The ultimate Fudgy Brownie Recipe! These homemade brownies are decadent and stay moist for days. Plus, there’s a secret ingredient that makes them super chocolatey without being overly sweet.
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Brownies Video Tutorial:
These brownies are unbelievably satisfying. Watch the video recipe and you’ll know why everyone loves this recipe!
The Only Brownie Recipe You’ll Need!
The inspiration for these brownies came from Ina Garten’s Outrageous Brownies in the Barefoot Contessa Cookbook. We made them fudgier and supremely chocolatey. Here’s why these are the best homemade brownies:
- Easy brownies – No fancy equipment or tools required. All you need is a saucepan, spatula, whisk, and a couple of bowls to make the batter.
- No Room Temperature Ingredients Needed – you don’t have to plan ahead and can start making brownies as soon as the craving strikes.
- Fudgiest Center – these literally stay moist and fudgy for days. I made the last batch on a Wednesday and ate the last piece on Sunday and it was still moist and satisfying.
- Rich Chocolate Flavor – adding the cocoa powder and chocolate chips make these intensely chocolatey without being overly sweet.
- Crackly Top – These brownies have that classic, irresistible crackly top.
The “Secret” Ingredient for Brownies:
Just like with our Chocolate Cake, adding coffee amps up the flavor of chocolate without tasting like coffee. We used Instant Coffee Granules. The rest of the ingredients are simple and will give you the perfect brownie texture.
How to Make the Best Brownies:
1. Melt Chocolate: In a saucepan over low heat, melt together 2 cups chocolate chips and butter. Set aside to cool 15 minutes.
2. Wet Ingredients: Whisk together eggs, sugar, instant coffee granules, oil, and vanilla extract. Whisk the cooled chocolate mixture into the egg mixture.
3. Dry Ingredients: Whisk together flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt then fold these dry ingredients into the chocolate batter until no streaks remain.
5. Pour and Bake: Spread brownie batter into prepared pan, sprinkle the top with the reserved 1/2 cup chocolate chips, and bake at 350˚F for 35-40 minutes.
How Long to Bake Brownies:
Fudgy Brownies – Bake for 35-37 minutes. A toothpick inserted into the center will come out fudgy.
Soft and Moist Brownies – Bake for 40 minutes. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out with moist crumbs attached.
How to Store Brownies:
- At Room Temperature – Brownies can be stored at room temperature in a low humidity environment. To keep them fresh and moist, cover with plastic wrap directly over the brownies and store in an airtight container for 4-5 days.
- Freezer – brownies can be frozen for up to 3 months. To keep brownies moister, do not cut brownies until you are ready to eat them.
How to Serve Brownies:
Our favorite way to serve brownies is to top with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream. You can also try a dollop of whipped cream drizzled with chocolate, or top with fresh raspberries.
For Frosted Brownies: cover them with Chocolate Ganache or Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting.
What Mix-Ins Can I Add to Brownies?
Once you have a great brownie base like this one, you can change them up and make them your own.
- Caramel – Drizzle the top of the brownies with Homemade Caramel and a sprinkle of kosher salt.
- Walnuts or Pecans – chop 1 cup of walnuts and fold them in at the end, sprinkling a few over the top for walnut brownies.
- Chocolate Chunks – fold in some chocolate chunks in addition to sprinkling them over the top.
- Zucchini – if you want to sneak in some veggies, try our Zucchini Brownies
Can I Bake these in a Different Pan?
For this brownie recipe, we used a 9×9 square pan. Using different sized baking pans will affect the bake times, and the recipe. These tips should help.
- Bread Loaf Pan – Cut the recipe in half and bake as directed for a small batch of brownies.
- 8×8 Pan – this smaller pan will result in taller brownies that require a longer baking time (40-48 minutes) minutes).
- 12×9 Pan – this larger pan works, but the brownies will be flatter and will require less baking time (30-35 minutes).
- 13×9 Pan – Make 1 1/2 times the recipe or the brownies will be pretty flat. Bake about 40 minutes, or to your desired doneness.
