Double the chocolate means big, rich flavor in these double chocolate brownies! Don’t be fooled by their simple appearance—this easy brownie recipe will knock your socks off.
It’s not often that I make brownies with no nuts, peanut butter, coconut, or other additions. However, plain brownies are Quinn’s favorite. That said, I hesitate to call these double chocolate brownies “plain brownies.” They are far, far too good for such a description. This recipe comes from Martha Stewart’s Cookies, a recent addition to my cookbook library. It’s from the editors of Martha Stewart Living, and includes some of their best cookie recipes. They claim these double chocolate brownies to be one of their most popular recipes. After trying them, I can understand why that is.
Why You’ll Love This Double Chocolate Brownie Recipe
- More chocolate flavor. These brownies are packed with two kinds of chocolate—semisweet chocolate and cocoa powder. That makes them wonderfully rich and chocolatey. (These triple chocolate brownies and dark and milk chocolate marbled brownies are also excellent for chocolate lovers.)
- Surprisingly light, yet rich. Double chocolate brownies have a light texture as opposed to the more typical dense and compact variety. They’re a nice change of pace for brownie lovers.
- Rich and decadent. With all that chocolate, these brownies are quite rich, although I don’t find them overwhelming. That being said, a small brownie will go a long way toward satisfying your chocolate craving.
What You’ll Need
Scroll down to the recipe card to find the ingredient quantities and recipe instructions.
- Unsalted butter – Learn more: Unsalted or Salted Butter: Which is Better for Baking?
- Semisweet chocolate – I use chocolate from a bar and coarsely chop it.
- Unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder – This has a more intense flavor than natural cocoa powder.
- All-purpose flour – Here’s how to measure flour for baking.
- Baking powder
- Coarse salt
- Granulated sugar
- Eggs – Let these come to room temperature before starting the recipe.
- Vanilla extract – I like to use my homemade vanilla extract.
How to Make Double Chocolate Brownies
- Melt the butter and chocolate. Combine the butter, chocolate, and cocoa powder in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water or in a double boiler. Warm until the butter and chocolate melt and the mixture is smooth when stirred.
- Mix the dry ingredients. Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt in a mixing bowl.
- Beat the wet ingredients. Beat the sugar, eggs, and vanilla in another bowl using an electric mixer with a whisk attachment. Once pale, beat in the chocolate mixture.
- Combine wet and dry. Turn the mixer to low and slowly add the flour mixture.
- Bake. Spread the batter into a square baking pan that’s been lined with parchment paper and then buttered. Bake in a 350ºF oven for 35 minutes, or until a pick comes out with a few moist crumbs.
- Cool and cut. Allow the brownies to cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then lift them out and set them on a wire rack to cool completely before cutting.
Tips for Success
- Don’t over-mix. Once you’ve added the flour mixture, mix just until combined. Over-mixing can lead to tougher brownies, and you want these to be soft and fudgy.
- Use quality chocolate. You know when something is all about chocolate, I like to break out the good stuff. We all have our taste preferences when it comes to different brands of chocolate, so my recommendation is to use the best quality chocolate that you like. Learn more: Types of Chocolate: A Home Baker’s Guide
- Allow for complete cooling. It might be tempting to dive in as soon as these brownies come out of the oven, but letting them cool completely will make slicing easier and keep them from crumbling.
- Know the basics. Read over my baking tips for beginners and tips for baking brownies from scratch.
Variations
- Make them nutty. Chopped walnuts or pecans are a classic addition to brownies. Fold in a handful or two of nuts before transferring the batter to the baking dish.
- Add more chocolate. Take these brownies up a notch by stirring chocolate chips or chopped chocolate chunks into the batter. Now you’ve got triple chocolate brownies!
How to Store
- Room temperature: Store double chocolate brownies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- Freezer: These brownies can be frozen for up to 3 months. Wrap individual portions tightly with plastic wrap and place them in a freezer bag or airtight container. Thaw at room temperature or warm in the microwave before enjoying.
More Brownie Recipes
Get the Recipe:
Double Chocolate Brownies
Yield
9 large or 16 small brownies
Prep Time
25 minutes
Cook Time
35 minutes
Total Time
1 hour
Double the chocolate means big, rich flavor in these double chocolate brownies. This easy brownie recipe will knock your socks off!
