Melt-In-Your-Mouth Dark Chocolate Brownies

Even though it’s been more than three years since I first went gluten-free, I still remember those first few months as though they were yesterday. As you can imagine, there was utter chaos going on in my head. It felt as though my world was coming to an end. What the heck was I going to eat? There’s wheat in everything!

Why me? Why me? WHY ME?

But…but…I love sweets! You mean, no more cake? Or cookies? Or, or, brownies? 

No more brownies/? Is this some kind of sick joke?

This can’t be happening! First, you tell me no pizza—as if that wasn’t bad enough—but now, no brownies either?!

What am I going to do?

What a terrible feeling it was. Losing so many foods that brought me such joy and comfort since my childhood. Gone….poof!…just like that.

So, like any other gluten-free rookie in a panic, I went out to the grocery store, and bought me a box of the Betty Crocker gluten-free brownie mix. I whipped them up just as the box instructed, and then waited, very impatiently, for them to bake.

They’ll be fine, they’ll be fine…they will be just like the ones you’ve always eaten. You won’t even know the difference.

At least that’s what I kept telling myself in my crazy little head. To be fair, the gluten-free brownies in the box were okay. Yes, they were chocolate. Yes, they looked like brownies. But, they certainly were not like the beloved brownies I used to be able to eat. There was something just a little “off” about them. They had this odd stickiness to them that I still can’t explain, and the texture was off too. They certainly weren’t the dark chocolate, thick and fudgy, melt in your mouth kind of brownies I was used to and craved. You know the ones, right? Well, after that less than satisfying trial-and-error of  an attempt, I pretty much chalked it up to a lost cause, and tried to accept a world without brownies.

Sigh.

Eventually, I got completely fed up, and decided to start experimenting on my own. Why not take a stab at making something on my own, and seeing what I could come up with? 

How much worse could it really get?

And now, I’m sure glad I tried. I’ve been making these brownies for a couple of years, and they’re even better than the ones I used to be able to indulge in prior to going gluten-free. Yeah, I know. Believe that! These brownies are requested time and time again by gluten-free friends, and more often than not, those who aren’t! Yup. They are that good. The president of my company, who is not gluten-free, says these are the best brownies she’s ever had. She once said to me, “I think the chocolate Gods have spoken to you.”

Ding! We have a winner!

I have adapted this recipe from the original one I found online a long time ago to suit my needs, thus in turn, pretty much calling it my own at this point. Make these brownies as written, and you and everyone you make them for, will not be disappointed. 

These brownies, made completely from scratch, are extremely rich and chocolaty, and truly melt in your mouth. They taste like they took hours to make, but in reality take only slightly longer to make than the traditional box brownie. They are great on their own, or warm with vanilla ice cream, or even frosted.

Since it’s just me and my husband in our house, and eating a whole tray of brownies ourselves probably isn’t the best thing for our health—although certainly attainable—I’ll usually cut up a few brownies into small cubes, put them into a container and into the freezer so they can be warmed and added to ice cream at a later date. Otherwise, I just bring them into work for my co-workers—who will gobble them up before lunchtime even arrives.

I hope you try this recipe, and begin to realize that the foods you once loved before can still be a part of your new gluten-free world. Just keep trying and experimenting—that’s what it’s all about. Enjoy!

Melt-In-Your-Mouth Brownies

Ingredients:

8 tablespoons (1 stick) salted butter, room temperature, cut into 8 pieces

8 ounces gluten-free dark or bittersweet chocolate, cut into chunks

1 ¼ cups sugar*

3 large eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten

1 cup gluten-free all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled

¼ cup unsweetened baking cocoa powder

½ teaspoon baking powder

*For slightly less sweet brownies, use only 1 cup of sugar.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°. Line 8 or 9-inch square pan with parchment paper. Set pan aside.

Place butter and dark chocolate chunks in a large glass mixing bowl. Using a microwave, melt butter and chocolate in 2 or 3 30-second intervals, stirring between each interval until chocolate is smooth and there are no lumps. (I recommend setting your microwave timer to only 30 seconds each time so that you do not burn the chocolate.) After the third heating interval there may be a few lumps left, just keep stirring until they melt down.

Add sugar, stirring until well combined.

In a small mixing bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa powder, and baking powder until combined well.

Add eggs to melted chocolate in the large mixing bowl, stirring to combine. Add all of flour mixture to the chocolate mixture. Stir until moistened, making sure not to over mix, about 15-20 strokes. Transfer batter to prepared pan.

Bake for about 35 minutes, or until toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs. Cool in pan for about 15 minutes before removing. Transfer to wire rack to cool completely (about 2 hours). Cut brownies with a large knife that is longer than the width of the brownies if possible. Cut straight down, and try not to drag your knife through the brownies.

Makes 16, 2-inch. brownies.