The Fudgiest Giant Brownies
If you like your brownies really thick and fudgy all the way through like I do, you’ve come to the right place. Be careful when they go into the oven, though—you can’t test for doneness like you do with other baked goods because they are so moist: A wooden toothpick stuck into the brownies will never come out clean. Be sure to take them out of the oven after 35 minutes, no longer, before they begin to dry out. I would make these for Sunday lunch when I was a junior chef at a spa in Wexford, Ireland—the boss didn’t work on Sundays, so that was the time I could experiment. I would cut them in large squares, and they were so rich, the patrons sometimes had a hard time finishing them. Here they’re cut into bigger squares, but you could cut them any size you like.
Makes 9 to 12 brownies
- 2½ cups (565 grams) sugar
- ½ cup (115 milliliters) water
- ⅔ cup (4 ounces/115 grams) coarsely chopped bittersweet chocolate
- 1½ cups (213 grams) all-purpose flour
- ⅔ cup (76 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 cup (225 milliliters) vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup (6 ounces/170 grams) chocolate chips, plus more for topping
- Vanilla ice cream and hot fudge sauce, for serving (optional)
1 Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Grease a 9 x 13-inch cake pan and line it with parchment paper.
2 In a small saucepan, combine the sugar, water, and chocolate and heat over medium heat, gently stirring, until the chocolate and sugar have melted. (This step can also be done in the microwave.) Set aside to cool.
3 Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Mix until combined.
4 Whisk the oil, eggs, and vanilla into the cooled chocolate mixture.
5 Add the chocolate mixture to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chips. Do not over mix, as it will toughen the brownies.
6 Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Smooth the top with a spatula and top with additional chocolate chips.
7 Bake for 30 to 35 minutes. Take care not to overbake, or they won’t be as fudgy on the inside. Let cool fully in the pan on a wire rack.
8 Turn the brownie block out onto a flat surface and cut it into 9 or 12 squares.
9 Serve warm, with vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of hot fudge sauce, if desired. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.
Note
These brownies freeze really well. When you are faced with a dessert emergency, take one from the freezer and microwave it for about 1 minute.
