Why It Works
- Brown butter adds a nutty richness that deepens the chocolate flavor.
- Thickly foamed eggs lighten the batter, for brownies that are fudgy, not overly dense, and that form a glossy, flaky crust on top.
- Cocoa powder reduces the need for flour, making the brownies especially flavorful and tender.
- The cocoa butter in dark chocolate gives the brownies a lingering richness.
- An aluminum pan helps the brownies bake quickly and evenly, without the extended timeline associated with baking in glass or the risks of over-baking in nonstick pans.
Brownies get no respect.
Europe's chocolate tortes are held in high regard, a proud culinary tradition centered on fine chocolate and fine dining. Meanwhile, the humble brownie is seen as little more than an after-school snack, something cobbled together from melted chocolate chips, if it's made from scratch at all.
It's a shame, because chocolate brownies have been around for more than a hundred years, invented as a showcase for the best chocolate Americans could buy. The history of their name and the evolution of the recipe is somethingmy cookbook, BraveTart, covers in depth, but today I'm here to talk about the ingredients and technique involved in making brownies like these:
They're hefty squares of chocolate, to be sure, but fudgy rather than gooey, with just a little bit of chew and a shimmery, paper-thin crust on top. As befits their name, brownies are all about brown ingredients, likedark chocolate,Dutch cocoa powder, and brown sugar. My recipe adds one more—brown butter. It's a simple way to layer in more flavor, with a bit of nutty richness to underscore the earthy chocolate.
Brown Butter Takes Time
Brown butter doesn't require any skill, just a bit of patience. Start by gently melting the butter in a three-quart saucier over medium-low heat. If you happen to have a used vanilla bean stuck in a jar of sugar somewhere, toss that in, too—it's not a necessity in the least, but it is a great way toget more mileage out of a leftover vanilla beanand infuse a deeper vanilla flavor into the brownie base.
Don't be tempted to rush this step by cranking up the heat, or else the butter will pop and splatter like a pan of bacon. Once the butter has fully melted, increase the heat to medium. Stir and scrape the saucier with a heat-resistant spatula as the butter bubbles and foams, keeping the milk solids in motion so they don't burn along the bottom.
It's a noisy endeavor, as the butter will hiss and roar, but you'll know you've reached the end when it all goes ninja-silent. Off the heat, stir in the dark chocolate, and set the pan aside until needed.
Foamy Eggs = Fudgy Center and Glossy Top
Next up—foaming the eggs. This is, without question, the most crucial step. Start by combining the eggs with sugar, salt, and some optional instant espresso. Adding those solids to the wet eggs allows them to dissolve fully, creating a dark, dense, and gooey bowl of egg syrup. When you whip them well, the eggs transform into a pale, thick, and fluffy foam. Stop shy of that goal, and you'll have a pan of something like wet fudge, not brownies.
The time it takes to foam the eggs can vary wildly depending on the horsepower of a given stand-mixer, the size of its bowl, and even ambient temperatureif it drops below 70°F (21°C) in the kitchen. So trust your eyes, not your stopwatch, and keep whipping the eggs until they're foamy, thick, and pale.
While the eggs are whipping, sift together the flour and Dutch cocoa. This helps remove lumps, of course, but it also ensures the two are hom*ogeneous and well aerated—factors that make it easier to incorporate the dry ingredients and minimize the risk of over-mixing.
Once the eggs are nicely whipped, reduce the speed to low and pour in the chocolate/butter mixture, followed by the sifted dry ingredients. Finish mixing with a flexible spatula, using it to scrape and fold to ensure the batter is well mixed from the bottom up.
The Proper Pan for the Best Brownie Texture
Pour the batter into a foil-lined 9- by 13-inch anodized aluminum cake pan.My favorite brownie pan, made by Fat Daddio's, is both nonreactive (a.k.a. the perfect lasagna pan) and fitted with a removable bottom (making it easier to remove fragile desserts, like acrumb-topped coffee cakeor wobblylemon bars).
The important thing, regardless of brand or style, is to reach for a pan made from lightweight, reflective metal, like aluminum. At their core, brownies are a type ofchocolate cake, and should be treated as such. In heavy glass pans, brownies may take twice as long to bake, and they risk turning out gummy and dense. In dark, nonstick pans, brownies will bake much faster, browning more than they should along the bottom and drying out around the edges.
