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Learn the tips and tricks for making the best fudgy brownies with crackly tops. These rich & dense brownies have a shiny crispy top that's worth the effort!

*Thank you OXO for sponsoring today's post so I can share this fudgy brownies with crackly tops recipe with all of you.*

My favorite comfort food is fudgy brownies with crackly tops.

Those CRISPY, CRACKLY, SHINY TOPS are to die for!

So, what type of brownies do YOU like?

Fudgy ooey gooey brownies? OR crackly brownies?

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Sometimes, I like to make these brownies just so I can eat the tops and nothing else...hahaha.

These brownies are DENSE, RICH, FUDGY and insanely CHOCO-LICIOUS, just the way brownies were intended.

Seriously, look at this perfection...

I am NOT sure about the science behind getting crackly tops on top of the brownies.

But after a lot of trial and error, here are two very IMPORTANT things I have figured out about making perfect fudgy brownies with crackly tops:

When I made brownies with just cocoa powder, the brownies were more cake-like and didn't have the shiny crispy top. So, you definitely NEED to use baking chocolate or chocolate chips in your brownie recipe to get that crispy top.
You also need to CREAM the butter and sugar first until the mixture is pale and fluffy (takes about 5-6 minutes of beating). Most importantly, you need to MIX the heck out of your batter after adding the eggs (about 5 minutes). This adds a lot of air into the mixture and allows a crispy meringue layer to form on top of the brownies.

To make these fudgy brownies with crackly tops, you will need the following ingredients:

⅔ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
½ cup + 2 tablespoon unsalted butter (at room temperature)
7 ounces melted dark chocolate or semisweet chocolate
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
½ tablespoon espresso powder
2 tablespoon warm water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs

Notes:

- Don't over-mix after adding the dry ingredients or else the texture of the brownies will change!
- Don't over-bake or else the inside of the brownies will become more cake-like rather than staying fudgy.
- The butter needs to be at room temperature. I tried making these brownies with slightly cold butter and the results were not as great.

And here are the steps:

Step 1:
In a deep mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until the mixture is pale and fluffy.

Step 2:
Add the eggs and vanilla extract and mix again for another 5 minutes.

Step 3:
In a small bowl, mix together the espresso powder with water.

Step 4:
Add this espresso mixture into your batter and mix until just combined.

Step 5:
Add the melted chocolate and mix until just combined.

Step 6:
In a separate bowl, whisk the flour and cocoa powder.

Step 7:
Add this dry mixture into the brownie batter and mix everything until just combined.
Do NOT over-mix!

Step 8:
Pour this batter into a square pan (Dimensions: 8in x 8in x 8in) that's lined with foil paper and sprayed with oil.
Use a spatula to spread the batter evenly over the entire pan.

Step 9:
Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out covered in some sticky crumbs.

Let the brownie cool down. Then, cut it into square pieces.

And you are done!

By the way, these brownies are a small way in which I am trying to support a wonderful organization called Cookies for Kids'

Every year, OXO supports this organization through their #OXOGoodCookies program, where they encourage everyone to bake a difference with OXO.

For each blog post dedicated to this campaign, OXO will be donating $100 to Cookies for Kids' Cancer.

I used OXO's cake pan and brownie spatula to make my brownies today.

If you liked this recipe, you may also like some of these other brownie recipes...

Mocha brownies

Black bean brownies

Gooey brownies (Chocolate Cherry Brownies)

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