Easy One Bowl Brownies (2024)

You’ll love this extra easy one bowl brownies recipe with gooey centers, crinkly tops, and chewy edges. These are perfection!

Easy One Bowl Brownies (1)

These brownies are so easy, you won’t believe it! Just one pan and a spoon, and you’ll be on your way to baking the best brownies you’ve ever made.

Trust us, these will disappear! Everyone raves about their chewy edges, crinkly tops, and gooey centers.

Easy One Bowl Brownies (2)

Key Ingredients

  • Unsweetened cocoa powder:The secret to the best brownies! We love the classic flavor of natural cocoa powder, but Dutch-processed cocoa powder works, too, lending a mellow, almost Oreo-like flavor and a richer color. We also use cocoa powder to make these rich, bittersweet fudgy brownies.
  • Unsalted butter and oil:The combination of butter and oil creates the perfect brownie texture. Butter adds richness, while oil ensures a gooey, moist center. Neutral oil like avocado oil is great, or use a light and fruity olive oil for some extra flavor.
  • Sugar:For the best of both worlds (gooey centers, chewy edges, and a touch of crispness), we highly recommend using granulated and brown sugar in this recipe.
  • Whole eggs + egg yolk:The eggs provide structure and lift, while the extra yolk adds richness and creates irresistibly chewy edges (just like in our favorite chocolate chip cookies!).

The Secret for Making the Best Brownies

For the best brownies, you want to mix your sugar into HOT butter and oil. Some recipes call for beating butter, sugar, and eggs together until the mixture forms light, airy ribbons. This requires room-temperature butter and extra time. Our no-fuss, one-bowl method is quicker and simple!

To make our simple brownie batter, you will melt butter and oil in a wide saucepan over medium-low heat. When the butter is melted and hot, remove the pan from the heat and whisk in granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt, and vanilla extract.

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Next, stir in the cocoa powder, then set the pan aside to cool for five minutes. Finally you’ll add the whole eggs and egg yolk, then stir in the baking powder and flour.

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How to Tell When Brownies are Done Baking

We bake our brownies in a 325° Fahrenheit oven for 35 to 45 minutes. Pull brownies out of the oven when:

  • The edges look dry, and the middle looks slightly underbaked.
  • A toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few crumbs attached.
  • An internal thermometer inserted into the middle reads between 170°F and 210°F (brownies will be moist and fudgy when the temperature is closer to 170°F and cakey when closer to 210°F).

If you are not sure, it is better to pull brownies out early than to leave them in the oven to overbake.

Once your brownies are out of the oven, keep them in the pan and let them cool completely. Like when making blondies, the brownies will continue to cook as they cool, which helps the middle set properly.

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Easy One Bowl Brownies

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We love this easy brownie recipe made with cocoa powder, eggs, and brown sugar. These one bowl brownies are fudgy and gooey in the middle and chewy around the edges. The batter is made right in the saucepan used to melt the butter.

Makes 16 brownies

You Will Need

6 tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter

4 tablespoons light olive oil or canola oil

1 ⅓ cups (265g) granulated sugar

1/4 cup (47g) lightly packed brown sugar

3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt, reduce to 1/2 teaspoon if sensitive to salt

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

2/3 cup (65g) unsweetened cocoa powder

2 large eggs

1 egg yolk

3/4 cup (98g) all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 cup chocolate chips, optional

Directions

    1Position an oven rack in the middle of the oven and heat to 325°F (162°C). Line the bottom and sides of an 8-inch x 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil, leaving an overhang on two opposite sides to help remove the baked brownies from the pan.

    2Add the oil and butter to a medium saucepan. Place over medium-low heat until the butter melts, then turn off the heat. We recommend a wide, medium saucepan for making the brownie batter right in the pan. If you do not have a saucepan, melt the butter into the oil using another pan. When melted, pour the butter and oil into a mixing bowl and continue with the steps below.

    3While the butter and oil are still warm, stir in the sugars, salt, and vanilla extract until blended.

    4Stir in the cocoa powder, and then set aside to cool for five minutes so that the mixture is warm, not hot. The mix will be gritty.

    5Add the eggs and egg yolk, and then stir vigorously to blend. The mixture turns from a gritty paste to a shiny pudding-like batter in this step.

    6When the batter looks thick and well blended, add the flour and scatter over the baking powder. If you are adding chocolate chips, add them now. Stir until you no longer see streaks of flour in the batter.

    7Spread the brownie batter evenly in the prepared pan.

    8Bake the brownies until the edges look dry and the middle looks slightly underbaked, 35 to 45 minutes. You can test doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center. The brownies are finished baking if it comes out with a few moist crumbs attached.

    9Leave the brownies in the pan to cool completely. As they cool, the middle will set. Cut into 16 squares.

Adam and Joanne's Tips

  • Can I double the recipe? Yes, double all ingredients in the recipe and bake in a 9-inch by 13-inch baking pan. They will be slightly thicker. Bake time will be similar, but keep an eye on them and use our visual cues in the recipe as a guide.
  • Baking pan: We love our USA Pan 8×8-inch metal pan for this recipe. Glass and ceramic pans work, but keep in mind that they may affect bake time. Check on doneness 5 minutes early and every 5 minutes after that.
  • The nutrition facts provided below are estimates. We did not include chocolate chips

Nutrition Per Serving Serving Size 1 brownie (16 total) / Calories 123 / Total Fat 9.2g / Saturated Fat 3.8g / Cholesterol 46.2mg / Sodium 120.9mg / Carbohydrate 26.4g / Fiber 1.2g / Total Sugars 19.8g / Protein 2.3g

AUTHOR: Adam and Joanne Gallagher

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Easy One Bowl Brownies (2024)

FAQs

What are the three types of brownies? ›

Brownie textures fall into three general camps… Cakey, fudgy and chewy. Cakey brownies, like the name implies, are light, moist and airy, with a slightly fluffy, cake-like interior. Fudgy brownies are moist, dense and gooey, with almost the texture of fudge, but not quite as compact.

