Fudgy Brownies {Homemade Brownies Like The Boxed Mix!}
These homemade fudgy brownies are a boxed brownie knockoff, and they are even more delicious and decadent and fudgy than any boxed mix!
As promised, here is the all-cocoa powder fudgy brownie recipe I used when judging the difference between natural and dutch-process cocoa powders.
This is the closest homemade recipe to rival the boxed brownie mixes I’ve found – which means a lot in my family since Brian adores the boxed brownie variety.
And I can’t bring myself to buy them (nothing against the boxed brownies – there is a time and a place, but I’m always on a quest to get a homemade version!).
Which means these fudgy brownies are a very happy compromise, especially considering that this simple homemade recipe takes maybe two minutes longer than the boxed mix.
Ok, three.
The decadent, fudgy brownies are so delicious, they easily gain access to The Best Recipe list.
Fudgy, dense and downright decadent and addicting, the chocolate flavor comes exclusively from cocoa powder instead of melted chocolate in the batter, which means using natural or dutch-process can vary the chocolate flavor (see this post for more details).
Either way is delicious, but I have to admit that because I love my chocolate dark, the dutch-process cocoa in these brownies is heavenly to my dark chocolate loving palette.
It makes for a slightly more mild chocolate flavor that isn’t as sharp as natural, unsweetened cocoa (but is still decadent and rich).
Test it out and see decide for yourself.
It may take two or three batches, but seriously, what’s so wrong with extra brownies laying around, right?
One Year Ago: Blueberry Fool
Two Years Ago: Perfect Corn on the Cob
Three Years Ago: Cookie Dough Topped Brownies
The Best Fudgy Brownies {Think: Homemade Brownies Like The Boxed Mix!}
Ingredients
- 10 tablespoons (142 g) butter
- 1 ¼ cups (265 g) granulated sugar
- ¾ cup (79 g) plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (natural or Dutch-process)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup (71 g) all-purpose flour
Instructions
- Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 325°F. Line the bottom and sides of an 8×8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper or foil, leaving an overhang on two opposite sides. Lightly grease with cooking spray and set aside.
- Combine the butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt in a medium microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for one minute intervals, stirring in between, until the butter is melted and the mixture is smooth. Set the mixture aside until it cools slightly (is warm to the touch not hot). It will look gritty but it will become smooth once the other ingredients are added.
- Stir in the vanilla with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula. Add the eggs one at a time, stirring vigorously after each one. When the batter looks thick, shiny, and well blended, add the flour and stir until you cannot see it any longer, then beat vigorously for 40 strokes with the wooden spoon or a rubber spatula. Spread evenly in the lined pan.
- Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center emerges slightly moist with batter, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool completely on a rack. After the brownies are cooled completely, I like to throw the pan in the refrigerator – cold brownies cut much easier and taste heavenly. Lift up the ends of the parchment or foil liner, and transfer the brownies to a cutting board. Cut into squares and serve.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: adapted slightly from Smitten Kitchen originally from Alice Medrich’s Bittersweet
Just put these in oven. Doubled all ingredients and put in a 9×13 pan. I did add a splash of butter extract too. Batter tasted wonderful. Can’t wait to try them!
Am making the brownies now….. Batter seemed really thick many I’m just used to the thin box mixes but are the supposed to be super thick?
Absolutely amazing!!! I have been on a search for a homemade box brownie recipe.. i tried the cooks illustrated version but i was not pleased at all..maybe my oil wasnt good? Although i highly doubt thats what it was seeing as though i moved into my house a year ago so the oil was definitely less than a year old. My husband in a brownie lover and i just want to have a homemade version that he absolutely loves and so far this is #1. I used both raw cocoa and dutch processed..riughly 50/50 and they are still very dark. I am now a devoted reader of your blog..this was the first recipe of yours i tried. Very happy!
We made these this evening and they were fantastic. I try lots of brownie recipes. This one easy and tasted oh so good.
Chelsey – no, but vanilla really adds to the flavor of the brownies.
Do you have to use vanilla extract?
just made these, and added a tablespoon of orange zest. They were absolutely amazing. thanks for sharing!!!