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, plus more for pan
- 6 ounces (170g) semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
- 1/4 cup (21g) unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
- 3/4 cup (90g) all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter an 8-inch square baking pan. Line the pan with parchment paper, leaving 2 inches hanging over the sides. Butter the parchment paper.
- In a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water, stir together the butter, chocolate, and cocoa powder until melted and smooth. Set aside to cool slightly.
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, combine the sugar, eggs, and vanilla using an electric mixer with a whisk attachment. Mix on medium speed until pale, about 4 minutes. Add the chocolate mixture and mix until combined.
- Reduce mixer speed to low and gradually add the flour mixture, mixing until combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake for 35 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out with a few moist crumbs.
- Let the brownies cool in the pan for about 15 minutes. Then, use the overhanging lining to lift the brownies out of the pan onto a wire rack. Cool completely before cutting into squares.
Notes
Recipe slightly adapted from Martha Stewart’s Cookies.
Store double chocolate brownies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
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43 Comments on “Double Chocolate Brownies”
They look like quite a good brownie. Can’t really go wrong with a MS recipe. I really need to pick up that book sometime soon!
sometimes all you need is a good ole chunk of brownie without any additions. you just want a nice big bite of pure unadulterated chocolate. that picture is mighty enticing too!
These look great! As for the cocoa question, I just posted a double chocolate clafoutis recipe and I happened to put a link in it to my favorite cocoa that I found last year. It is a dutch process by a division of Callebaut. 100% Extra Brut Cocoa. It is very dark with a reddish tint. It tastes awesome every time I use it and I love the deep color. Anyway, you could google that name or just go to my blog for one of the links. I buy mine locally at a restaurant supply store that stocks it. Good luck!
What can I say? I’m just hungry…. I want brownies and I want them now!!
Thank you very much for sharing. I’m a fan of “bake or brake”. I don’t understand english completely well because it’s not my language but recipes are easy to read and make and your photos are great. (A so close approach to the brownie is… wow, amazing)
Kisses from Spain.
I bet these are good. .. The photos are amazing! I bought this book too but I haven’t made anything from it yet but I love the photography and food styling. The wedding cakes book is also stunning. and in regards to cocoa powder…I love valrhona cocoa powder. It is the best I have ever tried.
Ooooh…my eyes just bugged out of my head when I saw that pic! You know, like the wolves in the old cartoons when they see a pretty girl? hehehe.
Those look perfect.
I have to agree with Quinn. A plain ole brownie is one of my fave’s, too. These look wonderful!
RecipeGirl, I think this book is definitely worth it. I’ve got several recipes marked to try.
Thanks, Amanda! Yes, sometimes only chocolate will do.
Holly, thanks for the cocoa recommendation. I’ll be on the lookout for it.
Morgana, thanks so much for visiting! I suppose food is a universal language. 🙂
Alex, that’s certainly an interesting theory. 😉
Aran, I’ve looked at that cocoa powder before. Thanks for the recommendation!
Elle, I know exactly what you mean! Thanks!
Thanks, Cindy!
Have I ever mentioned that I want to marry you? Because I do. Many, many times over. Or perhaps you could adopt me? I could be your pet, even. I’m completely house-trained, and can fetch slippers for you, or, you know, spatulas.
Just think about it.
I guess yesterday was a brownie kind of day.
Jen, I want to bake something for a friend and have been thinking of what to bake. I think I’ve just made up my mind!
Oh dear…I’ve made and seen some good brownies before but THESE. LOOK. AMAZING!!!
Indigo, I’ll certainly take all of that into consideration. 😉
Anna, I guess it was. Great minds, right?
Patricia, I hope you and your friend like the brownies!
Hillary, thanks so much! They are really quite good.
Oh… I haven’t made brownies in a while. Yours look delicious! So crispy on top. Hope mine will still taste ok without any of that premium chocolate! 🙂 I love fancy chocolate, but all I have right now is plain ol’.
…drooling! These look yummy and the perfect mix of fudgey and squishy.
Sarah, I’m sure they’ll still be delicious with whatever chocolate you have. I think I’m a bit obsessed with all these premium chocolates! 😉
Thanks, Katie! A very apt description.
Those are the most perfect brownies I have ever seen! Gorgeous! I’m going to try these out as soon as I can. I’ve been on the hunt for the perfect brownie, and I am thinking this is it!
okay, so these are now added to my list of must trys. Besides, I’m also a fan of the just plain brownie. Actually, I think I should just be your taste tester.
