaking — the brownies should come out of the oven looking slightly underdone in the center. Third, whisking the eggs and sugar together for a full 3 minutes until pale and thick. This step is what creates the iconic crinkled shiny top.
Furthermore, allowing the brownies to cool completely in the tin before cutting is essential. Moreover, cutting them warm produces ragged, messy edges and a gooey center that has not yet set properly. On the other hand, a fully cooled brownie cuts into clean, neat squares with beautifully defined edges.
Fudgy vs Cakey Brownies
This Brownies Recipe is firmly in the fudgy camp. Fudgy and cakey brownies are fundamentally different results that come from different ratios of ingredients. Therefore, understanding the difference helps you make an informed choice.
- Fudgy brownies — Higher fat ratio from both butter and chocolate. Less flour. Consequently, the texture is dense, rich and deeply moist with a soft, almost truffle like center.
- Cakey brownies — More flour and an extra egg. Additionally, baking powder is often added. As a result, the texture is lighter and more open, resembling a soft chocolate cake.
- Chewy brownies — The middle ground. More brown sugar and less butter than fudgy brownies. Furthermore, they have a satisfying chew and a slightly less dense texture than the fudgy version.
Choosing the Right Chocolate for Brownies
The chocolate you use is the single most important ingredient in this Brownies Recipe. Therefore, it is worth choosing carefully. Use a good quality dark chocolate with 70% cocoa solids as the primary chocolate. Furthermore, this level of cocoa provides the deep, complex and slightly bitter chocolate flavor that makes great brownies so extraordinary.
Additionally, adding a small amount of cocoa powder alongside the melted chocolate deepens the color and intensifies the chocolate flavor even further. On the other hand, using milk chocolate produces a sweeter, milder and less complex brownie. Moreover, never use chocolate chips as the primary chocolate — they contain stabilizers that prevent them from melting smoothly and consequently affect the final texture.
Why Brown Butter Makes This Brownies Recipe Special
This Brownies Recipe uses brown butter rather than plain melted butter. Browning the butter first adds a deep, nutty and complex flavor that takes the brownies from good to truly extraordinary. Furthermore, the process takes only 3 extra minutes. The milk solids in the butter caramelize during browning. As a result, they add hundreds of new flavor compounds that complement the dark chocolate perfectly. Consequently, every bite tastes richer and more complex than a standard brownie.
How to Make This Brownies Recipe
The process has four simple stages. First, brown the butter and melt the chocolate together. Then, whisk the eggs and sugar until pale and thick. Next, fold in the chocolate mixture and then the dry ingredients. Finally, bake until set but still with a slight wobble in the center. The full step by step method is in the recipe card below.
How to Know When Brownies Are Done
Knowing when to take brownies out of the oven is the most critical skill in this Brownies Recipe. Therefore, pay close attention. Insert a toothpick into the center of the brownie. For fudgy brownies, it should come out with a few moist, fudgy crumbs clinging to it. Moreover, the edges should look set and the center should have only a very slight wobble when you gently shake the tin. On the other hand, a clean toothpick means overbaked and dry brownies.
Serving Suggestions for This Brownies Recipe
These brownies are spectacular on their own. However, these serving ideas elevate them into something truly special:
- Warm with a generous scoop of good quality vanilla ice cream — furthermore, the contrast between warm fudgy brownie and cold creamy ice cream is absolutely irresistible
- Drizzled with warm salted caramel sauce for an indulgent sweet and salty combination
- Dusted with powdered sugar and served alongside our classic Cheesecake Recipe for a full dessert spread
- With a dollop of softly whipped cream and fresh raspberries — moreover, the sharpness of the berries cuts through the richness beautifully
- Alongside our Apple Pie Recipe for a show stopping two dessert combination at any gathering
How to Store This Brownies Recipe
Store brownies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. They actually taste better on day 2 and day 3 as the flavors deepen and the texture becomes even more fudgy. Moreover, place a piece of bread in the container alongside the brownies — it absorbs any excess moisture and keeps them perfectly soft without becoming dry.
Freezing Brownies
Brownies freeze exceptionally well for up to 3 months. Therefore, they are an ideal make ahead treat. Cool completely, cut into squares and wrap each piece individually in cling film. Then place in a freezer bag. Consequently, you can take out individual squares as needed. Thaw at room temperature for 1 hour or microwave for 20 to 30 seconds for a warm, freshly baked result.
Nutella Swirl Brownies — Drop tablespoons of Nutella over the batter and swirl with a knife before baking. As a result, every slice has beautiful ribbons of hazelnut chocolate throughout.
Peanut Butter Brownies — Swirl 4 tablespoons of smooth peanut butter through the batter. Additionally, press a few salted pretzels into the top before baking for an extraordinary salty crunch.
Espresso Brownies — Add 2 teaspoons of instant espresso powder to the melted chocolate mixture. Consequently, the coffee intensifies the chocolate flavor dramatically without making the brownies taste of coffee.
White Chocolate and Raspberry — Fold 80g of white chocolate chips and 80g of fresh raspberries into the finished batter. Moreover, the tart raspberries cut through the richness for a beautifully balanced result.
Make This Brownies Recipe Today
In conclusion, this Brownies Recipe is the most requested and deeply satisfying bake on the entire TastelyBites website. Therefore, whether you are baking for a party, a bake sale, a special occasion or simply treating yourself on a weekday evening, this recipe always delivers extraordinary results. Browse more of our indulgent Dessert recipes and share your results in the comments below!
Brownies Recipe
Fudgy, rich and deeply chocolatey brownies with a crinkled shiny top. Made with brown butter and real dark chocolate for an extraordinary result.
