The BEST brownie recipe! With crispy edges, fudgy middles, and rich chocolate flavor, these homemade brownies will disappear in no time.
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For years, I couldn’t seem to find a recipe for brownies that met my standards. Anytime I made homemade brownies, I wanted them to be just like the ones I ate as a kid – super fudgy, moist, and chocolaty, with crispy edges and crackly tops. But the thing is, these brownies didn’t come from a recipe. We always made them from a box. Nowadays, I prefer to bake from scratch, but no brownie recipe I tried could live up to the chocolate brownies of my childhood.
So this fall, as I flipped through Michelle Lopez’s new book Weeknight Baking, her recipe for Boxed Mix Brownies, From Scratch caught my eye. Would I finally be able to make homemade brownies that would be just as delicious as the ones from a box?
The verdict: yes! I’ve had this brownie recipe on repeat since the first time I tried it. It calls for basic pantry ingredients, and it’s hardly more difficult than using a mix. As for the brownies, they’re true perfection – glossy, fudgy, and filled with rich chocolate flavor. Trust me, you’re going to want to make them ASAP!
Another thing you should do ASAP is check out Weeknight Baking! This book is packed with crave-worthy recipes that are meant for busy weeknights. Each one comes with fun variations (I have my eye on the matcha snickerdoodles) as well as tips for becoming a more efficient baker. After years of juggling a 9-to-5 job and running her blog, Hummingbird High, Michelle is full of wisdom on how to bake on a busy schedule. She writes, “We’re all doing the best we can with what we have. And I’m going to help you bake any night of the week that works for you.” If you love baking, you’ll love this book.
Homemade Brownie Recipe Ingredients
Back to Michelle’s recipe for brownies! In order for it to turn out like (aka better than) the boxed mix, Michelle uses granulated sugar, all-purpose flour, salt, and chocolate chips. Then, she adds these key ingredients:
- 2 eggs + water – Michelle uses a bit of water with the eggs to achieve the moist, gooey texture of boxed mix brownies without any commercial emulsifiers. And because this recipe doesn’t contain any baking powder, eggs are essential for helping the brownies puff up in the oven.
- Powdered sugar – The trick to making homemade brownies that are just like ones from a box! Powdered sugar contains cornstarch, which helps thicken the batter without the chemical additives you’d find in a mix.
- Unsweetened cocoa powder – Michelle recommends using Hershey’s Special Dark Dutch-processed cocoa powder (I used Whole Foods’ 365 Cocoa Powder). Make sure to sift it if it’s lumpy!
- Oil – While many recipes for brownies use unsalted butter, Michelle’s calls for canola oil, just like the boxed mix. I use olive oil because it’s what I keep on hand, and I love the rich flavor.
- Vanilla Extract – 1/2 teaspoon vanilla really amps up the chocolate flavor.
That’s it! These fantastic homemade brownies are so easy.
How to Make Brownies from Scratch
First, mix together the dry and wet ingredients in two separate bowls. Combine the sugar, flour, powdered sugar, cocoa powder, chocolate chips, and salt in a medium bowl. Then, whisk together the eggs, olive oil, and water in a large one.
Next, combine the wet and dry ingredients. Sprinkle the dry mixture over the wet one, and fold until just combined. The batter will be thick!
Then, pour the batter into an 8×8 inch baking pan lined with parchment paper. Use a rubber spatula to spread it to all four sides of the pan and to smooth the top. The mixture will be very thick – that’s ok.
Finally, bake! Transfer the pan to a 325-degree oven and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out with a few crumbs attached. Allow the brownies to cool completely before slicing and serving. Enjoy!
Store any leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. They also freeze well for up to a month. Last time I made these, I doubled the recipe and stored the second batch in the freezer. It was so fun to have them on hand for a quick and easy dessert or afternoon treat!
Best Brownie Recipe Tips
- Better chocolate chips = better brownies. In her book, Michelle writes that one of the biggest secrets to making great brownies is using large, good-quality chocolate chips. She recommends Ghiradelli’s 60% Cacao Bittersweet Baking Chips, while I love Enjoy Life’s Dark Chocolate Morsels. Either brand would fantastic in this recipe!
- It’s better to pull them out too early than to leave them in too long. No one likes dry brownies, so err on the side of caution when you’re making this recipe. Bake them until a toothpick inserted comes out with just a few crumbs attached. If you’re on the fence, go ahead and take them out of the oven. They’ll continue to firm up as they cool!
- Wait for them to cool. Try your best to resist eating these guys straight out of the oven. Letting them cool makes them gooier and fudgier, and they’ll be less likely to crumble when you slice them. Plus, they’ll have an even richer chocolate flavor. Trust me, it’s worth the wait!
More Favorite Desserts
If you love this brownie recipe, try one of these yummy treats next!
