Avoid the dreaded over or under baked brownie

In our opinion Brownies are best thick and fudgey. Back in 2005 we traveled Australia and the World tasting brownies as we set out to launch our Brownie Delivery business. Back then we found very few brownies on the Australian market and most were dry and the cake style brownie. Our dream was to catapult brownies to stardom with a new fudgy, chocolately brownie recipe. 

Now fudge brownie can be cantankerous especially when baked using a brownie recipe with lots of chocolate. If brownies are over baked then they can be cakey and if under baked they are a sloppy mess. I often see brownies online that are meant to be fudge brownies but to highlight the gooeyness they are most often just plain under cooked and will taste like semi cooked brownie batter. I think raw brownie batter is one thing but partially cooked brownie batter disguised as a gooey brownie is an unacceptable other matter. Fudge brownies require the right mix of chocolate, butter and flour and if proportioned correctly will result in the ideal bake.  

Using a cake tester is not useful as the fudge brownie texture will always leave crumbs and depending on your brownie recipe a wetness to the cake tester. In order to ensure your brownies are baked to perfection here are a couple of tips:

Secret 1: Look for the brownie crack

Lets start with the most important tip and the secret to perfect brownie cooking. Always set your oven a little ahead of the time recommended. It is best to check your brownies before the set recipe time. The first check is a visible check of the brownie tray. You will want to see cooked edges around the tray and a slight shrinking away from the side of the pan. Importantly you should see shiny cracks in the crispy top of the brownie. I shake the brownie tray looking for a little movement, I go for a little wobble but it is a wobble I know  - this is always the right time to remove the brownie from the oven. Trust your gut and remove the brownie regardless of any extra time that the brownie recipe has on it to finish.

Secret 2: Your brownie recipe

Always use a good recipe. Many recipes printed are often not tested. Over time and with lots of baking you will see for yourself which recipes work. Brownie recipes that contain real chocolate are expensive and you do not want to waste money on a recipe that produces a bad brownie. Only use recipes from good sources and ones that promote that they test recipes multiple times before publishing

Secret 3: Turn your brownies

Check your brownies regularly. All ovens are different so don't trust your oven to the temperature that the recipe tells you to cook at. As above the brownie texture can be different with just 5 minutes of cooking so remember to check regularly and half way through turn or rotate your brownie. 

Secret 4: Whip your eggs and sugar to perfection

Make sure you whip thoroughly your eggs and sugar. This will support the butter and provide for a solid base that will hold all the chocolate that you want the brownie recipe to hold. It is best to time this and make batches of brownies until you get the exact texture that will hold the brownie recipe as you would prefer.

Of course if you don't feel like baking brownies you can always buy brownies online at Dello Mano. Our Luxury Brownies are all handmade in small batches. Our Brownie stores at New Farm and Tattersalls Arcadeboth carry brownies, brownie cakes, brownie gift boxes. brownie hearts and brownie sundaes. We offer Brownie delivery Brisbane, Australia and to the world.