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New York Brownies

· Modified: by · This post may contain affiliate links · 11 Comments

New York Brownies is a recipe from Loaves and Fishes, an early edition of a cookbook from one of Ina Garten's favorite stores. The book was gifted to me by my grandmother who got it from my aunt in New York. The inscription says "Mom, now you can make the fabulous brownies we had in New York" which is amusing because my grandmother would have never baked these. Any brownies that passed through her kitchen would have come from a store called Randall's. Or maybe William Greenberg. This is possibly the William Greenberg recipe.

new york brownies or The William Greenberg recipe from Loaves and Fishes

Flavor and Texture

New York Brownies are definitely not cake-like, but they aren't "baked fudge" either. They are dense and light and the same time. The refrigerator is probably the place to store them, but these brownies taste best at room temperature. Whatever you do, don't over-bake them. In most of my ovens (I don't know how many times I've moved since posting this) they take 22 minutes.

Original William Greenberg Recipe

In the Loaves and Fishes book, the authors say that this brownie recipe is reputed to be the original William Greenberg recipe. Then they go on to joke that a lady in Florida gave them the same one. So who knows if this is really true. But William Greenberg's brownies were iconic back in the day.

Recipe

New York Brownies

Anna
I've played with this recipe over the years and it is now one of my favorites. Whipping the eggs and sugar gives the brownies a lighter texture. For fudgier brownies you can underbake them slightly (24 minutes) but I prefer them at baked for about 28 minutes.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 22 minutes
Total Time 32 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 24 brownies

Ingredients
 

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour (128 grams)
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon salt decrease to ⅛ if using salted butter
  • 5 ounces unsweetened chocolate 99% — try to use a really good brand like Callebaut
  • 8 ounces unsalted butter (228 grams)
  • 4 extra-large eggs
  • 2 cups granulated sugar (390 grams)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • ½ to ⅔ cup chocolate chips or nuts

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 13×9 inch metal pan with nonstick foil.
  • Sift together flour, baking powder and salt; Set aside.
  • Melt the chocolate and butter together in a small saucepan set over low heat, stirring often. You can also do this step in a double boiler or in the microwave.
  • In a large mixing bowl, preferably a stand mixer fitted with a whisk, beat eggs for about a minute. Gradually add the sugar and let the mixer go for about 10 minutes or until mixer is thick and pale and falls off beater in ribbons. Beat in vanilla.
  • With a heavy duty scraper, fold the melted chocolate (it should be luke warm at this point) to sugar mixture. When mixture is well blended, stir in the flour mixture, then stir in the chocolate chips.
  • Pour into pan and bake for about 28 minutes The toothpick test doesn’t really work here, but if you want to test anyway then keep in mind the toothpick should come out with chocolate on it.
  • Now comes the hard part! Let them cool completely.
  • Lift from pan, place on a cutting board and cut into large or small squares. Best served at room temperature, but they slice a little more neatly when chilled or frozen.

Notes

Every time I pull these out of the oven I worry that they are underbaked, however, having been warned in the original version from The Loaves and Fishes cookbook, 22 minutes is all you need. I have cheated and gone up to 24. The brownies seem undercooked at first, but after cooling completely and sitting in the refrigerator for at least 12 hours, they are fudgy and delicious. When I put these up in taste tests with other brownies, they usually win.
Keyword New York Brownies
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

More Brownies from Cookie Madness

Comments

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  1. Anna says

    Ella, it was probably the recipe. I'd move on to another one if I were you.

  2. Ella says

    Made these brownies and they were great but not Greenberg great. Was it the chocolate? Brand?

  3. Anna says

    Heidi,

    I was wondering about that. It seems like Ina's kind of place. The pet name among for it is "Loans and Finances". Kind of like "Whole Paycheck".

  4. Heidi says

    Ina is always visiting Loaves and Fishes on her show Barefoot Contessa. 😉

  5. julia says

    I completely agree with everyone above...
    They look delicious! So rich and fudgy!
    They'll definitely give you your chocolate-shot for the day... 🙂
    Very nice blog! Just found out today but put it right with my favourites! 🙂
    Julia
    http://www.tastinglife-julia.blogspot.com

  6. tg says

    Abi & Anna = perfectly complimentary on a tray of brownies, then. just like me & the boyfriend w/ the sunday paper: i don't touch the sports section (eeyuck) and he leaves the Target flyer all to me...

  7. Jennifer says

    Anna, these look wonderful. My husband is a big brownie fan. I'll have to try them out and see what he thinks.

  8. Abi says

    Anna, you've created a monster. How? Well, I absolutely love brownies (though I'm more of a boxed-mix girl) and I recently received a gift fancy bar chocolates. I will definitely have to try out a couple of these recipes.
    I really enjoy the new site and I'm glad to see you rocking your own domain name!
    P.S. Are you an edge person or a middle person? I'm a fan of the crunchy corner brownies.

  9. Anna says

    Lynne, I did it. Thanks for reminding me. I was being lazy this afternoon.

  10. Erika says

    Brownies were in the air today. Yours seems very similar to mine today. 🙂 Now I just have to not eat them all.

  11. LynneL says

    Can you link the Nancy Bagget brownie recipe?
    Thanks!