The BEST BROWNIE RECIPE
Here it is... your foolproof, satisfy your chocolate cravings, ultimate chocolate chunk brownie recipe.
These "Better than a Boyfriend Brownies" are whipped up in one bowl and are so easy even kids can make them. I am pretty sure I could make these brownies in my sleep. I've tried more brownie recipes than I would like to admit but all of that practice has made me a brownie connoisseur of sorts, right? This is hands down the BEST homemade brownie recipe.
I have been baking since I could stand up on a stool! I have been able to compete in the Pillsbury Bake-Off for a million dollars twice, win the Cooking Channel Contest for the most perfect cookie in America and film in the Food Network Studios (the #1 recipe in 2012), and land on the cover of Food Network Magazine for winning their Bake Sale contest. This was all before I started Modern Honey and have been baking up a storm ever since!
All of these years of baking and working to create the perfect brownie recipe and here it is! Once I tried this homemade brownie recipe, I have never looked back. This is the ONLY brownie recipe I use because it is the best!
This brownie recipe is rich, decadent, and fudgy. No dry cakey ones here! You may want to eat the entire pan - they are that good and it might just become your absolute family favorite.
The name - Better than a Boyfriend Brownies stems from where all good inspiration comes from - a breakup. I have a ridiculous memory. It can be a really good thing and a really bad thing, simultaneously. Here's where the really good memory isn't so great.
For some stupid reason (because teenagers generally don't always make the most sound judgments), my friends and I thought it would be funny to toilet paper my first little boyfriend's house.
Since we couldn't drive, we convinced my Mom to drive us to this unsuspecting boy's house. We realized pretty fast that his yard was huge and we needed some help. So we ran to the car and grabbed the master toilet paperer - my Mother. We somehow convinced her that toilet papering at the age of 50 was completely normal.
All was going well and we were quite impressed with our TP skills...until we saw car lights rounding the corner into the cul-de-sac. There was nowhere to run so we squealed like little girls and hurdled into the bushes. Unfortunately for us, our hurdling skills weren't the best and our covers were blown....by his parents!
They got out of the car, walked over to the bushes and we slowly peaked our heads out in utter shame and embarrassment. The real entertainment came when they discovered that my Mom was hiding WITH us!
I don't think they were impressed. That little boyfriend - the giver of my first kiss completely broke my heart into smithereens when he broke up with me. Note to self: don't toilet paper your boyfriend's house. They usually have to clean it up and won't like it.
I went home and did what any normal teenager would do...put on some really sad music, baked up a pan of brownies, ate every one of them and drowned my sorrows. Hence the name - Better than a Boyfriend Brownies.
If only, I would have applied my good memory to the periodic table in Chemistry.
I've had a lot of years to work on my brownie making skills. I am going to give you 5 tips to make sure those calories are worth it and to NOT screw up your brownies. These are truly the best brownies in the world!
5 Ways to NOT screw up brownies:
- Don't overbake. Holy cow this is a big one. Ask my kids how crazy it makes me when I see the cooking times listed on a brownie mix or cake mix box and it's so long that you'll end up with hockey pucks! No wonder people think they are bad cooks when really we can just chalk it up to bad directions. Can we do that? Yes, we can. Anytime you are baking up a cookie, cake or brownie....watch those precious gems like a hawk. You want laser beam focus because a few minutes can be a difference maker.
- Cream butter + sugar for at least 3 minutes to ensure you don't end up with grainy brownies. Creaming works wonders in baked goods as it helps to dissolve sugar crystals and it creates little pockets of air. The butter wraps around the sugar as it coats it and helps to say goodbye to the grainy texture.
- Don't overmix your flour. You know how kneading bread makes it better....well it's the opposite with baked goods. If you overmix your batter, it creates more gluten which can leave you with a tougher brownie. We want a tender one! Mix until just combined or even turn off your mixer and fold in your flour.
- Use high-quality cocoa. It's the star ingredient and it's integral to the overall success of the brownies. I buy Callebaut cocoa powder in bulk at Winco and even though it's high-quality stuff, it is actually less expensive than buying one of the other popular brands in the store. It makes a huge difference in the depth of flavor.
