Basic Brownies

As good as plain chocolate brownies are, everyone’s ready for a change of pace at some point. We wanted brownies sturdy enough to be topped and flavored with a variety of options. Here’s what we discovered:

Test Kitchen Discoveries

• Unsweetened chocolate adds the richest chocolate flavor to the brownies.
• Baking powder causes the brownies to rise a little, which gives them a slightly cakey, very sturdy texture that won’t crumble when sliced.
• A toothpick inserted in the middle of the pan of brownies should come out with some moist batter or crumbs attached; around the edges the toothpick should come out clean.