These are great! I have never made homemade brownies before! They turned out awesome! I even drizzled chocolate sauce on top and walnuts.
This is an AMAZING recipe! I added one more egg and a little water too it to get the consistency just right 🙂 Love it! So good!
Hi.
I just wanted to send a note to tell you I made these today and they are fabulous! Rich and decadent and oh-so-moist. We also love the orange chicken recipe. I make it every 3-4 weeks. So yummy! Thank you!
I am excited to try these! If you are ever happen to be in the Austin or San Antonio, Texas area you should try Miles of Chocolate (http://milesofchocolate.com/). The only place I have bought them is tucked away in the deli section at HEB, but they are the best fudgy/trufflely/deep chocolatey brownies you will ever taste!
Ok I gotta try these! I love a good brownie! They are my downfall.
Just made these tonight and they are FANTASTIC, I have tried a ton of recipes, and this is by far the best and easiest!
I’ve never been able to make brownies without turning them into a solid brick of unedibleness….until now! I ran out of cocoa powder and my boyfriend suggested using Nesquik chocolate milk powder and they were still irresistible!!!!
Parvinder – I always use salted butter.
did you use unsalted butter or salted butter?
I can’t wait to try these.
I’m making these for the second time in a week right now. We LOVED them (and I don’t even like box brownies)! My husband loves brownies, and since I didn’t used to be a fan (I am now) I never made them. Things are changing quickly. I used regular old cocoa, but they still looked as dark as your picture of the dutch-process variety. Divine. That’s what these are. Chocolate perfection. Thanks for yet another fab recipe!
Deb – yes, you can double for a 9X13!
I generally make brownies in a 9 by 13 pan (why go to all that trouble for an 8×8 🙂
Should I just double your recipe?
I made these yesterday for a couple I was taking dinner in to, and saved half the batch for my family because they were so rich. My husband is a firefighter and ended up not getting home until 1 a.m. because of fires they have had pop up. I sent him a text before I went to bed letting him know where dinner was and that there were brownies on the counter too. When we got up this morning the first thing he said to me was, “Those brownies were AMAZING!” Thanks again for a great recipe. It was nice to be able to make brownies from scratch that he enjoyed so much, especially after a long day like he’d had.
I made these when I saw them on Smitten Kitchen (I don’t often have unsweetened chocolate), and I didn’t love it. I have some really excellent Penzeys cocoa, though, so I gave it a try with a little less cocoa and butter and a little more flour, and I liked them reasonably well. They aren’t Baker’s one-bowl brownie or anything, but they are an acceptable substitute for when I don’t have unsweetened chocolate lying around.
I have these in the oven right now, the batter was delish! I’m always on a perfect brownie quest and this recipe was so easy. Always love a cocoa based recipe because I don’t always have unsweetened chocolate in the pantry. Often my brownies are tricky to time and end up underdone or too dried out – liking the lower baking temp., thinking this will help me out. Taking these over to a neighbor’s so I’m going to frost them, oh boy! (And thanks.)
Love it! I hate to admit that I tend to like the boxed brownies as well, guess it’s all the years I spent eating the ones my mom made. Will have to try these!
Made these and loved them. i used the hershey’s cocoa….I haven’t bought dutch yet….but I need to try that next! This was the firs treat snarfed up at our family reunion last week….that goes to say that they were REALLY good, cause there were tooooooo many treats there!
i’m not positive, but i don’t think i’ve ever made a batch of brownies using cocoa powder–it’s always been melted chocolate for me. these look MARVELOUSLY dense and gooey, though, so perhaps i’ll give ’em a whirl!
I have read that if you cut the brownes with a plastic knife they don’t glob up.
have not try it myself yet.
How could any brownie be better than your “Easiest Brownies In the World?” I make those all the time because they are so easy, and fudgy, and delish! And whenever I make them, I get so many compliments and recipe requests. I haven’t made a box recipe since! I’ll have to try these, too! You should know that I rarely make anything, anymore, that isn’t a MKC recipe… seriously! Last night we had Pineapple Meatballs, and tonight we’re having “Kansas City Sue’s Chicken.”
Thanks for your great blog!
THese look so good!