But in aluminum, a well-whipped brownie batter will bake just fast enough, puffing beautifully along the way. The brownies will then settle as they cool, a transformation that creates their crinkly, flaky tops and fudgy middles.
Serving the Brownie
It’s a cruel wait, but do let the brownies cool at least 30 minutes before you dive in. With other recipes, brownies are often best while warm because that’s when they’re fudgy and moist; over time, they may dry out or seem too dense. With my recipe, the brownies can seem oddly cakey while puffed and warm, but their fudginess will develop as they settle and cool.
Before cutting the brownies, pop them out of the pan so you don't scratch the bottom to pieces while slicing. For the tidiest squares, use a largechef's knife, and wipe the blade clean between slices. (If you've got a hard plastic bench scraper, it's great for safely scraping the brownie goo off the side of the knife for snacking.)
Admittedly, that's just my inner pastry chef talking—no matter how you slice them, the brownies will be fudgy, rich, and beautifully balanced.
Adapted from BraveTart: Iconic American Desserts with permission from W. W. Norton.
February 2018
Recipe Details
Glossy Fudge Brownies Recipe | BraveTart
Prep25 mins
Cook30 mins
Active40 mins
Cooling Time60 mins
Total115 mins
Serves24 squares
Ingredients
12 ounces unsalted butter (about 3 sticks; 340g)
6 ounces finely chopped dark chocolate, about 72% (about 1 cup; 170g)
16 ounces granulated sugar (about 2 1/4 cups; 450g)
2 ounces light brown sugar (about 1/4 cup, packed; 55g)
1 3/4 teaspoons (4g) Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for table salt, use about half as much by volume or the same weight
6 large eggs, straight from the fridge (about 10 1/2 ounces; 295g)
1/2 ounce vanilla extract (about 1 tablespoon; 15g)
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder, such as Medaglia d’Oro (optional)
4 1/2 ounces all-purpose flour, such as Gold Medal (about 1 cup, spooned; 125g)
4 ounces Dutch-process cocoa powder, such as Cacao Barry Extra Brute (about 1 1/3 cups, spooned; 115g)
Directions
Getting Ready: Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat to 350°F (180°C). Line a 9- by 13- by 2-inch anodized aluminum baking pan with foil to cover the bottom and long sides of the pan. (It's all right to leave the short sides exposed.) If you like, grease lightly with pan spray.
In a 3-quart stainless steel saucier, melt butter over medium-low heat. When it has completely melted, increase heat to medium and simmer, stirring with a heat-resistant spatula while butter hisses and pops. Continue cooking and stirring, scraping up any brown bits that form inside the pan, until butter is golden yellow and perfectly silent (see note). Remove from heat and stir in dark chocolate; the mixture will seem quite thin.
Making the Batter: Combine granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt, eggs, vanilla, and instant espresso (if using) in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whip on medium-high until extremely thick and fluffy, about 8 minutes. (The whipping time can vary significantly depending on bowl size, batter temperature, and mixer wattage, so use the visual cues as your primary guide.)
Meanwhile, sift together flour and cocoa powder. When the foamed eggs are fluffy and thick, reduce speed to low and pour in the warm chocolate-butter. Once it is incorporated, add cocoa-flour mixture all at once and continue mixing until roughly combined. Finish with a flexible spatula, scraping and folding to ensure batter is well mixed from the bottom up.
Pour into prepared pan and bake until brownies are glossy and just barely firm, about 30 minutes, or to an internal temperature of 205°F (96°C). (Take care that the probe is inserted at a sharp angle to avoid touching the bottom of the pan.) The timing of this recipe is based on anodized aluminum and will vary significantly with glass, ceramic, or nonstick pans, materials that will also affect the brownies' consistency.
Cool brownies to room temperature to allow their crumb to set before slicing. Slide a butter knife between the brownies and the short ends of the pan; gently tug on the foil, then lift to remove the brownies from the pan. Cut into 24 two-and-a-half-inch squares and store in an airtight container with a sheet of wax paper between layers, about 1 week at room temperature.
Special Equipment
3-quart stainless steel saucier, stand mixer, 9- by 13- by 2-inch anodized aluminum baking pan
Notes
Brown butter can burn when cooked too fast or too hot, or when not stirred frequently along the way; should this happen to you, simply strain the brown butter before use to remove the bitter, burned milk solids.
Make-Ahead and Storage
Stored in an airtight container, with a sheet of wax paper between the layers, the brownies will keep about 1 week at room temperature.