Fannie Farmer's Fudgy Brownies
A faithful update of the 1896 original: dense, walnut-studded squares with a crackly top and a fudge-like crumb that holds up after 130 years.
Ingredients
- 2 ozunsalted butter(4 tbsp, cut into pieces)
- 2 ozdark chocolate(70% cacao, roughly chopped — about 2 oz)
- 1 cupgranulated sugar(1 cup)
- 1 largeegg
- 1 tspvanilla extract
- ½ tspfine salt
- ½ cupall-purpose flour(½ cup, spooned and leveled)
- 2 ozwalnut halves(roughly chopped, about ½ cup)
Method
- 01
Preheat the oven to 325 °F (165 °C). Grease an 8-inch square baking pan and line it with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on two sides.
- 02
Melt the 2 oz unsalted butter and 2 oz dark chocolate together in a medium heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes.
- 03
Whisk the 1 cup granulated sugar into the chocolate mixture until fully combined.
- 04
Add the 1 large egg and 1 tsp vanilla extract and whisk vigorously for about 1 minute — the batter should look glossy and slightly thickened.
- 05
Add the ½ tsp fine salt and ½ cup all-purpose flour. Switch to a rubber spatula and fold until no dry streaks remain; do not overmix.
- 06
Fold in the 2 oz chopped walnut halves.
- 07
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and spread it into an even layer — it will be thin, roughly ½ inch deep.
- 08
Bake for 22–25 minutes, until the edges are set and the center no longer jiggles when the pan is nudged. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out with moist crumbs, not wet batter.
- 09
Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for 10 minutes. Use the parchment overhang to lift the slab out onto the rack and cool for another 10 minutes before cutting.
- 10
Cut into 9 squares using a sharp knife, wiping the blade clean between cuts for neat edges.
Adapted from public domain & community sources