Freakin' Good Homemade Brownies

A friend of mine was talking about brownies, so I just had to have some. I wanted to make them from scratch, and I didn't want a dry cake like brownie. I wanted moist, chocolaty brownies with that cool shiny top. And this recipe did the trick.

Two things to mention - I used spray-on oil on the baking dish for easy removal and I waited 2 hours for them to cool before diving in. 

I pretty much followed this recipe from Love and Lemons.

Okay, here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour

• 2/3 cup cocoa powder

• 1/2 cup powdered sugar

• 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

• 3/4 teaspoons sea salt

• 2 large eggs

• 1/2 cup canola oil 

• 2 tablespoons water

• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 325°F. Lightly spray an 8x8 baking dish (the dish size is important, so use an 8X8 dish) with cooking spray and line it with parchment paper. Spray the parchment paper too. This may seem excessive, but it works. 

• In a medium bowl, combine the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, powdered sugar, chocolate chips, and salt.

• In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, olive oil, water, and vanilla.

• Sprinkle the dry mix over the wet mix and stir until just combined.

• Pour the batter into the prepared pan - It is pretty thick so don't be alarmed. Use a spatula to smooth the top. 

• Bake for 40 to 48 minutes, (I went the full 48 minutes) or until a toothpick comes out with only a few crumbs attached. It's better to pull the brownies out early than to leave them in too long. 

• Cool completely so they set up properly. I let mine sit for about 2 hours before slicing.

They are really good. Hope you get to try them!