Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Homemade Brownies vs. a Boxed Mix

I have an ugly little secret.

I don't like homemade brownies.

I've tried to give them a fair shake.

These Frosted Fudge Brownies were ok...as long as they were frosted!

Disney's (supposedly) Boardwalk Brownies were pretty good (IF frosted) and IF you like that storebought packaged texture (like Little Debbie brownies).

I've tried Baker's One Bowl Chocolate Brownies and the recipe in my Betty Crocker cookbook...not impressed. I've had my eye on any other brownie recipe that promises fudgy, chocolately results.

No recipe delivered what I was looking for: the taste and texture of a boxed brownie mix.

And, then I stumbled across Kara's post here. That could have been ME writing that! And, since she admitted to the entire cyberworld that she prefers boxed brownies and then gave a homemade recipe that was to be "the one," I HAD to try it.

*sigh*

I have finally been impressed by a homemade brownie recipe.

I can no longer say that I don't like homemade brownies...as long as the homemade brownies I'm making are these!

Crinkly tops...moist, fudgy middle.... mmmmmm! Very, VERY close to a boxed mix.

chocolate brownies


I tested these twice. The first time was a bit of a flop... I followed the recipe exactly (ok, except for a handful of extra chocolate chips into the dough - because that's how I make boxed brownies!!), and even though it seemed that a 25 minute baking time was plenty long enough for an 8x8 pan, the middle was GOOP.

But, the taste and texture seemed RIGHT to me, so I tried the recipe again. This time, I used a 9x13 pan and baked 20-25 minutes... PERFECT.

Finally! A homemade brownie that I can whip up and won't disappoint when the brownie craving strikes and, horror of horrors, no sign of the Pillsbury Dough Boy is in my pantry.

So, for all of you secret-boxed-brownie-mix lovers, here's the recipe (which is also much simpler than most homemade brownie recipes)!

Brownie Mix Brownies

1/2 cup sugar
2 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp oil
2 Tbsp water (hint: substitute coffee for super flavor!)
1 1/2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2/3 cup flour
1/4 tsp soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Bring sugar, butter, oil, and water to a boil. Remove from heat. Add chips and stir until melted. Cool slightly (so eggs don't scramble - eww!). Add eggs and vanilla and stir until smooth. Stir in dry ingredients and nuts (this is where I added 1/2 cup of additional chocolate chips). Pour into a greased 9"x 13" pan. Bake at 325 for about 20-25 minutes.

Recommend: YES, finally!

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8 comments:

Melissa said...

I admit that I don't understand the preference for brownies from a mix, but I'm glad you found a recipe you like!

Lora said...

Mmmmm. I am totally bookmarking this. I'm just like you--brownies from a mix are perfection!

Anonymous said...

I'm so glad you liked the brownies as much as I did! Thanks for linking back to me, I appreciate it.

You have several recipes that I want to try, starting with those oreo cheesecakes. They look heavenly!!!

MaRiN said...

I have never made homemade brownies...only because the boxed ones really do taste good. I guess I'll have to try these now that both you and Kara rave about them. I'll add them to my list, thanks!

Sharon said...

now you're making me hungry!

theUngourmet said...

This looks like an excellent recipe! Brownies are my favorite treat in the world!

I made some scratch brownies recently and they were also very yummy!

I'll have to give your recipe a shot soon! :P

Fahrenheit 350° said...

Me too! And I even belong to 'baked from scratch'! Coincidentally I also discovered a brownie recipe I actually like, especially good since I recently discovered corn syrup is in brownie mix! WHY!!!!!!!!!!!!????????????? Anyway, sorry about that, and congratulations! It's always exciting (to me) to find a new loved recipe! Stopping from SITS!

Anonymous said...

Oh my, I've had the same problem trying to find recipes that made the perfect textured brownie. Almost all homemade recipe make cake-like brownies. That's not a brownie, it's cake! I love boxed brownies, but I make everything else from scratch so it made no sense to make boxed brownies. I'm glad to have found this recipe and judging by pictures alone, I'm sure I found what I was looking for. Yay! Thank you. I'm so excited to try these out.

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