- Add chocolate chunks. Because if you are going to eat chocolate, you want to really eat chocolate. Adding semi-sweet chocolate adds a richness to it and another depth of flavor. Guittard and Ghiradelli are some of my favorite brands of chocolate. Trader Joe's makes a killer chocolate bar and it melts beautifully. If you are really crazy, add some white chocolate just to really mix it up (think Paradise Bakery black + white chippers).
Use a toothpick or even a cake tester (OXO makes a good inexpensive one HERE) to test the middle to make sure it's not a goopy mess.
You want it to come out with a soft crumb and not be dry as cardboard. No one likes to eat cardboard. Use light colored pans. The dark colored pans cook the bottoms of baked goods too quickly. Here are a few of my favorite pans -- USA 9 x 13 inch pan and USA Square Cake Pan 9 inch.
Feel free to up your game and add some caramel or dulce de leche. People will be impressed at your mad skills. Carefully heat up a jar of that caramel goodness and swirl half of the jar into the brownie batter. Bake in the oven. Once they come out of the oven, top and swirl with remaining caramel.
Make sure you lick the spoon after you are all done.....in the name of research, of course. *They are adapted from I am Baker's brownie recipe (who you must follow because she's so hilarious and incredibly talented).
Click the video below to see how quick and easy it is to make homemade brownies:
Better than a Boyfriend Brownies
Ingredients
- 1 cup Butter softened
- 2 cups Sugar
- 1 cup Brown Sugar
- 4 Eggs
- 1 Tablespoon Vanilla
- 1 cup Flour
- ½ cup Cake Flour
- 1 cup Cocoa Powder
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 1 ½ cups Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chunks or Chips
- *Optional: add 8-ounce jar Dulce de Leche. Carefully heat in the microwave. Swirl in 4 ounces into the batter. Bake. Top brownies with remaining Dulce de Leche.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter, sugar, and brown sugar for 3-4 minutes or until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add vanilla.
- Stir in flour, cake flour, cocoa, and salt until mixed together.
- Fold in chocolate chips.
- Pour into 9 x 13 pan and spread evenly.
- Bake for 28-36 minutes.
- *Adapted from I am Baker's decadent brownies
Video
Pin on Pinterest:
Happy Baking!
Yvonne
I pinned this a few days ago and couldn't wait to make it. OMG! These are amazing. Consistently super-gooey-moist all the way through, edge to edge, without being "undercooked gooey". I added caramel chips instead of chocolate chunks. Mmmmm! Thank you! This will be my go to from now on. And when I'm not making them for my 26yo son, I'm adding a ton of nuts! ; )
Modern Honey
I love it, Yvonne! What a great idea to add caramel chips. I am going to try it next time. Oh, and nuts would be delicious!
Emily
I made these yesterday and they were AMAZING. I cannot believe how yummy they are! Sent most of them to work with my husband (so I wouldn't eat them all) and his entire department loved them! Thanks so much for this recipe. Definitely my new go-to brownie recipe 🙂
Fonti Kar
These are so wonderfully delicious - never fails to please the crowd when I make these! Just wondering if you know how to make them vegan friendly?
Kathryn Layton Mullenaux
I'm going to have to take a sleeping pill as I can't get these delicious brownies out of my mind so I can sleep. I LOVE your amazing recipes. I don't cook anymore so I'm thinking, I'll just come and sample yours. I need to come and see your mom and dad anyway. Loved the story of your mom helping you TP your first boyfriends house. I can picture her doing that. She's so cute. Keep those amazing recipes coming.
Angela
Hi! Any comments about how these are the next day? I am making these for a super bowl party tomorrow, but i have to make them today due to time restraints. I just want to make sure they will still be just as yummy as they sound a day later!! Thanks : )
Brittney
Just found your recipe thanks to Pinterest! Definitely going to give these bad boys a try!
P.s. my mom totally went tp-ing with me too. Coolest mom ever!
Katherine
I just made these and they are PERFECT!
I used a 1/2 cup of Dutch processed cocoa and 1/2 cup of Hershey's Cocoa and I LOVED the balance of sweet and dark. I didn't have chocolate chips, which was both unfortunate as I love them in brownies and fortunate as it led me to this recipe! I am so excited to share this with everyone I know!