Love Chocolate? More Chocolate Desserts:
- Chocolate Cake – so moist with the best frosting
- Chocolate Lava Cakes – with a gooey surprise center
- Chocolate Chip Banana Bread – with melty morsels of chocolate
- Chocolate Chip Cookies – stay soft for days
- Chocolate Mousse – a classic, chef-approved recipe
Fudgy Brownie Recipe

Ingredients
- 1/2 lb unsalted butter, (softened or cut into pieces if cold for faster melting)
- 16 oz semisweet chocolate chips, (2 1/2 cups by measuring cup), divided
- 4 eggs, large
- 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
- 1 Tbsp instant coffee granules, (6.2 grams)
- 3 Tbsp light olive oil , or vegetable oil
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
- 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350˚F. Butter a 9x9 pan and line with parchment paper.
- In a medium saucepan over low heat, Melt together 2 cups chocolate chips and butter while whisking then set aside to cool 15 minutes.
- In a second large bowl, whisk together 4 eggs, 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar and 1 Tbsp coffee granules, 3 Tbsp oil and 1 Tbsp vanilla extract.
- Stir cooled chocolate mixture into the egg mixture.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together 2/3 cup flour, 1/2 cup cocoa, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder and 1/2 tsp salt then use a spatula to fold mixture into the batter and fold just until combined. Do not over mix.
- Transfer batter to prepared pan and sprinkle all over with remaining 1/2 cup chocolate chips. Bake at 350 for 35-40 min depending on the desired doneness.* Cool until nearly at room temperature then cut into bars before serving.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
Hello Natasha! I have made this recipe, doubled, 2 times before. They are the best brownies ever! I was wondering, if I adapt the recipe to bake it with caramel in the middle, would it be successful? Thank you!
Hi Bernadette! That sounds great but I have not tested this to advise. Please let us know how it turns out if you experiment.
Hello Natasha. I have tried making them with caramel in the middle. I prepared the recipe as followed, pouring half the brownie batter into the pan, layered homemade wet caramel into the middle, then added the other half of the batter on top. It went well; however, I needed to adjust baking time from about 35-38 minutes to about 45 minutes- an hour because the caramel added extra liquid to the batter. They were a little soupy at first but then they set nicely. When they were done, I noticed the caramel had sort of mixed in with the batter, so it wasn’t “in the middle”, but rather, baked into the whole brownie itself. Overall it went well and I would recommend it to try. I am not sure how it would change if one used packaged caramel candies instead, perhaps it would be firmer.
Hi Bernadette! Thank you for sharing your feedback.
Hi Natasha. I have a jar of espresso granules. Can I use them in replace of the coffee granules?
Hi Bren! Yes, I think that would be fine. 🙂
Hey! I made this recipe, follow the instructions one by one and it overflow in the oven and it was still super liquid at the 45 timer. Do you have any idea what could have gone wrong?
Hi Karina! Did you use a different size pan? This happens when the pan is too small. Also, I would be sure you measured everything correctly. Watch my tutorial HERE to help. The oven needs to be fully preheated before you start baking and I highly recommend using an internal oven thermometer to see how your oven heats.
Mine didn’t come out with the crackle!!! Super yummy, but I did follow your video instructions very closely. Any idea why there is no crackle?
Hi Diane, it’s hard to see what caused that without being there. Was anything possibly substituted or edited in the process?
Hi Natasha, can I make this in a 9 inch round cake tin? Thank you!!
Hi Isabel, I haven’t tested in that size but here’s a good tutorial on adapting recipes to different size pans.
Can i make in mini pans and if i can how long do i bake them. I don’t have an 9×9 or a 8×8.
Hi Dora, you should be able to but I have not tested it to advise on the time. You’ll have to experiment with it and watch them in the oven so they don’t over-bake.
What are coffee granules in the recipe? Is it instant coffee granules?
Yes, we used these ones from amazon.
Can I use regular coffee instead of instant? If not how much will it change the taste without it?
