I
love to bake, so I tend to fall into the category of people who think everything should be made from scratch. That being said, I have to admit…there are times I like to doctor a mix. Brownies are NOT one of those times. For those of you who have only ever eaten box mix brownies, Please, Please, try these brownies. In the competition of box versus scratch….there is simply no comparison. You haven’t tasted a brownie until you have made one from scratch. Boxed brownies tend to become too oily or grainy and simply don’t have the depth of flavor created in the homemade version. I understand why many people have turned to the box mix. We are busy people, living way too busy lives. Many brownie recipes require melting chocolate assimilating it into the wet ingredients and then incorporating your wet and dry ingredients together. Other recipes require scalding milk and cooking the wet ingredients before incorporating the dry ingredients. All of these steps can be time-consuming and tedious. This recipe originated with melting chocolate. When I had only one child that recipe seemed to work out just fine. But I soon found myself with four children, a job and a messy house, none of which was going to wait while I melted chocolate. I simplified my brownie recipe into a one-bowl wonder. So, the next time you go to grab that convenient box…remember these brownies are just as quick with a flavor that will leave you wondering why you ever settled for a mix in the first place. These brownies are very versatile and hold up well when cut into squares. To frost, or not to frost…that is the question. While this is a very worthy debate, I am going to include the frosting recipe we created just for these brownies. This Nutella frosting is not overly sweet and has salty accents that perfectly compliment the rich chocolate flavor. Be sure to have a tall glass of cold milk on hand when these are finished!!!
Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups softened, room temperature butter 
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
3/4 cup cocoa powder
2 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1 T. vanilla extract
Instructions:
- Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add eggs and beat until the mixture looks as though it has close to doubled in size.
- Add cocoa powder and mix until combined.
- Put all remaining dry ingredients into a sifter and slowly incorporate into mixture.
- Add vanilla extract and mix well.
- Pour into a greased or parchment-lined 9×13 inch pan.
- put the pan in an oven pre-heated to 325 degrees and bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. I like to press on the brownies with my finger between 25-30 minutes. When my finger does not leave an indent, I know they are done. Do not overbake these brownies. When bubbles begin to surface the brownies are close…keep an eye on them to avoid overbaking the brownies.
For Nutella Buttercream, Click the link below!
sweeterthymes.com 