Brownies
A few years ago, I posted on Twitter asking for recommendations for a good recipe for Brownies. Someone replied with this one, and tagged the cookbook author, Leah Hyslop, who was really lovely. So I gave it a try, and it’s my go-to brownie recipe.
It’s quick, easy, keeps well, travels well, and disappears quickly wherever you take it. The brownies are beautifully moist, really delicious, and are basically everything you want from a brownie. This is a great recipe for people who don’t do a lot of baking, but want to make something excellent – take this to the next potluck, and get yourself a reputation for being a fabulous baker.
I wish I could remember who sent me the link, but since I can’t, I’ll use this to say ‘thank you so much!!’
Taken from The Brownie Diaries by Leah Hyslop, published by Bloomsbury
Brownies
Yield: It really depends on how small you cut them, but I’d say 12-24 brownies
Prep Time: 5 min
Working Time: 20 min
Baking Time: 30 – 35 min
Equipment
Baking Tin
Medium-sized sauce pan
Kitchen Scale
Parchment Paper
Rubber spatula
I’ll note that most of the measurements are by weight, which is definitely my preferred method for baking. It’s totally worthwhile to get yourself a small kitchen scale – it’s so much more accurate, especially for ingredients like flour, which can end up too densely-packed and ruin an otherwise great recipe.
Ingredients
- 200g unsalted butter, chopped into rough cubes, plus extra for greasing (I use salted butter!)
- 300g dark chocolate (around 70% cocoa solids), roughly broken into pieces
- 300g caster sugar (icing sugar)
- 3 large eggs and 1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten
- 50g plain flour
- 60g cocoa powder
- ½ tsp sea salt, plus extra to sprinkle
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F.
- Grease a 20 cm square tin and line with baking parchment.
- Put the butter and chocolate in a saucepan over a low heat and melt, stirring, until combined.
- Stir in the sugar, then take off the heat.
- Cool for 5 minutes, until warm to the touch.
- Add the eggs to the pan and quickly stir to combine.
- Now beat, using a handheld electric whisk, on a medium-high speed, or a fork (which is what I do) for about 3 minutes; the mixture will become thick and velvety.
- Sift over the flour, cocoa powder and salt, and gently fold in with a spatula or large metal spoon until just combined.
- Transfer the mixture to your prepared tin – it will be rather thick – spreading the mix into the corners.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes. It should be set on top, with a few cracks around the edge.
- When it comes out of the oven, sprinkle the extra sea salt on top.
- Cool in the tin for at least two hours before cutting into squares (if you’re able to wait that long).
Looking for more great recipes? Check out my Family Recipes page!
