Lately, the question I’ve been asked most frequently is, “Do you have a good recipe for high altitude brownies?” (Spoiler: Yes!)
For years, I had a go-to recipe that technically worked in terms of getting the proper rise, but I thought it was just okay. The brownies were on the cakey side, with sort of wimpy flavor. And I just don’t make brownies that often, so I wasn’t super motivated to fiddle with it. But because so many of you asked nicely, and because testing chocolate sounded perfectly delicious this week, I started messing around with recipes. And let me tell you something: this is a good one. I think we’re all going to be making brownies a lot more this winter.
Brownies feel like they should be simple, right? They’re a classic, something that should be easy to whip up for a last minute potluck or after-school treat. As a kid growing up at sea level in California, I made them from a box, and they were perfect. But box mixes, with their “high altitude” directions, don’t work very well here in Breckenridge. So, as is so often the case with mountain folk, we are on our own, left to fend for ourselves in the quest for the perfect shiny, crackly crust atop a dense, moist crumb. But! We are tough; we must persevere (she said through a mouthful of failed brownie crumbs).
Whereas many cookies and bars contain baking soda or powder to help them rise, classic brownies rely 100 percent on eggs for leavening. Getting the texture right, with a nice even rise and a texture that is neither too cakey nor too densely fudge-y, can be tough. The right ratio of sugar and flour in the mix is key. Check out my Instagram to see what happened when that ratio was off in one of my test recipes: dry, over-baked edges and a sunken interior.
Brownies get their chocolate flavor from either melted solid chocolate or cocoa powder. I prefer the taste and texture of brownies made with melted chocolate; they just taste richer and moister to me and you get that lovely shiny, crackly top rather than a dull, flat one. And here’s a secret: if you want to get all gourmet, you can splurge on fancy European chocolate and chop it up, but I actually use basic grocery store chocolate chips here. Expensive is not always better when it comes to baking and Toll House has been doing what they do for a long time. Just saying.
It turns out my family members are brownie purists; my son Jacob said to me the other day, “Can you just make plain brownies? I can’t remember the last time I had a brownie that didn’t have nuts or frosting.” Poor, poor child. But of course I said yes, because I agree that simple is often best (though of course, if you prefer brownies with nuts, or want to amp up the chocolate flavor with extra chips, it certainly won’t hurt to toss some add-ins in the batter).
And guys, I dare say these are the best. Firm enough to hold their shape, slightly chewy, and densely chocolate-y, with a nice shiny top. So good that David made me hide them from him so he wouldn’t lose control and eat the whole batch. (If you come over, they’re in the pantry, under the stack of clean kitchen towels. But you’d better hurry.)
High-Altitude Brownies
Description
With a rich melted-chocolate flavor and a texture that strikes the perfect balance between fudge-y and cakey, these High Altitude Brownies will have you shunning box mixes forever.
Ingredients
5 TB (2.5 oz) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 cup (6 oz) chocolate chips (or chopped bittersweet or semisweet chocolate)
1/2 cup (3.5 oz) granulated sugar
3 large eggs, cold
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
2 tsp vanilla extract (not imitation)
1/2 cup (2.5 oz) all-purpose flour
(optional: 1 cup of chopped walnuts, pecans, or chocolate chips)
Instructions
Heat oven to 350°. Butter an 8×8 baking pan (metal preferred), and line with parchment paper. Spread a little extra butter over the parchment and in any exposed corners as well – you’ll be glad you did when it comes time to get them out of the pan.
In medium saucepan, bring an inch or two of water to a simmer and place a heat-safe bowl on top. Add butter pieces to bowl, then sprinkle chocolate chips over top. Heat over simmering water, undisturbed, until butter is fully melted and chocolate is beginning to melt. Remove bowl from heat and mix with a rubber spatula until chocolate is fully melted and the mixture is thick and glossy. Add sugar and mix until combined.
Add eggs one at a time, incorporating with a hand-held mixer or whisk after each one. Stir in vanilla and salt. Dump in flour and gently fold into batter with a rubber spatula until just combined.
Scrape batter into prepared pan and bake at 350° for 25 minutes, or until cake tester or toothpick comes out clean. Don’t overbake or you’ll end up with dry brownies.
Cool brownies in the pan on a rack, then invert onto a clean plate or cutting board and cut into 16 squares.
Notes
… Cold eggs are specified to reduce any chance that they’ll be cooked even a little by the warm butter & chocolate mixture.
… Although warm baked goods are hard to resist, I find the texture and flavor of these brownies are best when cool.
These sound amazing, looking forward to trying them@
You cook so prettily! Looks like a bomb went off whenever I’m cook!
The kid….very cute.😉
These are fantastic! I made them on this snowy Colorado day and my entire family loved them as an after snow snack. I followed the recipe exactly and it took 28 minutes in the oven before the cake tester came out clean. They are gooey without being too soft and crumbly. Thank you!