You might have convinced me to try something other than boxed brownies. 🙂 I love my boxed brownies, but I also love the looks of these!! Mmmmmm!
Perfect! Can’t wait to try it!
Marcie – sorry you didn’t love the brownies. Is there a chance you added more cocoa powder than the recipe calls for? The original recipe (posted on Smitten Kitchen) has over 500 reviews and nearly all are positive so I’m sad you didn’t love them. Hope you find a recipe that works for you!
I am not sure what I did wrong, but they didn’t taste right. I used regular unsweetened cocoa and they were SO dark. It felt like I put way to much in. They did not look like your pictures at all. I’ll have to keep looking for a scratch recipe or try this one again!
Marcie, I had the exact same problem. Way too much cocoa and not fudgy at all. Not sure what I did wrong.
Michelle – these brownies are slightly more decadent and chewy than the Easiest brownies. Similar in a brownie-like way – these brownies just approximate the fudgy texture of a boxed mix more than the Easiest recipe.
Ñam…For the latinamerican followers, please! may you write the recipies in grams too? I hope it would be easy!!! Thanks a lot
Sil
Thank you thank you, love brownies and love trying new brownie recipes.
WOW! Talk about divine intervention! 🙂 Supposed to take brownies or cookies to a youth devotional this next week. I chose brownies – easier to dump brownies out of a box! Guess this means I have to make now???? Going to try the Dutch-process – know they will be a hit! Thanks!
How would you say these compare to the Easiest Brownies in the World? I just made those for the first time (for the 4th), and thought they were amazing, and super fudgy.
Yay! I’ve been waiting for this to show up since you tempted us in the cocoa post. I can’t wait to stuff my face! I mean share these at my family reunion. 🙂
Im so excited to try these! They look amazing. My hubby likes the box brownies too and I’m like you… I just have a hard time buying them when I can make them from scratch! These might just win him over. Thanks.
I love a good brownie! These look fabulous. Now I’m sad that I used up all my dutch cocoa the other day…time to hit up the store I guess.
I’ve been waiting for this recipe ever since you did the cocoa powder post and you post it today – on my birthday!! Happy birthday to me!!!!!
Oh, Mel…these look crazy delicious! I haven’t made boxed brownies in years, because it’s so easy to make homemade brownies and I hate all of those preseratives in the boxed mixes. I agree about the dutch cocoa- it makes such a dark, fudgy brownie!
As a food blogger sometimes i am sad to admit that i LOVE boxed brownies. I’ve never tried making brownies from scratch because I’ve never tasted them (from other people) to be as good as my box brownies. But I guess I’ll have to try your recipe out, and hope its a good substitute. That way I wouldn’t get all the preservatives, but also don’t have to run to the store when I want yummy brownies. Thanks!
This is such a simple recipe! Wonderful!!
These sound heavenly! I love dark chocolate brownies and will definitely be trying the dutch-process cocoa!
I should definitely try these! I have made homemade brownies in the past, and I have never found them to be as good as the boxed kind.
I have such a weak spot for boxed brownies, I can’t wait to try them. Amazing the difference with the different cocoa powders!
Mmm, I can’t wait to try these. I love me some boxed brownies but I hate buying something so processed. These look like the perfect solution! And considering I’ve never tried a bad recipe from your blog, I’m sure these are gonna be awesome!
These look awesome! I made your other brownies a few times from your “best” list and they are great. I even topped them one time with a foolproof milk chocolate frosting recipe from Cook’s Illustrated. Oh my!!! Were they good!! I would never frost a brownie normally, but I was taking them with us to someone’s house for dinner. So I “dressed” them up a bit and Wow! You might try it sometime!! The frosting is great on cakes too. You just make it in the food processor. It is incredible!!
OMG LET ME JUST TELL YOU…these were the most AMAZING brownies ever. They’re so decadent and the perfect balance between chewy and soft. Their flavor and just everything is wonderful! I personally added a little bit of espresso powder to enhance the flavor, and a 1/2 tablespoon extra cocoa (regular unsweetened). Thank you so much I’m so glad these turned out PERFECT.
I have been looking for a brownie recipe that uses dutch-processed cocoa powder and found this. I have baked twice already and I loved the result. Thank you so much for sharing.