Fudgy Chocolate Brownies
Crispy crust on the outside, soft like fudge on the inside, these brownies are addictive.
- Preparation
- 15 min
- Cook/bake time
- 25 min
- Total
- 40 min
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Calories
- 387 kcal
- Servings
- 12 pieces
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cooking & baking
- 25 min
Crispy crust on the outside, soft like fudge on the inside, these brownies are addictive. The secret to the shiny, papery crust: eggs and sugar are beaten until frothy before the melted chocolate is added. That is all it takes for bakery quality.
Why this works
The shiny papery skin forms because the sugar is completely dissolved in the egg during the frothing process and rises to the surface as a wafer-thin film of syrup during baking, where it crystallizes into a brittle layer. The brownies remain fudgy due to the ratio: lots of fat, little flour. Where there is hardly any flour, hardly any gluten network forms, and without a structure, the crumb remains dense and melting instead of airy like cake.
Step-by-step instructions
- 1
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 175 °C top and bottom heat so that it already has the right temperature when you put them in. Line a square baking pan of about 23 by 23 cm with parchment paper and let the paper overhang a little on the sides. This way you can easily lift the finished brownies out of the pan by the paper later.
- 2
Melt the chocolate
Coarsely chop the dark chocolate and put it in a bowl with the butter. Melt both slowly over a warm water bath and stir occasionally until the mixture is smooth and shiny. Then remove it from the water bath and let it cool briefly so that the eggs do not curdle later.
- 3
Beat the eggs
Beat the eggs with the white and brown sugar for about 4 to 5 minutes until light and creamy. It really takes this time, because exactly this airy foam later ensures the typical, thin and shiny crust on the brownies.
- 4
Mix the batter
Stir the cooled chocolate and butter mixture into the egg cream. Sift the flour, baking cocoa and salt over it and fold everything in only briefly, just until no more dry flour is visible. Stirring for too long makes the brownies firm, so stop in time and finally fold in the chocolate chips.
- 5
Baking
Pour the batter into the pan and smooth it out. Bake the brownies for 22 to 25 minutes, but deliberately do not trust the toothpick test here: the center may still seem moist, because it continues to cook while cooling. Let the brownies cool completely, preferably even overnight, before cutting them into pieces.
Our best tips
- Better to bake 2 minutes too short than too long, brownies continue to cook while cooling.
- Perfect edges can be cut with a knife dipped in hot water.
- A pinch of espresso powder in the batter enhances the chocolate flavor without tasting like coffee.
Tasty variations
Walnut Brownies
Fold 100 g of coarsely chopped walnuts into the batter.
Salted Caramel
Before baking, distribute caramel sauce in a spiral shape on the batter and sprinkle with flaky salt.
Nutrition facts
| Calories | 387 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 5 g |
| Carbohydrates | 40 g |
| – of which sugar | 31 g |
| Fat | 22 g |
| Fiber | 3 g |
Where the 387 kcal come from
per serving
Calculated from the ingredients – how we do it
We add up reference values for every ingredient and divide by the number of servings. These assumptions are baked in:
- Reference values per 100 g – for the raw ingredient, exactly as listed.
- Tinned goods count at drained weight, bone-in meat at purchase weight: you eat about 70 per cent of a chicken thigh and leave the rest.
- Water evaporates as you cook. The energy stays in the pot, the weight does not – so the figure is per serving, not per 100 g of finished dish.
- Anything listed without a quantity – “salt and pepper” – is not counted.
A guide value, not a lab measurement: no two onions weigh the same, and fat content varies from pack to pack.
Frequently asked questions
How do I know when the brownies are done?
The edges are firm, the center still wobbles minimally. Moist crumbs may stick to the toothpick, if it comes out clean, they are already too dry.
What is the best way to store brownies?
Packed airtight at room temperature, they stay fudgy for 4 to 5 days. Frozen, they keep for 3 months, wrapped individually in foil.
Can I use milk chocolate?
Better not as the main chocolate, the batter becomes too sweet and too soft. As chips in the batter, however, milk chocolate works wonderfully.
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