Thank you, Sara! So glad they were a hit with your family. I love hearing that. 🙂
Excellent. I’m new to high altitude baking and this recipe went without a glitch. Delicious, rich brownies with easy cleanup from one bowl prep.
Thanks so much, Karen!I’m really happy they worked for you.
About my review of this recipe, I do give it five stars! Apparently when making my earlier comment, I had only left one star but that was an error, These rich chocolate brownies are delish! I’ve made them twice already and ate most of them myself 🙂
Thank you I have finally made my first edible brownie the kids love them!!! We are a mile high and this brownie recipe is awesome!!!!
That’s what I love to hear! So glad you love it!
Fantastic results. Just as promised. Will never buy a boxed brownie again for high altitude Breckenridge.
I misread the title I thought these were “High Altitude” brownies. Instead of butter I substituted cannabis infused coconut oil. The sixteen servings should have about 40mg apiece. Blast off in T minus 50 minutes!
OK,
These are some delicious brownies. Perhaps I overbaked them a little, they’re cakey but delicious. Speaking of overbaked that’s me right now. It’s more than 50 minutes from my prior post because I have apparently shrunk and am typing on a tiny keyboard. It’s hard to describe other than delicious brownies and cannibis. There you go boys and girls, dose carefully and enjoy responsibly.
I don’t bake with cannabis myself, but I’m really glad the recipe worked out for you! And thanks for making me laugh – hope you’ve successfully returned to your normal size. 😀
Best homemade brownies ever @ 9,000’👏🏆🥇
Yay!!!
Just made these. I broke the rules and melted the chips and butter in the microwave. Too hot today to stand over the stove. I didn’t have enough chips so I made a paste of butter, sugar and cocoa powder and added that. Mixed as recommended and added walnuts. I think my pan is a little big (9×9?) as they are very thin, and there are weird little pinholes in the top after baking. They are light colored so many need more chocolate. Are a piece right out of the oven so will see how they are after they cool. May have to try again with more chocolate chips. Does the microwave change something? Oh, and we are outside Denver, about a mile high.
Ann, melting the chocolate chips and butter in the microwave is fine as long as you watch it carefully and don’t let it seize up. I suspect that your ratio of chips/cocoa may have disrupted the recipe a bit. There are stabilizers in chocolate chips that help with the texture, and the lighter color you experienced is very likely because you had more cocoa than called for. Try the recipe as written and see if that works better for you!
This was the most delicious, easy, amazing brownie recipe….WOW
Yay! So glad you loved it.
I’m going to try this, thanks, hope it works for 8,300 ft. Question: when I used the scale feature to increase to 2x or 3x, the butter amount doesn’t change, only the other ingredients. Is that correct? I’ll start with the 8×8 pan, but if they turn out good, I’ll go for a 9×13 batch!
Unfortunately that scaling tool is an automatic function that is sometimes inaccurate (frustrating, sorry). All ingredients should be scaled equally when you double the recipe.
Thanks for the reply. Finally got around to making them today. Used two 73% dark Ritter Sport bars, 3.5 oz. each, added one cup of chopped walnuts. I only have a glass pan, so used that. Tested them at 20 minutes, not done, put them back for 6 more minutes, still not done but the delicious smell was making my mouth water. Then I noticed I only had them on 325 degrees!. Man, I tell ya, old eyes don’t see too well up close. Turned up the heat, gave them another 3 minutes. I took them out too soon, toothpick wasn’t quite clean, but I was afraid of overcooking them. Next time I’ll for sure cook them longer. They taste great, but they’re rather crumbly, maybe too much chocolate in them, since I used 7 oz instead of 6. 🙂
Can I use hershey cocoa for this instead of the chocolate chips?
Yes, you can. Instead of chocolate chips, substitute 6 TB unsweetened cocoa powder, 7 TB granulated sugar, and 1/4 cup butter, coconut oil, or other neutral vegetable oil such as avocado or grapeseed.
These are the best brownies ever!! How do you recommend storing them? [If not eaten all at once ;)]
I recommend storing them in an airtight container, with any layers separated with parchment or wax paper. So glad you love them!
These came out perfectly @7200 ft in Monument CO. Thank you!
This recipe is amazing, I made the perfect brownies 🙂 I do want to try using Droste cocoa powder next time instead of chocolate chips. How much droste powder would you say I need for this alteration? Thank you!
I made these and loooove the recipe! I have a niece who is asking for the recipe but she lives in California. What changes do I tell her to make for not being in high elevation?
Never reviewed a recipe on the internet ever. I would consider myself a moderately good cook. This recipe is easy to make. The best homemade brownies I have ever made. Made in Colorado Springs.
I made these recently because my husband loves brownies. We were both a little disappointed with them. They were very cake like and crumbly. We prefer fudgy brownies. I live near Helena, MT at 4800 ft.