- Perfect Oatmeal Cookies
- Easy Sugar Cookies
- No-Bake Cookies
- Best Peanut Butter Cookies
- Orange Zest Shortbread Cookies
- Vegan Coconut Macaroons
Best Homemade Brownies
Equipment
- 8x8 Baking Dish (this is the one I use so they don't overcook)
- Cooking Spray (I love this avocado oil one from Chosen Foods)
- Parchment Paper (this makes it so much easier to remove the brownies from the pan)
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar*
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2/3 cup cocoa powder, sifted if lumpy
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar, sifted if lumpy
- 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
- 3/4 teaspoons sea salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup canola oil or extra-virgin olive oil**
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. Lightly spray an 8x8 baking dish (not a 9x9 dish or your brownies will overcook) with cooking spray and line it with parchment paper. Spray the parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, combine the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, powdered sugar, chocolate chips, and salt.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, olive oil, water, and vanilla.
- Sprinkle the dry mix over the wet mix and stir until just combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan (it'll be thick - that's ok) and use a spatula to smooth the top. Bake for 40 to 48 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with only a few crumbs attached (note: it's better to pull the brownies out early than to leave them in too long). Cool completely before slicing.*** Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. These also freeze well!
Notes
Left in the oven for an hour and 12 minutes and it was STILL gooey. I dont know what was going on but it doesn’t cook well. I went ahead and ate some but they were pretty chewy and sticky in some spots (edge pieces mostly) raw in others, too sweet for me too. Bummer for sure
These were amazing. I used vegetable oil because that’s what I had on hand, and my husband doesn’t like the flavor of olive oil. I used a toothpick to continuously check the doneness, which helps. I had them in the oven closer to an hour before the toothpick came out without goo on it. Let them set for 2.5 hours and they were perfect. So good and so easy.
I did the same exact thing. But when i took it out after an hr, it came out totally raw. I mean, it was delicious but rly raw
OMG!!! These brownies are phenomenal. I followed the recipe with follow exceptions: I substitute the oil for unsalted butter, added two teaspoons of vanilla flavoring, sifted all dry products except granulated sugar, and added a teaspoon of Cafe Bustelo Espresso. Soooo good!!
I’ve made these brownies MULTIPLE times over the years, I think I first discovered it in 2023(?), and I have never had an issue. The only time I made a bad batch was user-error, I used a pan too large and they were thin and overcooked lol but they still tasted great. I have made these in a standard 8×8 pan AND as single-serving tins for gifts, and they have always turned out divine! I also choose to substitute olive oil for avocado when I make these for other people, since not everyone loves the OO taste. In my experience they don’t rise too much, just enough but that’s what I like about the recipe, I don’t have to worry about overfilling my single serve tins
This recipe does not work at all. Standard brownies are 2:1 sugar to flour by weight, sometime less. The flour (3/4c = 90g) and sugar (1 1/2c = 300g) already exceed this by quite a bit, more than 3:1. Adding the powdered sugar, it’s 4:1. These brownies are incredibly oily and disgustingly sugary to the point one small taste gave me a stomach ache. Huge waste of ingredients and time.
No baking soda or powder. They didn’t rise at all. Just horrible. Exactly 40 minutes and burnt tasting.
Very disappointed, no baking soda or powder. They didn’t rise at all
I’ve never had any problems with this recipe. My family loves it and I taught my grandbaby how to bake with it and it comes out yummy every time. The eggs are what helps it rise. Hope you try it again. 😊
I found this very helpful, especially the part about the batter being thick because recipes usually leave you guessing at the consistency, as well as offering a solution if you wanted your brownies to contain less sugar or have a more subtle taste.
Thank you so much Phoebe and Jeanine!
Like others have said, they come out very oily. I have made this batch two times now and unfortunately observe no different in consistency. However, there is no lingering taste of olive oil; it goes away once it is baked.
Overall, a solid recipe. 👍
I doubled the recipe and the wet and dry ingredients were completely thrown off! It was dry and crumbly and just not right so I added enough water to give it the texture in the picture. And wouldn’t you know I brought it to an event and was telling my friend what happened and she had done the exact same thing with this same recipe! The brownies turned out ok. I’m not sure they were quite right but they were fine.
Thank you for this recipe!!
This recipe …plus…8×6 “ casserole dish. Veg oil and then added another teaspoon vanilla extract, a tsp almond extract and 2 tsp a good espresso powder…..
Oh my god!!!!! Brownies
And I don’t use that expression.
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Really good! Olive oil flavor is strong, but pleasant
Amazing I made these for my boyfriend and he loved them🫶
These were delicious. Followed the recipe exactly, except cooked them in a cast iron mini skillet and served with vanilla ice cream. PERFECTION!!
Use oarxhment all the time and this time brownies stuck. Was horrible. Nobidea why
Flavor was good. I added a 1/2 tsp expresso powder
I used canola oil and the taste was too overpowering and I was unable to eat it. I may try this again but with vegetable oil. Bummed out on this one.
Absolutely no to olive oil IMO. Would use coconut or canola next time.
The taste was good but they were oily and never really got a brownie texture. They bordered on raw even though leaving them longer than the recipe called for. The 1/2 inch edges were a good texture but the rest was way too batter like.
Hi Dennis, I’m sorry you were disappointed with the texture! Just so I can help troubleshoot, did you change anything about the recipe?
Mine came out super oily, but I didn’t have powdered sugar, could that have been the problem?
Hi Diana, the cornstarch in the powdered sugar helps give these the intended texture. I think that could have been the issue!