Thick Fudge Brownies Made In One Saucepan

These brownies are a thicker version of Melissa Clark's Impossibly Fudgy Brownies. The original recipe is fantastic. However, I wanted thick fudge brownies so I made some minor changes and used a 9-inch square pan instead of a 9x13 inch.

It sounds simple, but sometimes changing the pan size throws off the baking time and I wasn't sure it would work. That meant more changes to the bake time and bringing in the meat thermometer. It's the best tool for testing to make sure brownies are done.

Internal Temperature of Brownies

If you're making brownies that have little if any leavening and call for lots of fat, chocolate and sugar, the internal temperature of the brownies should be around 212F. For cake-like brownies or lighter textured brownies with baking powder, the internal temperature should be more like 175 F. Or so they say. I'm finding that sometimes the rules don't apply. These days I jot down the internal temperature that worked for that particular brownie recipe so I'll know what to shoot for next time.These thick fudge brownies are 212F brownies, to be sure.

Thick Fudge Brownies Tips

• Be sure to use the correct pan size, which is 9-inch square. I recently scored a Pampered Chef stoneware pan and plan on testing the recipe in that since it's the perfect size, but right now I can only recommend metal.
• Coffee crystals or instant espresso powder will both work, but the brownies are fine without the coffee.
• Dutch process and natural cocoa powder are both okay.
• This recipe has a lot of butter -- 2 sticks plus 2 tablespoon. I haven't tried it, but I think using 2 sticks and 1 tablespoon of oil would suffice if you want to save some butter.
• Brownies are almost always better on the second day, so you can make these ahead, wrap tightly and chill. They also freeze well.

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Recipe

Shiny, Chewy, Thick Fudge Brownies

Anna

Rich and fudge-like brownies baked in a 9-inch square metal pan.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 40 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 24 brownies

Ingredients

 

• 3 ounces unsweetened chocolate chopped
• 18 tablespoons unsalted room temp. butter, cut into chunks (9 oz) (2 sticks plus 2 T)
• ¼ teaspoon instant coffee crystals feel free to use more
• ½ cup plus 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
• 2 ½ cups granulated sugar (490 grams)
• 3 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt Morton, which says it measure like table
• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour (200 grams)
• ⅓ cup chocolate chips plus a bit of shortening optional for garnish

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line a 9 inch square metal pan with nonstick foil or line with regular foil and grease the foil. Update: I haven't tested in stoneware yet, but I think the 9-inch square stoneware would work well too.
• In a 3 ½ to 4 quart saucepan, melt the butter and chocolate together over very gentle heat, stirring with a wooden spoon or a heat-proof silicone scraper. When the mixture is almost fully melted, add the coffee crystals and cocoa powder and stir until smooth. Remove from heat.
• Stir the sugar into the hot cocoa mixture. Let it cool slightly (though it shouldn't be very hot if you melted your butter gently) then stir in the eggs one at a time. Add the vanilla and salt and stir until smooth.
• Add the flour and stir until blended. Mixture will be pretty thick.
• Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, spreading all the way to the edges.
• Bake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees F. After 10 minutes, turn the oven temp down to 325 degrees F and bake for another 28 to 30 minutes or until internal temperature is 212 degrees F. You can stick a meat thermometer in the center to test.
• Let cool completely at room temperature, then chill the brownies before lifting from the pan and cutting.
• If you'd like to garnish your brownies with melted chocolate, melt chocolate chips with a bit of shortening at 50% power in the microwave, then drizzle over the cooled brownies. Let set.

Notes

These are extremely fudgy, but they're not greasy or cloyingly sweet. They're not airy or partially cake-like, so keep that in mind. These are intensely chocolate and a little wedge goes a long way.

Keyword brownies, Thick

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