Dense and chocolatey with chewy edges and melt-in-your-mouth good – that’s this easy one-bowl brownie recipe.
Table of Contents
The Story Behind the Recipe
So yeah, this having a wedding and going on a honeymoon thing is quite the time suck. So is the whole having-a-demanding-job thing. Now that I’m hitched and back from my honeymoon, the fact that I quit my full-time gig the week we got married (unrelated, the feminist in me wants you to know!) – it’s all sinking in. All of the sudden, I’ve got a lot of time on my hands. And I’ve actually got time to ponder the fact that I’ve got a lot of time on my hands. Both novel concepts. We’ll see how I do with this.
Rewind a couple of weeks. Back when time was a scarcity, I managed to eke out 20 minutes and whipped up these Ridiculously Easy Brownies – my favorite brownie recipe for when time is scarce and a homemade treat is in order.
These are everything a brownie should be – chewy, dense, melt-in-your mouth chocolatey.
My guy gives ’em a coveted One Grunt Up. And, as I keep mentioning, they’re ridiculously easy – one bowl, one sheet of foil, one pan, done.
Here’s the recipe!
Ridiculously Easy One-Bowl Brownies
Ingredients
- 4 ounces unsweetened chocolate (I like the Ghiradelli 100% Cacao unsweetened chocolate bars)
- 3/4 cup 1 and 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
- 1 3/4 cups sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup flour
- 1 cup chopped pecans (raw is fine, but sometimes I like to toast them with a little kosher salt)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Line a 13×9 pan with piece of foil long enough to extend over the ends of the pan, and grease the foil and the rest of the pan.
- In a large microwaveable bowl, add the butter and the chocolate (break the chocolate into pieces).
- Microwave for about a minute, removing and stirring to judge how much the chocolate has melted, then nuke in 15 second increments after that. It usually takes me about a minute and a half to completely melt the chocolate.<
- Stir in the sugar, eggs, and vanilla.
- Stir in the flour, and if using, the pecans. Mix well.
- Spread the batter into the pan.
- Bake for 30 – 35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out crumby.
- Let cool, then remove the brownies from the pan with the foil “handles.”
- Cut into squares, and enjoy!
- Store in an air-tight container at room temp.
Originally published June 15, 2010.
I’m so glad you’re here! I’m a vegetarian home cook, certified plant-based pro, and mom. I’m married to an enthusiastic carnivore, and my mission is to achieve peace in the kitchen – one tasty recipe at a time. These days, with a name like mine, I also try not to ask to speak to the manager.
Looks absolutely wonderful!
I made these, with some minor changes, and they were delicious and definitely easy. I added about a cup of chocolate chips (a mixture of milk and semisweet). If you are not toasting your pecans with salt, you should definitely add a little salt (maybe a half teaspoon). Baked goods NEED SALT or they will have a one-dimensional sweet flavor. A wee bit of salt brings out all the other complex flavors.
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Can I make this with cocoa powder instead?
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These are delicious! I did include a pinch of salt (as my pecans were unsalted), and used 1.5 cups of sugar – they were still plenty sweet. These are not as ‘easy’ as other recipes if you do not have a BIG bowl that is also microwavable. I usually like to use a mixer, but couldn’t, since bowls that I use for mixer isn’t microwavable… Maybe it should really be a two-bowl thing. Melting chocolate chips WITH butter seemed like a pain – chocolate chips were still hard while butter was already all watery… weird consistency as you have to keep microwaving, mixing, microwaving, again and again.
I like the fact that these brownies are moist and rich chocolate but not overly sweet. I followed the directions as written but left out the nuts and used salted butter. Great brownies.
I’m so glad you liked them, Margaret! Thank you for the comment!
Could I substitute coconut oil for the butter? Butter here is in short supply and if you can get it it’s close to $5/pound.
Yes, I think that would work! The flavor profile may be a little different but my hunch is they will still be great. If you try it, please report back on how it goes!
They are in the oven now and smell delicious! I also used walnuts in place of the pecans because that’s what I had and I love walnuts. I can’t wait to try them! I will report back again after we taste test them!
So they came out delicious but you can taste the coconut so if you don’t like the taste of coconut maybe do a mix of the butter and coconut oil.
Thank you for sharing!
I just amde these brownies with toasted walnuts and they are as my husband would say “to die for”!!
Have you (or anyone here) tried using Monkfruit sweetener and/or almond flour? I want to try it with those modifications
I had a bar og ghiradelli 100% cacao dark chocolate and went in search of recipes, foundd that I had the ingredients so I’m awaiting the final result now! Did not have pecans so I toasted chopped cashews & pistachios w/ a tiny bit of sea salt and after reading commwnts I sprinkled some sugar free choc.chips on top & just pressed them in a bit & sprinkled just a tiny bit more sea salt on the top. I am crossing my fingers as I have had mixed results w/baking brownies from scratch. The butter & choc.pieces melted perfecly! I cut the butter up a bit too and it was aout 1:15. 😉
Hi Brandy, I hope this was a winner for you! The cashews, pistachios & sea salt sound amazing.
It was so easy to make and so yummy!
Hi Kayo, thank you so much for the review! I’m so glad it was a winner.