What does adding milk instead of water do to brownies? ›

One change is to use milk or heavy cream instead of water. This change will make brownies more moist and gooey since milk is more fatty and flavorful than water. A second change is to use butter instead of oil. For similar reasons to using milk, butter adds a rich and more decadent quality to the batter.

Can I add coffee instead of water to brownie mix? ›

If you already have a favorite brownie recipe, try adding one to two tablespoons of instant espresso in with the wet ingredients. If you're making brownies from a boxed mix, you can substitute brewed coffee for the water, or simply add espresso powder in with the dry ingredients.

What are Katharine Hepburn brownies? ›

The brownies are made with unsweetened chocolate, which is also known as baking, plain or bitter chocolate. It is chocolate in its rawest form and this means that unsweetened chocolate is just ground cocoa nibs that have been refined and contain between 50-55% cocoa butter (cacao fat).

What makes brownies fudgy vs cakey? ›

Fudgy brownies have a higher fat-to-flour ratio than cakey ones. So add more fat—in this case, butter and chocolate. A cakey batch has more flour and relies on baking powder for leavening. The amount of sugar and eggs does not change whether you're going fudgy or cakey.

What happens when you add an extra egg to brownie mix? ›

Want Fudgy Brownies? Add an Extra Egg Yolk! As you may know, eggs not only act as a binding agent in baked goods, but they also add structure, richness, and enhance texture.

What does adding coffee to brownies do? ›

We already know that adding espresso and coffee flavor to chocolate desserts supercharges chocolate flavor, and the same principle applies here. Using coffee in your brownie mix will result in better, more chocolaty brownies.

How to doctor up a brownie mix? ›

Add a teaspoon of instant coffee or espresso powder. Throw in a handful of nuts—pecans, walnuts, macadamia, whatever you have on hand. Scoop in a palmful of dried or frozen fruit. Add an extra splash of the top-shelf vanilla extract, or a dab of vanilla paste, or a dash of vanilla powder, to the batter.

Are brownies better with oil or butter? ›

the butter brownies actually had a fudgier texture. they were softer, and they really just melted in your mouth. they also had that shiny crust and just better flavor, whereas the oil brownies were actually chewier. they were crunchier at the top and at the edges.

What is the best oil to make brownies with? ›

Most brownie recipes call for some kind of oil — usually vegetable oil or canola oil. This oil acts as the primary fat in brownie batter, giving it that delicious, fudgy texture we all know and love.

What can you add to box brownies to make them better? ›

Here's what you need to make box brownies taste homemade:
  1. Butter – Boxed brownie mix typically calls for vegetable oil. ...
  2. Espresso powder – Intensifies the chocolate flavor. ...
  3. Vanilla extract – Pure vanilla extract adds rich flavor to brownies.
  4. Eggs – Most brownie mixes call for one whole egg.
Aug 23, 2023

How much instant coffee to add to brownie mix? ›

Ingredients
  1. 1 boxed brownie mix, with water, oil, and egg amounts according to package instructions.
  2. 2 teaspoons instant coffee or espresso powder.
  3. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract.
  4. 1/3 cup whole roasted almonds.
  5. 1/4 cup cocoa nibs.
  6. 1/2 cup chocolate chips.
  7. finishing salt, to taste.
Jun 10, 2018

Can I substitute butter for oil in boxed brownie mix? ›

You can absolutely substitute butter for the vegetable oil. Use the same quantity specified in the directions (for example, if it calls for 1/3 cup of oil, use 5 1/3 tablespoons of butter). Melt it down, then let it cool a bit. You might not ever go back to oil!

Can I use instant coffee instead of cocoa powder in brownies? ›

Chocolate and coffee are good buddies, tastewise. I often add a teaspoon of espresso powder to brownies. If you swap all the cocoa for instant coffee or espresso powder, you may find the flavor too strong, so I would be judicious the first time you try it.

What is the old version of brownies? ›

Did you know that Brownies were originally called 'Rosebuds'? Rosebuds was established in 1914 for girls to join before they became Guides. Just one year later, the name was changed to Brownies. Brownies are the second-youngest members of the Girlguiding family, for girls aged between 7 and 10.

What is brownies classified? ›

Brownies are not classified as cakes – this is a very interesting point about the brownie. The reason for this is that although the texture is similar to cakes, it is classed as finger food (whereas usually cake is eaten with a fork), therefore they are categorised as a cookie bar (in America).

What's the difference between brownies and fudge brownies? ›

Fudge doesn't contain very much besides chocolate, sweetened condensed milk and if you want some inclusions like nuts, marshmallows, cookies, cacao nibs, peanut butter, dried fruit and so on. Whereas brownies contain cacao powder (no chocolate!), flour, eggs, butter or oil, baking powder and nuts.

Which type of brownie is best? ›

Walnut brownie: This is a classic brownie that is loved all over the world, so it's no surprise that Theobroma's walnut brownie is a bestseller across India as well.

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