The BEST brownie recipe! With crispy edges, fudgy middles, and rich chocolate flavor, these homemade brownies will disappear in no time.
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
These turned out great! Chewy and soft on the inside, and crunchy and crisp on the outside. I was a little worried when my batter came out more like a dough, but it baked well and the flavor is great! I used dark chocolate powder. Thanks for the recipe!
So glad you loved the brownies!
This is my go-to brownie recipe. Every time I make them someone asks for the recipe. They are so rich and chocolatey. I love that it only takes a small piece to fill my chocolate cravings.
So glad you love them!
Not a fan of these. They were too gooey. I guess I like more of a cake like brownie.
Yes, these are definitely gooey! For a cakier brownie, I’d recommend this recipe: https://www.loveandlemons.com/zucchini-brownies/
I have everything but the chocolate chips! Is it okay to make without them?
Hi Hailey, some readers have skipped the chocolate chips and really enjoyed the brownies. However, I recommend using them if you can because they make these extra fudgy.
By the way. This is my go-to brownie recipe and it is DECADENT and delicious. It truly is THE BEST brownie recipe. Something about using olive oil just gives them the most incredible flavor and moisture. I highly recommend NOT using canola oil and using a high quality olive oil.
Hi Holly, So glad you love the recipe!!
Question, I want to double this recipe but I only have 1 8×8 pan. I have a baking sheet that is just a little bigger than 2 8×8 pans. do you think this will work?? Time adjusted a little l?
Hi Holly, I’m not sure. The bake time would definitely be shorter with a wider pan. Hope this helps!
Good flavor! (I added a bit of cinnamon and espresso to ramp it up a bit, but flavor was indulgent to begin with.) Texture is VERY dense due to the large quantity of oil and lack of more water and/or baking powder/soda, aka “fluff” (leavening) agents. I love fudgy brownies, but these passed the “fudgy and delicious” line and went straight into the “dense and ” region. I personally prefer a bit more air in my brownies, but a brownie is a brownie, so I still enjoyed eating a small portion with a glass of milk!
Where is the nutrition analysis???
Hi, we don’t calculate nutrition info for our recipes. To get an estimate for this recipe, I recommend plugging it into an online nutrition calculator such as MyFitnessPal.
What can I do if I only have a 9×9 pan?
Hi Ben, you can use it, but the bake time will likely be shorter because the brownies will create a thinner layer in the pan.
THE. BEST. I haven’t had brownies this fabulous in many years. I am so grateful for this posting!
I used one heaping cup of granulated sugar instead of 1.5 cups, and I baked them for just under an hour, as we are at altitude.
Incredible recipe!!! ❤️
I live in Switzerland where they have amazing chocolate, but no chocolate chips. Should I crush up some dark chocolate? or just leave it out…?
Hey, I also live in Switzerland. Usually when I need chocolate chips I buy either dark chocolate and or milk chocolate then chop it up. So far it works great. Also I’ve found the baking chocolate bars at Lidl taste the most like the Tollhouse chocolate chips… in case you’re wanting a similar flavor. But seriously you can’t go wrong with most Swiss bars of chocolate.
Thank you so very much! I made these and they were phenomenal. 😊
I’m so glad you loved them!
I was worried because this is the first time I didn’t use a Betty Crocker product. They were so good! No reason to ever go back because the ingredients are household items if mine
I’m so glad you loved them!
Can I use butter instead of oil? If so how much? What difference will it make?
Hi! I use butter in place of oil for brownies all the time. The difference is it might be a bit less moist and fudgy and more cake like. You can also use half oil and half butter to attempt to keep some of that fudginess.
Yep, you can use the same amount, melted.
This didn’t work for me at all. I admit that I used just under 1/2 cup Applesauce instead of two eggs, which is the recommended replacement amount in baking, but that should not have effected this the way it did. There was an insanely large amount of oil in the pan that I had to seep away with paper towels to get them to look like they were baked at all even though they still weren’t at ten minutes past the recommended time. I can’t see how these can work with that much oil and that little flour. It just doesn’t make sense to me and now I see why.
Hi Jenny, I wouldn’t recommend applesauce for this one, the brownies will come out oily (as you describe) with egg replacements. We developed a separate vegan brownie recipe that doesn’t use eggs: https://www.loveandlemons.com/vegan-brownies-recipe/
It’s pretty wild to make a major substitution to a recipe and then give it one star. Making substitutions is fine, but don’t fault the recipe creator for a decision YOU made.
This was a really good recipe, I used vegetable oil and left out the powdered sugar and chocolate chips. Also I only had a 1/3 cup of nestle unsweetened cocoa powder and a 1/3 cup Hershey special dark cocoa powder but they were great.
I’m glad you enjoyed it!
These are wonderful! I used the reduced (1C instead of 1.5C) sugar and it worked just fine. No issues at altitude (7500 feet) either, although brownies are typically fine up here, just more dense which isn’t all bad.
I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
Should I do anything differently for high altitude??
Hi Sophie, unfortunately, I don’t have experience with high altitude baking, so I’m not sure how you’d need to alter this recipe.
I live above 1500 meters and they took a bit longer to cook, around 50 to 55 minutes. Just keep checking them. Mine turned out great, though I probably could have baked them for a bit less time as well. The first time it’s hard to tell, ya know?
I’m so glad they worked out well!
Love these brownies! I used canola oil & semi sweet chocolate chips. I’ve made them several times & got compliments galore!
So glad you love them!!
Can I use Dutch coco powder in this?
Yep, Dutch cocoa powder should work fine.
These brownies were the bomb! Absolutely delicious! They came out exactly as described, gooey on the inside with crunchy edges! I didn’t have any chocolate chips, and it was still rich and tasty…and I used 1 cup of granulated sugar instead of a cup and a half. I used canola instead of olive oil as I prefer a neutral flavor for baking. I also left them to cool overnight. Definitely a keeper. Thanks for sharing!
So glad you loved them!