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Fruit Salad
Ali Slagle
380 ratings with an average rating of 4 out of 5 stars
380
20 minutes
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Heat oven to 325 degrees.
Melt butter in saucepan with cocoa and stir until smooth. Remove from heat and allow to cool for a few minutes, then transfer to a large bowl. Whisk in eggs, one at a time. Stir in vanilla.
In a separate bowl, combine sugar, flour, nuts and salt. Add to the cocoa-butter mixture. Stir until just combined.
Pour into a greased 8 x 8-inch-square pan. Bake 30 to 35 minutes. Do not overbake; the brownies should be gooey. Let cool, then cut into bars.
This has been my go-to brownie recipe for 30 years, even after going to baking school! I agree that using the best cocoa possible makes a difference. These days, I use Callebaut. In the 80s, an acquaintence in Germany to whom I brought some of the brownies, and who considered herself a great cook, asked for the recipe but was never able to get it to work. She kept asking me what she was doing wrong and I was never able to solve her problem. Eventually, she moved to the US and stole my husband!
Bake it like Kate: Food & Wine published this recipe in a dessert book published in the late '80s. They left the method in Miss Hepburn's original rendition. Step 1 calls for the eggs and vanilla to be added to the melted cocoa/butter mixture, and then you "beat it all like mad." This you must do with perfect posture and cheeks sucked in, of course.
No one else has mentioned how important it is to let the chocolate batter cool sufficiently before adding the egg mixture. If the batter is too hot you will cook the eggs and the brownies will not rise or set up correctly when baked.
I substituted applesauce for the butter; you lose the crispness that butter provides, but I didn't have butter. Also didn't have vanilla. I substituted 1/2 cup (8 tablespoons) bourbon. Add 1 teaspoon to the batter, reserving 7 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons in a glass of your choosing. Add the best ice you can find. Sip while brownies bake. Find inner peace
Use good cocoa, not Dutch. I use Penzey. Mound the cocoa measurement a little and underfill the sugar a bit. Toast the nuts, preferably pecans. Throw in a couple more pinches of salt, and 1/8 tsp of espresso powder. Easy and amazing and very popular.
This is the go-to brownie recipe for so many people, including me, that I wasn’t planning on commenting. However, it seems like all the other people who love this recipe are swimming in a sea of Valrhona chocolate like Scrooge McDuck diving through piles of gold coins. Just wanted all the other bakers getting cocoa powder at Trader Joe’s and Walmart to know that everyone loves these brownies, even if made with regular ingredients. *Everyone* loves fat and sugar. Sincerely, a broke grad student
The sugar should be added to the melted butter before the eggs. Not with the flour mixture. The sugar reduces the temperature of the butter so the eggs don't scramble. I've been making this recipe since my Mom worked in the food department at McCall's magazine.
Hello all, we have retested and adjusted the baking time on these brownies to reflect your notes. The original baking time was 40 minutes; you'll see the recipe now suggests 30 to 35 minutes. These are best when they are gooey and fudgy, so as the recipe says, take care not to overbake!
I, too, have made these brownies for years and think that they are the perfect mix of nuts and gooey chocolate. I have always used 2 ounces of unsweetened chocolate. I also cut the sugar down to 3/4 cup. I make sure to use the full cup of walnuts, and even those who don't like nuts in brownies, love these. Have to watch when the brownies are in the oven, particularly when using a square glass Pyrex pan, because they cook more quickly. As soon as you smell them, they are nearly done!
Best brownies ever! I followed the recipe exactly except for a small adjustment--I melted the butter and cocoa in a large glass bowl in the microwave, thus saving myself the task of having to wash a saucepan. Lined the pan with greased parchment paper for easy removal. Baked for 29 minutes.
Add some dark rum. Dark rum makes everything better.
The melting point of butter is about 95°F--well below the temperature required to "cook" eggs. Do not rush the melt by setting the stove to frying temperatures. Cut the butter into small pieces to melt faster at low temperature. It is actually faster than waiting for hot over-heated fat to cool!
I have been making these for years. I use one teaspoon of espresso powder in it. Everyone's favorite.
Good point about salt. I use about an 1/8 teaspoon Maldon salt. Also I find it necessary to line well buttered pan with foil and then lavishly butter foil. I let foil overhang sides of pan and lift out when cool for easy cutting.
Have tried many brownie recipes, but this one, which I have used for years, is the best. I started out using 2 oz of the unsweetened chocolate, but recently began using 3 oz unsweetened choc and found this to be an even more delicious brownie. No need to increase the sugar if using 3 oz.
We've used Guittard chocolate, both unsweetened and bittersweet, with great success. We always add the sugar after the butter and chocolate have been melted together. Everything else is so simple. These are the best brownies ever. Oh, and we use Cup 4 Cup gluten free flour because of celiac in our family.
This is the best brownie recipe...but the comments here are even better. Thanks for the chuckles! (esp. Sydne, Stephen, Booger, & M)
Very tasty but made a rather thin half inch brownie - will double the recipe next time. Added tablespoon of molasses, will swap brown sugar next time.
These are amazing. I added a teaspoon of espresso powder, a cup of chocolate chips and used a mix of walnuts and pecans that I toasted before adding. They were done at exactly 30 minutes. Moist and delicious.
Substituted 1/3c sourdough discard for the flour (mixed into wet ingredients). Super tasty!
I've been making these for over 40 years! Still as amazing as day one!
I am wondering how long to cook the brownies if I double the recipe and still use the 8 X 8 pan?
Make sure to transfer melted chocolate mixture to a room temp bowl before adding eggs otherwise the eggs will cook too quickly in the sauce pan.
Simply the best! I make mine dairy free by using Earth Balance or solid coconut oil in place of butter. It works just great.
Kristin W, I loved your note (BMC 93). These are the best brownies ever. I usually do a 1.5 recipe to make them a bit thicker.
I added a tablespoon of instant espresso to dry ingred. Delicious.
Unsweetened chocolate is not equal to cocoa. Using unsweetened chocolate as used in the original recipe calls for 1/2 stick of butter. Cocoa and butter ratio is correct. I would think that most successful commenters used cocoa. Not to mention baking chocolate is in smaller squares than the original recipe. 8 squares (2oz) will now match the original 2oz = 2 squares. The worst outcome today would be to use 2 squares and a stick of butter.
The published recipe is almost exactly the one I use, except mine uses 2 ounces of unsweetened chocolate in lieu of the cocoa powder. I've been making this recipe for decades, and I assure you that it's wildly successful. Also, I'm pretty sure the size of unsweetened chocolate squares varies by brand. Weight is the only meaningful measure.
Made in a 9 x 9 square pan and baked no more than 25 min. Deliciously crackly edges without being overdone
I add cacao nibs but that is about it.
Learn from my mistake, measure you pan. Mine was 9x9....oops. But they still tasted great.
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