I set out to find the best brownie recipe by testing 6 different recipes: boxed mix vs homemade. Read on to see my verdict of my ultimate brownie recipe test of 6 brownie recipes and detailed reviews of each!
After this I plan to make a small batch / mini brownie recipe- so you can satisfy that craving for a deliciously chocolatey dessert without consuming a whole big pan of brownies (which I think we’ve all done at some point- right?). More to come as I workshop the best of each of these recipes into my own!
The set up: One long weekend, 6 different recipes, a taste-testing panel of chocolate lovers. I baked up each of these scaled down recipes in a 9×4 loaf pan for an equally thick brownies and served them up to our panel of 3 expert brownie eaters as a blind test. We ranked based on chocolate flavor, texture and would you eat it again.
The Contenders:
Duncan Hines Chewy Fudge Brownie Boxed Mix
The classic boxed brownie mix. This is one that appeared regularly in my childhood as an after school brownie treat. These could be mixed up and baked with light supervision so I could usually get a yes when I asked to make brownies versus something more involved like cookies from scratch. Made according to the box instructions: 1/2 of the mix prepared according to the box instructions: 1 egg, 1 1/2 tablespoons water and 1/3 cup vegetable oil. Baked 30 min at 350 F.
Duncan Hines Mix + Coffee + Chocolate Chips Hack
This hack uses the same boxed mix but swaps in coffee in place of the water which is said to deepen the chocolate flavor, and chocolate chips mixed in to literally add more chocolate. Made with: 1/2 of the mix prepared – 1 egg, 1 1/2 tablespoons coffee, 1/3 cup vegetable oil and 40g (1/4 cup) chocolate chips. Baked 30 min at 350 F.
Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate Brownie Mix
The “fancy” boxed brownie mix, growing up we didn’t buy this one, but when I started buying my own this is the brownie mix I gravitate towards. It seems like a higher quality chocolate and has a good reputation for flavor. I baked this in my 8×4 metal loaf pan for a good half size batch and referenced the 40-45 min baking time recommended for both 8×8 and 9×9 pans but checked early it only needed 33 minutes. Baked 1/2 of the mix according to the box directions: 1/2 box of mix, 1/8 cup water, 1/4 cup vegetable oil, 1/2 egg.
Handle the Heat- Best Easy Brownies
Tessa at Handle the Heat is one of my go to bloggers for baking recipes – she’s all about the science of baking and knowing how the changes you make will impact the final baked good. I tried her Best Easy Brownie recipe which is a quick one bowl brownie recipe. You can find her whole recipe here.
This recipe starts out with melting the chocolate and butter together, whisking in the sugar and then add in the other ingredients after the mixture has cooled. This approach adds real chocolate flavor but keeps the recipe easy to execute with minimal extra equipment, since you can do it all in the same bowl and whisk by hand. I baked it in my 8×4 loaf pan, lined with parchment paper for 20 mins at 350 F.
Cloudy Kitchen Fudgey Homemade Brownies
Erin of Cloudy Kitchen is also a go-to of mine for baking recipes. She publishes her recipes only in grams because that’s the most accurate way to bake and if you’re going to do it you should do it right. Her recipe is available on her blog here.
This recipe is a bit more involved, it also starts with melting the butter and chocolate together, but it also requires whipping the eggs and sugar together with the whisk attachment for 3-4 minutes. So you’ll need to get out your hand or stand mixer for this one. Then you combine butter/chocolate into egg mixture and then gently fold in flour so you don’t knock out all of the air that you just whipped in. Baked a 1/2 batch in my 8×4 loaf pan at 350F for 28 minutes.
Baker By Nature – Best Cocoa Fudge Brownies
Ashley of Baker by Nature is another great reference for my baking. I bought her new cookbook: Home for the Holidays which features amazing holiday hosting recipes. Her brownie recipe is available on her blog here.
This recipe is the most involved, using a pan on the stove to melt butter, oil and some of the sugar together, whisking the eggs and the rest of the sugar and then mixing them together slowly enough not to scramble the eggs. Then add melted chocolate and then dry ingredients. This makes it the most complex of the recipes I tried and the easiest to mess up- if the sugar-butter mixture is too hot you’ll end up with lumps of scrambled eggs which is certainly not what you’re looking for in your brownies! I managed it fine on the first try but had some hesitation even as an expert baker, so this is an intimidating step for beginners. This approach is meant to guarantee the crackly tops that people love. This recipe uses both cocoa powder and chocolate chips, with the chocolate chips in the last step so they maintain the chip shape throughout the baking process. I left out the optional espresso powder.