Oh … you need to change your tagline, too. You’re no amateur.
what a torture is to look at your brownie. It looks fantastic.
Ahh those look so good. The perfect chocolate fix. I wanted to get Martha’s new cookie book but I have some of her Christmas cookie magazines that have a lot of those recipes.
Is Martha Stewart up to it again? Wasn’t it a Martha Stewart recipe you shared last that I went crazy for–a combination brownie/cookie? I believe it was the Outrageous Chocolate Cookie recipe, and now double chocolate brownies?! How much more can I bake before I have to break out “the Bean” to help work it all off?
I love a good brownie with a cold glass of milk. This sounds like that kind of brownie. …mmm!
I love how rich and almost gooey/creamy these brownies look! This is a great picture, it definitely captures what a classic brownie should look like. I would’ve taken a bite out of it before photographing it too, by the way! Definitely adds to the yumminess :).
Those brownies look nice and moist and dense and good!
Yep, thats me! Will be trying most defintely!
Those brownies look divine! Wish I could take a bite of my computer screen right now 🙂
Cafe Johnsonia, thanks! I hope you like them.
Bakerella, I appreciate the compliment. Might I remind you that *you* are the one who appeared on Martha’s show. 😉
Joanna, I certainly don’t mean to torture you! Chocolate is love!!!
Ashley, I think most of that book’s recipes are recycled from other Martha sources, but I like having them all in one place.
Sandie, those cookies were also from Martha. She knows her chocolate!
Gigi, you might be on to something!
Thanks, Sophie! Taking that bite was purely for artistic purposes. Sure, it was.
Thanks, Kevin! They were indeed all of those things.
Sathya, I hope you like them! Let me know what you think.
Thanks, Stacie! Definitely one of my favorite all-chocolate brownies.
So I tried out the recipe today…the taste is out of the world, texture is awesome but mine turned out a little thin. I love a thick brownie. Would doubling the recipe be messing with perfection. I am a big fan of the site.
Laura, did you use a different size pan? I’m not sure why yours would have been thin. I think doubling the recipe would be fine, but you’d definitely have to use a different size pan. Maybe an 8″x 11″ if not a 9″x13″.
OMG! That looks so moist and decadent!
I’m a certified chocoholic and can never get enough of chocolate.
TBC, thanks! I don’t think getting enough chocolate is conceivable.
I made this recipe and i absolutely loved how it came out…. deliceous.
i did combine this recipe with the idea of cooking the brownies in a muffin pan like you did for the peanut butter brownies (mostly cause i was mailing them and i knew if i had the cut them they would crumble)
the brownies did not last long at all in my house so i definately have to make more. I am thinking of piping them into the pan for easier dispensing of the chocolate batter, and i also am thinking of maybe filling them with either a strawberry or orange marmalade
i also really liked the semi cake-ey texture of the batter but it was still moist and delecious!
thank you so much for posting these delecious recipees i absolutely love your blog
ps. if you like my idea of marmalade filling you are more than welcome to take it i do not have a blog or any other way in which so share my ideas.
lastly if you want to make this in the muffin tins i found the time to be aprox. 16 minutes for cook time.
Jayme, I’m glad you liked them! I bet the small sized bites of them went really fast. The addition of marmalade sounds interesting! Thanks for the info!
this looks good. haha(: im only** years old!!
Could I make these with regular cocoa powder??
Elizabeth, you might be able to substitute regular cocoa powder by adding more baking powder. If you Google for how to adjust the baking powder, you’ll find various suggestions. However, I highly recommend not interchanging the two kinds.
Miam, it seems very good, you make me hungry! ^o^
all i can say is: WOW. they are FABULOUS. no joke, go and make them right now. fudgy, rich, chocolate-bliss: i am in heaven.
Did you know that I love any brownies without nuts.
Nice recipe. I love a simple brownie recipe which is easy for the kids 🙂
Thanks for sharing,
Jane
Whao, amazing. Just saw this on your Instagram page. Can I use regular cocoa powder instead of dutch processed. Also can I reduce the sugar by about 30g.Â
As a general rule, I don’t like to interchange regular cocoa powder and Dutch process. In this recipe, it would likely work well enough, although you’re likely to find some difference in taste and texture. That small amount of sugar reduction will likely not have much effect, although your brownies may be drier than intended.