I've seen people asking about cake flour, and I'm sure all purpose as a substitute for it works great, but I just put 1 Tb of cornstarch in the bottom of a 1/2 cup and added flour to fill the cup and have no qualms with how it turned out. Not too fluffy, not too dense. Perfect.
I also did an easy experiment. I don't always love how underdone brownies can be in the middle (depends on my mood, haha), so I tried baking 1/2 of the batter in cupcake tins at 350 F for 23 or so minutes. Once done, I let them cool in the pan for about 5 minutes. They sank in the middle, but were wonderful. Crunchy on top and fudgy in the middle (without being underdone).
I did the rest of the batter in an 8x8, and they are also fantastic. I let them bake until the edges looked good. The middle definitely needs a bit of extra time to settle once you take the brownies out of the oven, but it's not as underdone in the middle as I expected it to be. I thought baking them in a cupcake tin would end up being my preference, but I love them either way. The cupcake tin method is definitely less underdone than the pan, but not unpleasantly so.
So now that I've rambled on for about a year, here's the verdict;
Every bit of these brownies is delectable. I will be making these over and over again. THANK YOU SO MUCH for the recipe!!!
Marsha
Great brownies KEEPER recipe! My new favorite secret, I made these the other night forgot the caramel however added pecans. I can't wait to try with caramel drizzled on top.
Lea
I just made these for my family. After leaving the kitchen for a short time to allow them to cool, there were only 5 left when I returned. One thing I may add, instead on 4 eggs I used 2 eggs and 1/4 cup of unsweetened applesauce. When I try it again I will omit the eggs and use just the applesauce!!! These are delicious.!!!
Loved it! 😀
Judy Forkner
I notice there is no mention of greasing the pan. I guess I'll try it without doing that. Hope I don't regret it. I hate it when things tick to the pan!
kirsten
These are absolutely amazing and have been used as desert for functions, gifts and are always the go to for a chocolate craving. They get rave reviews from everyone . Thank you so much for this incredible recipe!
Dmd
Awesome. Seriously rich and gooey. Edges are a little hard but so much perfectness on the interior. Those crisp edges make for great brownie sundaes. Thank you!
Donna
You do pack down the brown sugar don't you?
Rusalka
Holy crow! These brownies are absolutely delicious. No doubt about the name. They are ALMOST better than sex!
The only thing is, they took forever to bake. I followed the recipe accurately and my oven is rather powerful, but it still took me 50 minutes or so to achieve the desired consistency. It was like tryng to bake a tray full of Nutella.
Still worthy all the trouble, though. 😉
Marlene
I forgot to come back around & review after making these brownies but that's mainly because my hands were occupied shoving said brownies in my face! Sooo good! I shared a few pieces but my hubby & I thoroughly enjoyed them! My 1st not from box recipe.
Lamesa Forrester
These brownies are so delicious!
summerazi
Hi!
Can't wait to try this tomorrow!
Would like to ask whether is this in Celsius?
And do I bake it at 350 Celsius, or change it after pre-heat?
Sorry for the silly questions!
Marlene
These brownies are amazing! I've always been asked to make brownies for gatherings. Friends always say I've made the best but they were actually just boxed brownie mix. Well the one I've always made feels like it's changed & I haven't enjoyed them recently so I figured it was time to finally have a from scratch recipe. Can't wait to bring these to gatherings! I've already bagged a few from this batch to give out to friends. I used all purpose flour instead of cake flour & baked for 30 min. I was so paranoid about overbaking them that I finally took it out even though my knife was coming out gooey still more than crumbly. After about 10-15 min though they cooled enough & were perfect!!!
Rebecca
I don't have cake flour but do have plenty of coconut flour, can I sub that and use two extra eggs?
Rebekah Godt
I love brownies but I don't like things that are overly sweet. It seems like 3 cups of sugar is a lot. Do you think I can cut back on the sugar and they'll still taste good?
Modern Honey
Hi Rebekah! The reason that there is so much sugar is to offset the bitter unsweetened chocolate. I think that if you lessen it to 2 1/2 cups sugar, they would still be delicious. Keep me posted! - Melissa 🙂