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Easy Fudgy Chocolate Brownies From Scratch

Easy Fudgy Chocolate Brownies - each bite has everything you could ask for in a brownie, when you bite into the crispy top and the gooey inside just melts in your mouth. Making brownies from scratch is so easy, there's no need for a cake mix ever again! What makes these brownies extra fudgy and delicious is the use of real, high quality chocolate, of course.

 

Three brownies stacked on a white plate, blue towel.

 

Homemade brownies are so easy, and I'm going to tell you all my secrets to how to make the best brownies at home.

 

For more brownie recipes, try out these:

 

What makes brownies fudgy?

 

The simple answer to this is that there's a higher fat-to-flour ratio. Fat in this instance being butter and chocolate. To make cakey brownies, we use less fat and even add in a little baking powder. But I don't see the point in cakey brownies when you can just have a regular decadent chocolate cake. A cakey brownie also has three times as much flour.

 

So trust me on the ratios of fat to flour in this recipe, and you will get a perfectly fudgy brownie with a crackly crispy top.

 

Three brownie squares on a white plate, the whole cake in the background.

 

What makes a good brownie?

 

Trick question.

 

A good brownie is a fudgy brownie, and therefore the answer is in the fat-to-flour ratio! The use of real chocolate in a brownie recipe, really makes the difference. I usually reserve unsweetened cocoa powder for chocolate cakes, but I like to add a little extra in these brownies to make them extra chocolatey.

 

Made with real chocolate, this is a decadent dessert that will force you into a happy chocolate dance. Anyone? No? Just me?

 

Close-up of 9 squares of fudgy chocolate brownies.

 

Do you put baking powder in brownies?

 

No. The only leavening in a fudgy gooey brownie from scratch is eggs. Beaten eggs are a leavening agent as they incorporate air into the batter, which then will expand in the oven and cause the cake to rise. Some cakes use beaten eggs as their only source of leavening - such as brownies!

 

However, if you prefer cakey brownies, baking powder is usually also added. Click this to read more about leavening agents.

 

Stacks of brownies on a large plate.

 

Make Brownies Extra Special

 

Brownies are perfectly delicious in their own simplicity, but you can also add all sorts of nuts, oreo cookie crumbs or my personal favorite - salted caramel sauce. Whenever the brownies are done and cooled, I poke the cake with the back of a wooden spoon to make holes in the cake. Then I drizzle the salted caramel sauce on top. Extra decadent and extra delicious!

 

If you've got chewy salted caramels, you can also put them directly into the batter, just reserve some extra batter to smooth on top.

 

To make easy homemade brownies extra special for days like St. Patrick's Day, why don't you try my Coffee Guinness Caramel Brownies Recipe and drizzle it with this Guinness Coffee Salted Caramel Sauce? Both those recipes are based on this classic brownie recipe and the salted caramel sauce linked to in the above paragraph. Those brownies are extra adulty with flavors of coffee, vanilla and caramel.

 

Two different ways of adding caramel to brownies.

 

How to make easy fudgy brownies from scratch

 

Melt butter, remove from the heat and let it cool slightly before adding in the chocolate (1). Let the chocolate melt. Whip eggs and sugar with a metal whisk. Until they've got air bubbles, about 2 minutes (2).

 

Then, whisk in the chocolate butter and vanilla extract (3-4). Sift flour, unsweetened cocoa powder and salt into this mixture. Fold together (5). Be careful not to ruin too much of the air bubbles, but making sure all the flour is incorporated (6).

 

Steps to make fudgy chocolate brownies.

 

Prepare a baking pan of  8x12 inch (20x30 cm) with parchment paper (a 9x9 will make a taller cake, and may need extra bake time). Pour the brownie batter into the pan (7).

 

Bake on the middle rack at about 350F (175C), for around 25-35 minutes. In my oven, 34 was good. But I suggest checking after 25 minutes. You can try to wiggle the pan and see if the middle of the cake is very shaky. A toothpick inserted in the middle should have a few moist crumbs on it.

 

How to fold cake batter and baking brownies.

 

Cool completely on a wire rack, or it will be just one gooey mess. But a tasty mess nonetheless. Serve with salted caramel sauce and vanilla ice cream!

 

Three brownie squares on a white plate, milk in the background.

 

Chocolate recipes for every day of the week:

 

 

Hope you get a chance to try these Easy Fudgy Chocolate Brownies. I know probably everyone has their favorite recipe, but once in a while we should try a new one, because you are seriously missing out if not. 🙂

 

Have a wonderful day, everyone!

 

I’d love to hear your thoughts. Comment below or tag me @thegingerwithspice on Instagram. And don’t forget to Pin it for later! To make sure you’re never missing another recipe, please feel free to subscribe to my newsletter. As a thanks you will receive a free e-cookbook Travels Through the Seasons, with many delicious recipes from around the world that suit different seasons of the year. 

 

In order to keep the blog up and running this post may contain affiliate links, it will be at no extra cost to you, please read the disclosure for more information.

 

This recipe was originally published on Jun 12th 2018, but updated on Feb 17th 2020 for better photos and content.

