My recipe for easy homemade chocolate brownies that taste absolutely amazing. Includes step-by-step pictures.
I’ve recently been looking back through my recipe index and I realised that there are quite a few basic baking recipes missing that really should be there. To rectify this I’ve decided to go on a bit of a mission to fill the gaps.
Today’s recipe is a classic chocolate brownie recipe which is easy to make. It gives you delicious brownies that are crisp on top and gooey on the inside. They’re a family favourite and Daniel (my 7 year old) told me if they sold these in coffee shops then it would be all he’d ever order 🙂
What’s the secret to perfect chocolate brownies
I think the most important step in creating perfect chocolate brownies is making sure the egg and sugar mixture are whisked enough that they thicken before you fold in the chocolate (step 3 in the recipe). This is what gives the brownies their distinctive crispy top. It’s almost like a thin layer of chocolatey meringue above the gooey brownie centre.
Another important tip is to ensure that you don’t over-bake the brownies. You want to take them out of the oven when the edges are just starting to pull in from the sides of the tin. If you insert a skewer it should have a few crumbs sticking to it (unlike cake where you want it to come out clean). Don’t worry if you do accidentally overcook them, you’ll have delicious chocolate cake slices instead!
My final tip for brownie success is to let them cool in the tin. The brownies are very soft when they first come out of the oven and if you try and remove them too soon you may well find that they crumble. Leaving them for an hour or so to cool before removing them will allow them to firm up.
Introducing step-by-step images for my recipes
I recently did a poll on my Instagram stories asking whether people like to see step-by-step pictures on recipes and the overwhelming response was “Yes”. I listened and I’ve added some extra images to the recipe to show what everything should look like at each stage.
I’d love to know what you think… helpful? not helpful? are there other images you think it would be useful to see?
Let me know in the comments.
If they’re something you’re all finding useful then I’ll look to add them to more of my recipes in future.
Easy Chocolate Brownies
INGREDIENTS
- 3 medium eggs
- 200 g unsalted butter
- 200 g milk chocolate
- 30 g cocoa powder
- 100 g self-raising flour
- 250 g soft light brown sugar
INSTRUCTIONS
- Pre-heat your oven to 170ºC/150ºC fan. Line a 20x30cm baking tray with greaseproof paper.
- Melt your butter (200g) and milk chocolate (200g). I prefer to melt mine in a saucepan over a very low heat, stirring constantly to ensure that it doesn’t burn and the butter and chocolate combine. Alternatively you can also melt them in the microwave (about 1½-2 minutes) or using a bain marie. Once your butter and chocolate have melted pour them into a different bowl to cool. They must be fully cooled before they are added to the other ingredients.
- Whisk your eggs (3 medium eggs) until they are pale in colour. Add the soft light brown sugar (250g) and whisk until the eggs and sugar are fully combined and have thickened (you’ll know they’re ready when you lift out the whisk and the drips leave a trail that takes a few moments to disappear).
- Add the chocolate and butter mixture (it must be cooled!) and fold it into the egg mixture taking care not to knock out the air.
- Sift your self-raising flour (100g) and cocoa powder (30g) into the mixture and fold everything together. Stop folding as soon as they are combined to avoid overmixing.
- Pour the mixture into your prepared tin and smooth with a palette knife or the back of a spoon.
- Cook for 30-35 minutes until the edges of the brownies are just starting to come away from the sides of the tin.
- Remove your brownies from the oven and leave to cool in the tin. Once cool remove them from the tin and cut them into 12 pieces (or 48 pieces if you’re making mini brownies). You can trim the edges if you want them a bit neater.
NOTES
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION
Any nutritional information provided is the estimated nutritional information per serving. Please refer to my guide to Charlotte’s Lively Kitchen nutritional information if you would like to learn more about how this is calculated.
Free From/Suitable For…
The ingredients I used to make this recipe are all free from the following allergens. However, please check any labels carefully for allergens you need to avoid as brands can vary and product recipes can change over time.
- Suitable for Vegetarians
- Tree Nut-Free
- Peanut-Free
- Sesame-Free
- Sulphur Dioxide & Sulphite-Free
- Fish-Free
- Crustacean-Free
- Mollusc-Free
- Celery-Free
- Mustard-Free
- Lupin-Free
S Young says
The best Brownie recipe that I’ve ever tried. The inside is light and moistt plus the top has a great combinatoln of crust & chewiness. I tend to make 2 batches as the family eat it as soon as it’s out of the oven. I find though that it takes 10 to 16 minutes longer to cook than the instructions state as otherwise it’s still runny inside.
AnneK says
Can I use gluten free flour?
Charlotte Oates says
I haven’t tried it, but it should work just fine.
Helen Reed says
Seems a very good recipe. Not sure about cooking time as top was lovely and crusty but centre looks a bit dense but will see how they turn out on cooling. Not sure if I will get 12 squares as the centre sinks a bit and there is a crust all around the outside (which either me or my children will polish off).
Michelle Brown says
This is it! Finally found the perfect Brownies recipe! Thanks so much for sharing this. Winner on many counts!