Hi Mike! We use instant coffee granules because they dissolve in the batter. I think it could work with regular coffee too but I have not tested it to know how it will affect the texture.
Hello,
Your recipe looks delicious. I wanted to know if I can triple this recipe. I want to make around 50 brownies. How can I do this.
Hi Jessica, I haven’t tried tripling it, but I bet that could work. Sometimes it’s best to do a batch at a time. If you experiment, let me know how you liked the recipe.
I’m going to try these in individual ramkin bowls. At suggestion for bake time ?
I haven’t tested them in small portions like that to advise on. You’d have to experiment with it.
Hi Natasha!
I so love these brownies. They are definitely my go-to. For Thanksgiving, I want to make two of these- one regular and one gluten free for a gluten free friend. Do you (or anyone) know if I could just substitute the gf flour for the regular flour? Thank you!
Hi Yaela! Thanks for trying my recipe. I’m so glad you loved it. I have not tested these with GF flour to advise. I think it could work but you’d have to experiment with it. Happy Thanksgiving!
Hello, I remember the first time I used this recipe it came out good, but this time it came out dry. Any tips?
Hi Emily! It could be that you used too much flour. I recommend watching my tutorial on how to measure your ingredients HERE. I also recommend using an internal oven thermometer to check how your oven heats up. I hope that helps.
would love to make these brownies but i do not have the instant coffee. Will that change the taste much?
Hi Lisa! The coffee enhances the chocolate flavor but it should be fine without it.
Made these today after reading the recipe. Did add toasted walnuts but they were absolutely delicious and turned out perfectly! I’m not a big fudgey brownie fan but these were great…baked them a bit longer as you suggested for less soft interior.
Great to hear that you enjoyed this recipe, Nancy!
Hi Natasha,
I just made this recipe 3rd time, I’ve added 1 cup of walnuts. It’s amazing!
I’m thinking of adding raspberry, is it possible?
Many thanks
Hi Molly, great to hear that! I have not tried adding raspberry but it should be doable. If you do an experiment, please update us on how it goes!
Hi Natasha,
Looks like a great recipe, thanks 😀 for the batter, if substitute choc chips for dark chocolate, how much would I need in grams?
Thanks
Hi Julia, we used and prefer semisweet chocolate chips. The dark chocolate may work, it will be a bit more bitter.
Hi Natasha,
Thanks for this delicious brownie recipe. This is my 2nd time making it. I’m curious why my brownie sink in the middle. What did I do wrong?
Thanks
Molly
Hi Mollie! I’m happy you love this recipe. Did you use a different size pan? That could affect the results. I also recommend using an internal oven thermometer to see how your oven heats and make sure the oven is fully preheated before baking. You may also check to see if you measure your ingredients correctly by watching my tutorial HERE.
Hey Natasha,
Thank you for your reply. Could I use block dark chocolate for the melting or it has to be chocolate chips? Because I loads of block chocolate in my kitchen.
Hi Molly, we used and prefer semisweet chocolate chips. The dark chocolate may work, it will be a bit more bitter.
Hi Natasha,
Thanks for this delicious brownie recipe. This is my 2nd time making it. I’m curious why my brownie sink in the middle. Did I do something wrong?
Thanks
Molly
WOW. Just wow. This is such a great recipe and one if not my most favorite brownie recipe. They are so good and taste fresh and stay moist, even after a few days. I love it and will be making it for many years to come.
That’s wonderful, Sophia! I’m so glad you loved this recipe. Thank you for the review.
Another amazing recipe. I’ve been searching for some time and this is THE homemade brownie recipe! So good, and your method for melting the chocolate is wonderful, nobody has time for a water bath!
The recipes on your site are top! Thanks!
I’m glad you enjoyed this recipe. Thank you for the review, Anais!
Need to watch sugar. Do you have any idea if this recipe could be made with SF sweetener and SF choc chips?
Hello Karen, I have not tested that to advise. Let’s see if others have tried and can share their experience. You may also check the comments section below if someone has shared.