Brownies

Ingredients

• For the fudgy brownie
• 170 g dark chocolate (70%), roughly chopped
• 115 g unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 200 g caster sugar
• 2 eggs plus 1 yolk, room temperature
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 65 g plain flour, sifted
• ½ tsp fine salt
• For the cakey brownie (substitutions and additions)
• 85 g plain flour, sifted — use in place of the 65 g
• ½ tsp baking powder, add to the flour
• 3 whole eggs, use in place of 2 eggs plus 1 yolk
• For the pan
• 1 sheet baking parchment, cut to line base and two sides with overhang
• 1 tsp neutral oil or softened butter, to grease pan before lining

Method

1. 1
   Heat the oven to 175°C. Grease an 8×8 cm pan (for a thicker brownie) or a 9×13 pan (for thinner squares) and line with parchment, leaving an overhang on two sides. The overhang is the handle that lifts the finished slab cleanly from the pan.
2. 2
   Combine the chopped chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water, ensuring the bowl does not touch the water. Stir occasionally until both are fully melted and the mixture is glossy and unified. Remove from the heat and allow to cool until it is warm but not hot to the touch — approximately 5 minutes.
3. 3
   Add the sugar to the warm chocolate-butter mixture and whisk vigorously until fully dissolved and the mixture looks slightly lightened in colour. This step is where the dish lives or dies: the sugar must dissolve completely into the warm fat-and-egg mixture before the flour is added, as this dissolution is what produces the shiny, crackled top that defines the brownie.
4. 4
   Add the eggs (and extra yolk for fudgy; three whole eggs for cakey) one at a time, whisking well after each addition. Add the vanilla and whisk until the batter is smooth, cohesive, and pulls away from the sides of the bowl cleanly.
5. 5
   Sift the flour and salt (and baking powder, if making cakey) directly over the chocolate mixture. Switch to a rubber spatula and fold with deliberate strokes until no dry streaks remain. Stop as soon as the flour is incorporated — the batter should be thick and fall from the spatula in a heavy ribbon.
6. 6
   Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and spread level. Bake at 175°C: 20–30 minutes for fudgy, 30–40 minutes for cakey. Do not overbake either version — the brownie continues to set as it cools. For fudgy, the toothpick inserted in the centre should emerge with moist crumbs clinging to it; for cakey, it should come out with only a few dry crumbs. The top, in both cases, should be shiny and crackled.
7. 7
   Transfer the pan to a wire rack and cool completely in the pan — at least 30 minutes. Use the parchment overhang to lift the slab onto a board. Cut into squares with a sharp knife wiped clean between cuts. The interior of a fudgy brownie should be dense, moist, and hold together without being wet; the cakey version should be springier, with a more open crumb.