Hands down, Shirley Corriher’s recipe for Classic Fudgy Brownies is the one everyone should follow. Featured in her must-have baking book Bakewise, Shirley figured out that the crispy flaky top crust on a brownie is actually a thin meringue. The top crust is my favorite part of the brownie, so I wanted to post a recipe that captured this magic!
Classic Fudgy Brownies are the U.S. contribution to the world of pastry. Even though brownies are a classic American bar cookie, finding a good recipe can be difficult.
The Best Brownie Recipe Ever! (Not mine!)
So I am posting Classic Fudgy Brownies here so that 1) I can find the recipe next time I need it, and 2) you can find it too!
The ingredients list that I am posting is the original Shirley Corriher version, but I rearranged a few of the instructions. A few readers commented that they prefer brownies without nuts, so yes, nuts are optional. But in Shirley Corriher’s recipe, she toasts the nuts before adding them to the brownie batter. Simply place the pecans or walnuts in a baking pan and place in 350°F (176°C) oven for 10 minutes. Once you remove the pan from the oven, add 2 tbsp. (28g) of unsalted butter to the pan and stir to combine with the nuts. Allow them to cool completely before adding to the brownies.
The Secret to A Crispy Crust!
The secret part of the shiny, crispy crust is to whip the batter a bit before you fold in the flour. It only takes a minute, but once you stop the mixer you can see a foam rising to the top of the batter. That is the shiny, crispy crust! Stir in the flour and pour into your prepared pan. You will have perfect brownies in one hour!
I especially love this Classic Fudgy Brownie Recipe because it uses real chocolate, not cocoa powder. If you opt for using chocolate chips instead of baker’s chocolate, make sure they are good quality, with a high content of chocolate.
Give this recipe a try and let me know what you think. Thanks, Shirley for sharing your excellent recipe. It is the only brownie recipe that I recommend!
Classic Fudgy Brownies
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 Hour
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 24 Bars 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
Ingredients
1–1/2 cups unsalted butter cut into 1-tablespoon pieces (345g)
12 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped (340g) (baking chocolate or chocolate chips)
1 oz. German’s Sweet Chocolate OR unsweetened chocolate (28G)
4 large eggs
3 large egg yolks
1–1/2 cups dark brown sugar, packed (300g)
1 cup powdered sugar (125g)
2 tbsp. granulated sugar (25g)
3 tbsp. light corn syrup (45ml)
1 tbsp. pure vanilla extract (15ml)
3/4 tsp. salt (3g)
1–1/2 cups all-purpose flour (188g)
1–1/2 cups pecans or walnuts (173g) (optional)
Instructions
Heat your oven to 300°F (148°C). Prepare a 9”x 13” (23cm x 33cm) baking pan by greasing and flouring the pan.
Combine the butter and chocolate in a microwaveable bowl. Heat on high in 30 second intervals, stirring and combining the butter and chocolate as it melts. It should take about 2 minutes to melt the mixture completely.
In the bowl of a mixer, briefly beat the eggs and egg yolks to combine, about 15 seconds. Add the brown sugar, powdered sugar, granulate sugar, light corn syrup, vanilla extract and salt to the eggs and mix on low speed for about 30 seconds. Pour in the warm chocolate into the egg mixture and beat on medium high speed for 1 minute.
Fold the flour into the beaten chocolate mixture by hand, using a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides to combine well. Add the pecans or walnuts, if desired. Pour the brownie batter into the prepared pan and bake for 1 hour.
Allow the brownies to cool briefly before removing from the pan and cutting into bars.
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