 

📖 Recipe

Three brownies stacked on a white plate, blue towel.

Easy Fudgy Chocolate Brownies From Scratch

Yield: 18 squares
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes

Easy Fudgy Chocolate Brownies from scratch - bite into the crispy top and the gooey inside just melts in your mouth. Click to find this super easy recipe!

Ingredients

  • ⅔ cups butter, 150 grams*
  • 10 ½ ounces semisweet dark chocolate, 300 grams
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 ⅞ cup sugar, 375 grams
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, optional**
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour, 130 grams
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 5 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, 35 grams, optional***

Instructions

  1. Prepare a baking pan of  8×12 inch (20×30 cm) with parchment paper. Pre-heat oven to 350℉ (175℃).
  2. Melt butter, remove from the heat and let it cool slightly before adding in the chocolate. Let the chocolate melt.
  3. Whip eggs and sugar with a metal whisk. Until they’ve got air bubbles, about 2 minutes.
  4. Mix the chocolate butter and vanilla extract into the egg mixture.
  5. Sift flour, unsweetened cocoa powder and salt into this mixture. Fold together. Be careful not to ruin the air bubbles, but making sure all the flour is incorporated.
  6. Pour the brownie batter into the prepared pan. Bake on the middle rack for around 25-35 minutes. In my oven, 34 was good. But I suggest checking after 25 minutes. You can try to wiggle the pan and see if the middle of the cake is very shaky. A toothpick inserted in the middle should have a few moist crumbs on it.
  7. Cool completely on a wire rack, or it will be just one gooey mess. But a tasty mess nonetheless. Serve with salted caramel sauce and vanilla ice cream!

Notes

* I always recommend using a kitchen scale when baking, for better accuracy and foolproof results each time.

** If you want to substitute vanilla extract with vanilla bean sugar, add it to the batter when adding flour. 

*** If you leave it out, add the same amount extra flour instead.

Other pan sizes: You can use an 8x8 inch pan too, but it will be thicker and needs more time to bake. Try somewhere between 35-40. 6-inch is great for ⅓ of the batter, bake for around 25-30 minutes.

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 18 Serving Size: 1 square
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 255Total Fat: 13.3gSaturated Fat: 8.5gCholesterol: 49mgSodium: 92mgCarbohydrates: 35.6gFiber: 1.8gProtein: 3.2g

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or tag @thegingerwithspice on Instagram, I'd love to see!

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Linda

Saturday 28th of August 2021

Have you ever made them with a gluten free flour?

Stine Mari | Ginger with Spice

Tuesday 31st of August 2021

No, I'm sorry, I have not! There is no harm in trying, my guess is that they may get fudgier. I'd love it if you gave it a try, that you could come back with how it went.

Bobby Morgaine

Tuesday 17th of November 2020

Can you tell me if these will keep at room temp? If so for how long? I'd like to make these and mail them to a friend. I'll probably be using 2 day shipping. Ill be SUPER grateful for any info you can give me , as I need to find recipes I can use fast!

Stine Mari | Ginger with Spice

Tuesday 17th of November 2020

Hello Bobby! I have never mailed these before, but I do keep them at room temperature for at least 4 days so I think it should be ok! Just wrap the whole brownie uncut tightly in plastic wrap so they don't dry out. Other things that would be great for shipping are cookies, such as gingerbread cookies, Norwegian Christmas men cookies, pumpkin or banana snickerdoodles. Hope this helps, and good luck!

Madhurima basu

Monday 24th of August 2020

hi, I plan to try baking this brownies..looks absolutely delicious.. however I don't have a 8x13 inch pan. What will be the baking time if I use a 9 x9 inch pan. I also have a 10x10

Stine Mari | Ginger with Spice

Wednesday 26th of August 2020

Hello, thank you for wanting to make my brownies! I am not completely sure, but to tell if brownies are done, try to shake the pan to see if the middle has barely set, if it still is very wiggly, you need to bake it a little longer.

A 9x9 inch pan would make the brownies thicker, and my best bet would be it will need about 40-45 minutes. A 10x10 inch pan would make thinner brownies, and would maybe need around 20-25 minutes.

But I also recommend doing the wiggle test to see, as our ovens may differ as well. Good luck! These are my favorite brownies!

Kiera

Wednesday 29th of July 2020

Brownies were good but not as good as box brownies.

Stine Mari | Ginger with Spice

Saturday 1st of August 2020

Hello Kiera. I'm sorry to hear that. Personally, I think these are much better than box brownies. Would you care to specify what it is they are lacking or why box brownies are better? I'm always interested in improving.

Apple

Thursday 23rd of July 2020

I've already made this thrice! Will be making it again tomorrow! Chewy outside, sooo fudgy inside! ❤❤❤

Stine Mari | Ginger with Spice

Sunday 26th of July 2020

That makes me so happy! Can never make too many brownies and I love classic fudgy brownies. Enjoy! If you ever feel like trying another brownie recipe, I've also got a Coffee Guinness Caramel Brownies recipe!

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