Before there were food blogs, food magazines, cookbooks with high gloss and styled photos, Tik-Tok videos, Instagram reels, there were cookbooks without color photographs. Sometimes there was a pencil drawing next to the recipe. However, those black and white drawings never really showed you what the finished dish should look like. Somehow generations of us managed to learn to cook and bake from those photo-free cookbooks. If you lived in the US, ingredient amounts in those recipes were (and in large part still are) measured in teaspoons, tablespoons, and cups. In recent years, there has been another trend in the food world. Recipes are now listing ingredient amounts in both the 'traditional American' way as well as in the 'rest of the world' way of grams and liters. Even when both measurements are provided, many of us continue to use the one we grew up with. So this is the part of the blog post where I tell you the recipe below for these rich, fudgy, glossy, chocolatey brownies is a big departure from what you have come to see here. The ingredient amounts are listed in the 'rest of the world' way. For those of you who use a kitchen scale to bake, this is no big deal. But for those of you don't, let me just say this is THE brownie recipe worth the price of kitchen scale. Because next to the recipe for the Decadent Chocolate Brownies aka Outrageous Brownies, this is the only other brownie recipe you need in your life. Or maybe it should be the only one.
The depth of chocolate flavor in these incredible, dense, thick Brown Butter Espresso Brownies is out of this world. Between the browned butter, the instant espresso, the melted chocolate in the batter, the Dutch Processed Cocoa, and the chocolate chips studded throughout the brownie, one bite of this brownie will feel akin to having a religious experience.
In addition to weighing out the ingredients, there is another key to creating this throw down, state fair blue ribbon worthy brownie. Baking them in a metal (aluminum) 8 inch square baking pan is a must. The thickness of the brownie adds to their allure and addictiveness.
To further enhance their fudgy texture, store the brownies in the refrigerator and serve them lightly chilled. They probably won't last more than a day or two, but if kept covered and chilled in the refrigerator they will be good for at least a week. Perfect in flavor, texture, and appearance, these luscious Brown Butter Espresso Brownies are worthy of being given some of the highest accolades possible. Best, best-ever, heavenly, ambrosial, and divine are just a few options.
The shine on these brownies further adds to their dreamy appeal. You will be obsessed with these Brown Butter Espresso Brownies as they are the perfect combination of rich, decadent, chewy, fudgy and chocolately. I for one will be fan girling over these brownies for the rest of my life.
Recipe
Brown Butter Espresso Brownies
Makes 16 - 2" brownies
Ingredients
130 g granulated sugar
130 g light brown sugar
3 large eggs
120 g (9 Tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into chunks
75 g semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips
70 g canola oil
2 teaspoons vanilla
75 g all-purpose flour
35 g cocoa powder (Dutch Processed)
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
1 Tablespoon instant espresso
3/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
75 g plus 2 Tablespoons semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips, divided
Flaky sea salt
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees (F). Line an 8" square metal baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. In small saucepan, melt and brown butter (approximately 8-10 minutes). Pour browned butter and darkened bits into a medium sized bowl. Immediately add cocoa powder. Stir. Add in 75 g chocolate chips. Stir until mixture is melted. Set aside.
3. Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, cornstarch, instant espresso and Kosher salt.
4. In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the eggs, granulated sugar and brown sugar until thick and creamy (approximately 4 minutes.
5. Add in the butter/chocolate mixture, oil, and vanilla. Mix to combine.
6. Add in the flour. Mix jut until combined.
7. Fold in 75 g of chocolate chips.
8. Transfer batter to prepared pan. Smooth top with an offset spatula. Lightly sprinkle with flaky sea salt.
9. Put baking dish on a baking pan and insert into the oven.
10. Bake for 45-50 minutes. Do not over bake. Important Notes: Rotate the pan midway through the baking process and sprinkle on the remaining 2 Tablespoons of chocolate chips.
11. Remove from the oven. Put the baking dish on a cooling rack.
12. Cut into 16 two inch squares when the brownies have cooled or after they have cooled and been refrigerated.
13. If not serving immediately, cover and store in the refrigerator (the brownies get even fudgier when chilled).
Notes: (1) Before removing the brownies from the oven, insert a toothpick into the center. If it has moist crumbs on it, it's done. If wet batter is on the toothpick, continue baking another 5 minutes. (2) Instead of chocolate chips, you could also chop up semi-sweet or dark chocolate. (3) Dutch Processed Cocoa creates a deeper, chocolate flavor and even richer fudgier texture. Natural cocoa powder will not yield the same results. (4) This recipe was inspired by multiple sources.