Cocoa Brownies

This by far is the easiest brownie recipe I have come across - and one of the most delicious. There is no reason to ever buy a box brownie kit again when you can make these.

I found this super simple recipe on Handle The Heat,  but the original recipe can be found in Bittersweet by Alice Medrich.

The ingredients required to make these rich, fudge-like - super dense brownies are all pantry staples. No specific type of baking squares are required or anything like that. This is also a one bowl kind of deal. So you're not dirtying up 3 bowls like many recipes require. And I don't know about you, but recipes that require minimal clean-up always have a special place in my heart!

Cocoa Brownies

10 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups sugar

3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (natural or Dutch-process)

1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 large eggs, cold

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 325°F. Line the bottom and sides of an 8×8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper or foil, leaving an overhang on two opposite sides.

Combine the butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt in a medium heatproof bowl and microwave for 1:30 minutes. Remove and stir until the butter is melted and the mixture is smooth. Set aside briefly until the mixture is only warm, not hot. It looks fairly gritty at this point, but don’t fret — it smoothes out once the eggs and flour are added.

Stir in the vanilla with a wooden spoon. Add the eggs one at a time, stirring vigorously after each one. When the batter looks thick, shiny, and well blended, add the flour and stir until you cannot see it any longer, then beat vigorously for 40 strokes with the wooden spoon or a rubber spatula. Stir in the nuts, if using. Spread evenly in the lined pan.

Bake until a toothpick plunged into the center emerges slightly moist with batter, 25 to 30 minutes. 5. Let cool completely on a rack. Lift up the ends of the parchment or foil liner, and transfer the brownies to a cutting board. Cut into 16 or 25 squares.