Chewy, Fudgy Triple Chocolate Brownies

Okay, so I thought I had already found my perfect brownie. I thought I was content and never needed to try another brownie recipe again. Ina’s is so very good, it would be impossible to top it – right? Wrong. So wrong. I’m not even exactly sure what compelled me to try this recipe because I normally feel no desire to try new brownies when I have found one I love – I’m thinking it was the name that hooked me. That, and the fact that these come from Baking Illustrated which has yet to fail me…or has yet to turn out anything less than perfect (see cheesecake, berry pie, and snickerdoodles for examples). So I made these mostly out of curiosity as to whether they could replace my favorite brownie.

While I will always hold Ina’s brownies in very high regard, this version has them beat. I vastly prefer the texture of these (as the title says, chewy and fudgy) where I sometimes find Ina’s on the verge of crumbly. Not only that but these are quite a tall brownie, yielding a thick bar of yummy chocolate goodness. And, they bake up with a thin, delicate shiny crust on top that makes them pretty. I’ve never made such aesthetically pleasing brownies before, but I like it! As far as methods go these are not that different from other brownie recipes. My only change was to cut them into larger pieces. These are baked in an 8×8-inch pan, and the original recipe calls for them to be cut into 64 1-inch square pieces. HAHA! I’m sorry, but these are brownies, not fudge – I want a real piece! I cut them into 12 pieces, but I think 16 would be just fine too. Now, get thee to the kitchen and prepare to be wowed!

Yield about 12-16 servings

Ingredients

5 oz. semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 oz. unsweetened chocolate, chopped
8 tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into quarters
3 tbsp. cocoa powder
3 large eggs
1¼ cups (8¾ oz.) sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
½ tsp. salt
1 cup (5 oz.) all-purpose flour

Directions

01
Place an oven rack in lower-middle position and preheat the oven to 350° F. Line an 8-inch square baking dish with foil and spray lightly with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.
02
In a heatproof bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water, melt the chocolate and butter, stirring occasionally until smooth. Whisk in the cocoa powder until smooth. Set aside to cool.
03
In a medium bowl, combine the eggs, sugar, vanilla and salt; whisk until combined, about 15 seconds. Whisk in the warm chocolate mixture until incorporated. Then stir in the flour with a wooden spoon until just combined. (It took me a while to get the flour evenly incorporated and I was worried it would affect the texture of the brownies, but they turned out fabulously – no need to worry.) Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and spread with a spatula to make an even layer. Bake until slightly puffed and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a small amount of sticky crumbs clinging to it, 35-40 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool to room temperature, about 2 hours.
04
Remove the brownies from the pan using the foil and transfer to a cutting board. Cut into squares as desired. Store in an air-tight container.

Source

adapted from Baking Illustrated