Whole Wheat Fudge Brownies

I don’t know what the future holds but I know there will be brownies.

It’s been over four months since we last had people over, which was the last time I made brownies. That’s four months quarantine with my sweet husband, filled with mixed emotions and lots of delicious food: adventurous new recipes, old stand-by’s, Filipino comfort food, delivery from our favorite restaurants, multiple pints of ice cream, different kinds of cake. But no brownies. Until now.

And let me tell you: these brownies are the best I’ve made in years. And I have made a lot of brownies. These Whole Wheat Fudge Brownies are intensely fudgy, with deep chocolate flavor, just the right amount of chew (no cakey brownies here) and remind me of the brownies from my favorite bakery.

I only slightly tweaked my go-to brownie recipe: added a bit more sugar, used extra large eggs, and swapped whole wheat all purpose flour for regular all purpose flour. I used flour from One Mighty Mill, a local company in Lynn, Massachusetts that makes fresh-milled, nutritious flour by stone-milling grains the old-fashioned way. I’ve never heard of “farm-to-table” flour before and I loved learning more about their story. I also used to be wary of using whole wheat flour in baked goods, but maybe I’ve just never found the right type of flour until I tried One Mighty Mill. (This is not a sponsored post, I’m just sharing something I love!)

I made these fudge brownies as classic as can be: no sea salt, no dulce de leche, no nutella, no peanut butter, no cream cheese, no olive oil. It’s simple and wholesome and has an intense chocolate flavor. And these whole wheat fudge brownies are incredible. Not to say that this recipe won’t make a great brownie base, but it is pretty perfect as it is. And pretty perfect is exactly what I need right now.

The last few months have been so far from pretty and perfect. It has been scary and eye-opening. The world has changed, and I hope it’s still changing for the better. I dream about the day when there’s a vaccine for all. When we can celebrate without fear and paranoia. When it is finally safe to see and hug our family and friends in person again. And when that day comes, I will have these brownies ready.

Yield: 16 bars

Whole Wheat Fudge Brownies

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients

1 1/4 sticks salted butter, melted (plus more for buttering pan)
3 extra large eggs
1 cup dark brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon espresso powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup whole wheat all-purpose flour

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
  2. In a large mixing bowl, combine melted butter, eggs, sugars, cocoa powder, vanilla extract, and coffee. Mix well.
  3. Stir in flour and salt. Whisk together until smooth.
  4. Spread brownie batter in a parchment paper-lined and buttered 8x8 pan.
  5. Bake 25-28 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in brownie comes out clean.