Rich and Chewy Cocoa Brownies

A couple of years ago I discovered that baking rich and chewy cocoa brownies from scratch was just as easy as making the boxed variety.

I might even argue that “from scratch” is easier.

Seems crazy, right?

Why make brownies from scratch?

You control the ingredients.

Ever read the side of a brownie box?

Chances are there’s at least one unpronounceable ingredient, which is totally avoidable by making them homemade.

Plus, you can make them as organic as you want—organic flour, organic cocoa powder … you get my drift.

Homemade brownies have so few ingredients, I bet you already have them in your pantry and fridge.

By making them from scratch, you never have to worry about keeping boxes on hand.

You only need the ingredients, which can be used for lots of other recipes too.

I love ingredients that multi-task!

Cocoa Powder FTW!

I rarely keep actual baking chocolate on hand (or even chocolate chips, for that matter).

I’m not much of a dessert maker, so I don’t waste the grocery budget on it.

However, I do keep a container of cocoa powder in the pantry.

It’s what I use to make homemade hot chocolate (1 tsp cocoa powder + 1 tsp granulated sugar + hot milk), and also what I’ve found works great in my brownies!

Rich and Chewy Cocoa Brownies

My current favorite recipe for rich and chewy cocoa brownies is adapted from Alton Brown’s recipe for cocoa brownies.

They’re SO rich that a little dab’ll do you, which is just how I like my brownies.

Everything is mixed in one bowl, and then poured into an 8×8″ glass baking pan.

The prep happens in the time it takes to preheat your oven!

Can’t beat that.

Pro Tip: I love heating them up for ten to fifteen seconds in the microwave (they get a little gooey) and then adding a scoop of ice cream on top—it’s the perfect night cap.

Rich and Chewy Cocoa Brownies

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes

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Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon butter (softened for greasing the baking dish)
• 1/8 cup flour (for dusting the baking dish)
• 4 large eggs
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 sticks butter, melted
• 1-1/4 cups cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour an 8x8" glass baking dish (or just coat the bottom and sides with cooking spray).

Add the eggs to the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, and whisk them for 3 minutes on medium-high, until they're light yellow and frothy. Add the sugar, and continue whisking for 1 minute. Add the remaining ingredients, and continue whisking for 1 more minute.

Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish, and bake the brownies for 60 minutes (or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean). Let the rich and chewy cocoa brownies cool completely before cutting them into small squares. In fact, refrigerating them for an hour before cutting is ideal!

Notes

If using a convection oven, you'll want to reduce the cooking time to 30 minutes, checking for done-ness around 20 minutes.