I made a 1/2 batch and baked it in my 8×3 loaf pan.
The Verdict: Best Brownie
The best brownie was D: Cloudy Kitchen’s Fudgey Homemade Brownies
The best brownie was Cloudy Kitchen’s Fudgy Homemade Brownies -it’s a gooey chocolatey brownie that really hit the spot of that chocolate craving. The crispy top and soft center is a perfect texture partnership to form the ultimate brownie.
Read on for detailed reviews of each of the 6 brownies I tested!
Duncan Hines Chewy Fudge Brownie Boxed Mix
This is a classic boxed brownie and holds nostalgia for a lot of people, it feels familiar but I have to say it seemed basic and lacking in chocolate flavor when tasted back to back with the other options. It was a drier texture, more towards cakey than fudgey and became crumbly the longer is was stored. This ranked the lowest out of the bunch in the testers group, and we ranked it low on would I eat it again. It felt like yes this is a brownie but it’s not a very good one and not one of the group that we went back to for another bite.
Chocolate Level: 5/10
Texture: Cakey & Dry
Would we eat again: 2/3 votes for No
*Interesting note- when I brought leftovers into the office and conducted a quick poll this was a favorite, so I think the nostalgia pulls hard on people’s heartstrings. (Plus the top options weren’t available because they’d all been consumed by the first test group!)
Duncan Hines Mix + Coffee + Chocolate Chips Hack
This twist on the classic boxed brownie ranks only a little higher than the original. The same light chocolate flavor and more cakey texture remains. There is a little more flavor with the coffee, however one taster noted the flavor as a negative not recognizable as coffee but not adding value. Again it’s a brownie but not one we went back to.
Chocolate Flavor: 5/10
Texture: Cakey
Would we eat again: 3/3 No
Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate Brownie Mix
This brownie came out much darker in color than all of the rest of the recipes. Looking at the ingredient list, it would be the cocoa power (processed with alkali) – which is Dutch Processed Cocoa which is darker in color and richer in chocolate flavor- that creates the darker color. The chocolately flavor was much stronger than the Duncan Hines box mix, however the group correctly guessed that this was a box mix as it has a bit of an artificial aftertaste. Overall though, it has good chocolatey flavor and is a brownie we returned to and finished the small pan after the testing rounds.
Chocolate Flavor: 8/10
Texture: Chewy
Would we eat again: 3/3 Yes
Handle the Heat- Best Easy Brownies
A good brownie, this was fudgey and chocolatey and had the crispy top of a homemade brownie. The chocolate flavor was good but not amazing. Overall it ranked in the middle, better than the boxes mixes but not as good as the other homemade recipes.
Chocolate Flavor: 5/10
Texture: Cakey
Would we eat again: 3/3 Yes
Cloudy Kitchen Fudgey Homemade Brownies
The winner of today’s showdown! This recipe yields a very fudgey brownie, almost gooey in the middle. This is an ultimate chocolatey bite, the chocolate flavor is strong but not overwhelming and satisfies that craving for chocolate. The top is crisp and not too crunchy. The center is baked but maintains a soft chocolate texture over time, including 2 days later.
Chocolate Flavor: 9.5/10
Texture: Chewy & Fudgy
Would we eat again: 3/3 Yes
While we didn’t test that way- this brownie would be killer in an ice cream sundae- a warm gooey chocolate brownie with cold, creamy vanilla ice cream.
Baker By Nature – Best Cocoa Fudge Brownies
A very good brownie. Great crispy top. Strong chocolate flavor that really hits the chocolate craving. The extra work of the recipe did seem to deliver the crispy top and it stood out among the others- however it wasn’t so much better than the rest that I’d repeat the extra steps all the time.
Chocolate Flavor: 9/10
Texture: Chewy
Would we eat again: 3/3 Yes
Closing test notes: These are my and my taste-testing friend’s opinions, from testing 1/2 batches of each recipe just one time. I scaled down the recipes using a kitchen scale for accurate adjustments however there may have been unintended changes and they were not tested exactly as the creators intended. And each person has their own opinion of what the best brownie is- from which texture they prefer, to how chocolately it should be. All that to say I highly encourage you to try out several different recipes to find your ultimate favorite brownie recipe!
