The Best Brownies (from scratch)

Brownies are probably my all-time favorite dessert.  What’s not to love?  It’s sorta like cake (but better), they’re quick to make, easy to store, and of course they contain chocolate!  How easy is it to whip out a box of brownie mix that you found on sale for 99¢ last week?  However, since I’m trying to eliminate buying and eating things that have stuff I can’t pronounce or a boatload of preservatives, I thought it was time to search out a brownie recipe.  Several months ago I found a recipe for a dry mix you could keep in the cupboard but I thought the end result was too greasy.  This one is better but I’ve cut back the oil a tad here too.

I had a helper for this recipe.  Her favorite part is taste-testing (don’t worry – if we’re going to feed to someone else, I monitor and try to put a halt to that activity).

This recipe was adapted from our old, tattered, beaten-up Betty Crocker cookbook from 1955.  Lovely book.  If you ever find one at a rummage sale or Grandma’s house be sure to pick it up!  They don’t make recipes like this anymore.  Even BC’s website is more likely to have “take a can of this and a box of that” type recipes.

I changed it up a little bit because I didn’t have any squares of chocolate in the house.  Frankly it made it simpler because then I didn’t have to melt the chocolate.  We usually only have Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa on hand, so that’s what was used for this recipe.  You gotta try this!  I don’t think I’ll ever buy another box of brownie mix again. These brownies smelled so good they didn’t even get a chance to cool down before we dived in!

The only question left is … who cuts brownies only 2-inches wide?!

Print Recipe

The Best Brownies (from scratch)

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1 cup plus 1 Tbsp sugar
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt

Instructions

• Mix together the cocoa, oil, sugar and eggs.
• Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt; add to the cocoa mixture. Mix just until everything is combined. Spread in a well-greased 8″x8″x2″ baking pan.
• Bake in a 350°F oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until just a slight imprint is left in the middle when touched. Cool before cutting and serving.

Notes

You could easily make up a couple of glass jars worth of this to store in your cupboard – just add the oil and eggs to bake. Easy peasy