Make perfect gooey cocoa brownies from scratch with Alton Brown's simple recipe. The secret to perfect brownies? High-quality cocoa powder.

Course: Sweets

Keyword: Baking, Chocolate, Cocoa Brownies, Comfort Food, Desserts

Cocoa Brownies

Name: Cocoa Brownies
Prep time: 15 min
Total time: 75 min
Ingredients: 4 large eggs; 1 cup granulated sugar, sifted; 1 cup light brown sugar, sifted; 1 1/4 cups natural cocoa, sifted; 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, sifted; 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt; 16 tablespoons (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled; 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Coca brownies stacked on parchment paper.

ACTIVE TIME: 15

TOTAL TIME: 1 15

Yield: 9 brownies

High-quality natural cocoa powder makes all the difference in these rich and gooey perfect chocolate brownies.

In the annals of food mythology, few figures are as revered as one "Brownie" Schrumpf, the late-19th century baker-librarian who left the baking powder out of a chocolate cake one day and was brave enough to serve the results, which became this country's favorite dessert.

Now, I have no idea whether Mrs. Schrumpf actually existed. But I am willing to bet that the brownie was born of just such a bungle.

This recipe first appeared in Season 5 of Good Eats and was updated in Season 1 of Good Eats: Reloaded.

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Software

4 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar, sifted
1 cup light brown sugar, sifted
1 1/4 cups natural cocoa, sifted
1/2 cup all-purpose flour, sifted
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
16 tablespoons (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Specialized Hardware

Digital kitchen scale

Digital instant-read thermometer

Pizza wheel

ACTIVE TIME: 15

TOTAL TIME: 1 15

Yield: 9 brownies

Procedure

Heat the oven to 300ºF. Coat an 8-inch square baking dish with non-stick spray and trim the width of a piece of parchment paper so that it fits just inside the baking dish with overhang on two sides. Place it inside the baking dish like a sling.
In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the eggs at medium speed until fluffy and light yellow, 2 to 3 minutes.
In a small bowl, combine the granulated sugar, brown sugar, cocoa, flour, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, add this mixture to the beaten eggs. When the dry ingredients are fully incorporated, slowly add the melted butter and vanilla extract. Bring the mixture together on low speed.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45 to 50 minutes. Check for doneness with the tried-and-true toothpick method: A toothpick inserted into the center of the pan should come out clean. A probe thermometer inserted into the center should register 195ºF. Let the brownies cool in the pan for 3 minutes, then remove them from the pan using the parchment paper as a sling.
Cut the brownies into 9 pieces using a pizza wheel and then move to a wire rack to cool completely.