Ingredients
- The Chocolate Base
- 170 gUnsalted butterThis will be browned first — do not use salted butter as it will make the brownies too salty
- 150 gDark chocolate, 70% cocoa, roughly choppedUse a good quality bar, not chocolate chips — chips contain stabilizers that affect texture
- 2 tbspUnsweetened cocoa powderDeepens the chocolate color and intensifies the flavor alongside the melted chocolate
- The Sugar and Eggs
- 250 gCaster sugarA combination of caster and brown sugar works well — use 180g caster and 70g brown sugar for extra fudginess
- 3 largeEggs, room temperatureRoom temperature eggs incorporate more smoothly into the warm chocolate mixture
- 1 tspPure vanilla extract
- The Dry Ingredients
- 100 gPlain flourLess flour than you might expect — this is intentional and essential for fudgy texture
- ½ tspSaltEnhances the chocolate flavor significantly — do not reduce
- Optional Add Ins
- 80 gChocolate chips or chopped walnutsFold in at the very end for extra texture and chocolate intensity
Equipment
Method for This Brownies Recipe
- 1 Prepare the tin and preheat: Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan / 350°F). Line a 20cm square baking tin with baking parchment, leaving overhang on two sides. This overhang acts as handles for lifting the brownies out cleanly once cooled. Greasing the tin lightly before adding the parchment helps it stay in place.
- 2 Brown the butter: Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, for 3 to 4 minutes after it melts. The butter will foam, then the foam will subside and small golden brown bits will appear on the bottom of the pan. It will smell deeply nutty and caramel like. Remove immediately from the heat. Browned butter is the secret to an extraordinary depth of flavor in this Brownies Recipe.
- 3 Melt the chocolate: Add the chopped dark chocolate and cocoa powder to the hot browned butter. Stir until completely smooth and glossy. The residual heat from the butter is sufficient to melt the chocolate fully. If needed, return to very low heat for 30 seconds. Allow the mixture to cool for 5 minutes before adding the eggs.
- 4 Whisk eggs and sugar: In a large bowl, combine the eggs, sugar and vanilla extract. Using an electric hand mixer, whisk on high speed for 3 full minutes until the mixture is pale, thick and has roughly doubled in volume. This step is essential for creating the iconic crinkled shiny top on the finished brownies. Do not skip or shorten it.
- 5 Combine chocolate and egg mixture: Pour the cooled chocolate mixture into the whisked egg mixture. Fold gently with a spatula until just combined. Then sift the flour and salt directly into the bowl. Fold again with slow, gentle strokes until no flour streaks remain. Do not overmix. Fold in any chocolate chips or nuts at this stage if using.
- 6 Bake: Pour the batter into the prepared tin and spread into an even layer. Bake at 180°C for 20 to 22 minutes. The edges should look set and the center should have only a very slight wobble when you gently shake the tin. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out with moist, fudgy crumbs — not clean and not wet batter.
- 7 Cool completely before cutting: Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin for at least 1 hour before attempting to cut. This cooling time is not optional — it is what allows the fudgy center to fully set into the dense, clean sliceable texture that makes this Brownies Recipe so special. Lift out using the parchment overhang and cut into 16 squares with a sharp knife.
Nutrition (Per Serving — 1 of 16 squares, without add ins)
* Nutritional values are estimates per square without add ins. Adding 80g walnuts increases fat by approximately 3g per square. Values are based on cutting into 16 equal portions.
Notes
- Do not overbake this Brownies Recipe. This is the single most common mistake. The brownies will continue cooking from residual heat after being removed from the oven. Consequently, they should look slightly underdone at the center when you take them out — they will set perfectly as they cool.
- Allow the chocolate and butter mixture to cool for at least 5 minutes before adding the eggs. Adding hot chocolate to eggs will scramble them and ruin the entire batter. Moreover, even slightly warm chocolate is fine — just not hot.
- Whisk the eggs and sugar for the full 3 minutes. This step cannot be shortened. It is what creates the iconic shiny, crinkled top surface that distinguishes a truly great brownie from an ordinary one.
- Cool completely before cutting. Cutting warm brownies produces ragged, gooey edges that look messy and feel underdone. Furthermore, the texture of a fully cooled brownie is dramatically better — denser, fudgier and more satisfying.
- This Brownies Recipe makes 16 squares from a 20cm tin. For a larger batch serving 24, use a 20x30cm tin and increase all ingredients by 1.5. The baking time increases to approximately 25 minutes.
Tips for the Perfect Brownies Recipe Every Time
- Use a light colored metal baking tin rather than a dark or glass tin. Dark tins absorb more heat and can cause the edges to overbake before the center is done. Furthermore, glass tins conduct heat unevenly and produce inconsistent results.
- Brown the butter all the way — do not stop early because you are worried about burning it. The deep golden color and nutty aroma are exactly what you want. Moreover, the flavor difference between properly browned butter and merely melted butter in this recipe is dramatic and immediately noticeable.
- Use a mixture of caster sugar and brown sugar if you can. The brown sugar adds molasses notes that deepen the overall flavor and contribute to an even fudgier, chewier texture. Furthermore, the combination produces a more complex and interesting finished brownie.
- For perfectly clean cut squares, chill the fully cooled brownie slab in the refrigerator for 30 minutes before slicing. Additionally, wipe the knife clean with a damp cloth between each cut. Consequently, every square has sharp, defined edges that look professionally made.
- Trust the toothpick test over the timer. Every oven is different. Therefore, start checking at 18 minutes and remove the brownies the moment the toothpick comes out with moist but not wet crumbs. The difference between a perfectly fudgy brownie and an overbaked dry one is literally 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add a pinch of flaky sea salt on top of the batter just before baking. On the other hand, if you prefer a pure chocolate experience without the salt, this step is completely optional. However, the salt amplifies the chocolate flavor in a remarkable and unexpected way.