In all my 10 years of baking, I’ve come to understand the reason for my ‘failures’. It’s not my equipment or my ingredients or my inability to convert ‘sticks of butter’ into grams. It’s just…..ME. I meant to say my inexperience or lack of knowledge when it comes to knowing how my ingredients are affecting my dish. Not knowing how increasing or decreasing the quantity of an ingredient can impact the flavour or texture of the finished product. Can you swap ingredients? What if I want to switch out something or add something else? All of your questions will be answered in this recip- SORRY! Not a recipe. A BREAKDOWN. BROWNIE BREAKDOWN. Here we go!
Step-by-Step Brownie Breakdown
For those of you adventurous NERDS who stopped here to understand how this recipe actually works, and how each ingredient affects the brownies, you’re in for a treat! So, firstly, lemme explain how each ingredient affects the product (check the ingredients list fo reference):
BUTTER – Imagine baking cakes and pastries is like constructing a building. The flour and sugar act as the framework i.e. they build the structure, whereas the fats and eggs (also have fat) are enrichers. They make the building taste delicious. (I lost the analogy somewhere) Brownies are supposed to be really rich as compared to a regular chocolate cake. So, in the recipe, the fats are relatively more compared to a normal cake (including eggs). Also, I’ve browned butter because that adds a depth of flavour. It’s one of those things that you do because all the cool kids are doing. But, it does make a difference.
SUGAR – Sugar is actually more important here than you think. In fact, if you want the awesome crinkles on top of the brownies. Let’s be honest. That’s why you’re here. You need to use either powdered sugar or blend your sugar, which is what I’ve done in this recipe. Apparently, the crinkle on top of the brownies is a layer that forms when the batter is really smooth without any grains of sugar or other stuff. When it bakes in the oven, it stretches like a balloon and stays that way. Later, when they cool, the stretched-out ‘skin’ cools and crinkles, creating that sexy look.
ALSO, I’ve used brown sugar and white sugar in the recipe, not in equal ratios. Brown sugar is far less in quantity because it adds moisture, which we don’t want a lot of. If the batter is too loose, the topmost layer of it won’t dry out in time to create that skin. But I’ve added some because it tastes really good. So, everything here is precisely measured (including eggs).
EGGS – I swear, don’t ask me for an EGGLESS recipe. I’m not angry at you for asking. I understand that you want to make brownies so that your mom/dad can enjoy them too, and I hope you find one. But, can you tell your mom/dad that egGS ARE REALLY HARRRD TOO REPLAAACEEEE??!! Ok, look, I’m not saying that eggless recipes don’t exist or they’re not good. I’m not good enough or I don’t have enough knowledge to replace them. I find them really versatile, and instead of using 50 other ingredients to replace one ingredient, I’d rather use that one.
Eggs act as a binder, enricher, and thickener in this recipe. The measurement for eggs is also very specific if you look at it. Remember the moisture ratio I was talking about? It’s to the gram. If incase, you eggs weigh less. Add some water to it to bring it up.ALSO, don’t worry you won’t taste it in this recipe.
COCOA POWDER & CHOCOLATE – In my extensive research (lol), I’ve found that there are brownie recipes made using either just melted chocolate or just cocoa powder or both. I’ve done both. I’ve made them with cocoa powder alone, and there was an emptiness to them. Like soul-less brownies. So, I’ve added a bit of melted chocolate to it to add that ‘OOMPH!’, which also has that sugar melted into it already, which is a bonus for us.
FLOURÂ – One thing that really shocked me when I was searching for brownie recipes is that the amount of flour is REALLY less. I wondered how it holds itself up, and then I saw the sugar and I was like, “Ohhh! That makes sense!” The amount of sugar in the recipe is necessary for the crinkle top, and also for the structure of the brownie. Even after adding all that sugar, it still doesn’t taste too sweet. So, don’t you dare think about decreasing the sugar in the recipe. Eat fewer brownie pieces instead! Difficult I know….Â
1. Measure everything precisely.
2. Melt & Brown butter in a saucepan.
3. Blend the sugar & add to a bowl.
4. Add the butter & whisk well.
5. Add half of the chocolate and combine till smooth.
6. Combine the eggs & vanilla.
7. Add to the chocolate mix & whisk.
8. Whisk until smooth & coats a spoon.
9. Sieve flour & cocoa powder.
10. Fold into the batter with chocolate chunks.
11. Pour into a 8x8 brownie pan (lined w/h parchment paper). Rest for 10 mins.
11. Bake at 160 C for 24-28 mins (might take longer).
12. Check with a toothpick to enusre doneness.
13. Cool completely before cutting & serving.
BROWNIE RECIPE
Ingredients
- 113 gms of Butter
- 200 gms of White Sugar
- 40 gms of Brown Sugar
- 140 gms of chopped Dark Chocolate (70 g + 70 g)
- 110 gms of Eggs (2 no)
- 1 tsp of Vanilla
- 50 gms of Cocoa Powder
- 60 gms of Flour
Procedure
- Melt the butter in a pan & brown it.
- Blend the sugars into a fine powder and add them to a bowl. Add the butter and mix well to melt & combine the sugar.
- Add the 1st half of the chocolate (70g) to the sugar-butter mixture while it’s hot and whisk to form a uniform smooth mixture.
- Measure your two eggs (110 g); if it comes out less, add a teaspoon or two of water until it reaches that level. Add the vanilla into it.
- Add it to the chocolate mixture and mix until smooth, thick, and coats the back of the spoon.
- Sieve flour and cocoa powder. Add it to the mixture along with the 2nd half of the chopped chocolate, and fold it using a spatula very gently. Mix until you just don’t see any dry flour. Avoid mixing too much to prevent overworking the mixture.
- Add it to an 8×8-inch brownie tray lined with parchment paper. Let the batter rest for 10 mins before baking to let the sugar dissolve fully.
- Bake at 160 C for 24-28 mins (may vary), and check with a toothpick. If underdone, bake for 2 more mins and check. Repeat this until the brownies are done.
- Remove and let them cool completely before slicing and serving.