These espresso dark chocolate brownies solidified the everlasting internal debate I was having with myself on if I was a cookie girl, or a brownie girl. It’s official – I’m a brownie girl. Even if you do not like espresso or coffee, these are an absolute must make. Espresso is used in a lot of chocolate baking recipes as a way to enhance the flavors. In this case, it is a very subtle espresso flavor, but rich in brown butter and cocoa.

The texture of these brownies is unlike anything I’ve ever had. They are perfectly dense and insanely fudgy from the brown butter and cocoa powder. For such a simple recipe, these taste *gourmet*.

HOW TO NAIL THESE ESPRESSO DARK CHOCOLATE BROWNIES

1. USE A KITCHEN SCALE – If you are starting to get into baking, or if it is something you do often, a kitchen scale is a must. Here is one that I have that works great and is very affordable. A kitchen scale for baking is a great way to nail recipes due to the accuracy it provides. Using cups is an easy way to skew measurements for dry ingredients, especially flour.
2. STAINLESS STEEL PAN – For browning the butter, using a stainless steel or a light colored pan is a great idea. This makes it less likely that your butter will burn during the browning process.
3. A METAL PAN FOR BAKING – A square (8×8), metal pan is the best pan for making brownies. Anything other than metal (glass or ceramic) will take a bit longer to cook than the recipe calls for (closer to 45 minutes). I have this metal pan and it worked *perfectly* for these. Please note that if you make these brownies in a different sized pan they will be thinner and bake for a shorter amount of time.
4. LET THE BROWNIES FULLY COOL – The last (and most dreaded) step in baking. Letting them cool before cutting is very important for allowing these to hold their structure. Cutting a brownie while hot will leave you with a crumbly mess. So set your timer for 45 minutes – 1 hour and go for a walk. You will not regret letting these cool.
5. USE UNSALTED BUTTER – Because this recipe has salt in it, you will not need to use salted butter. If all you have is salted butter, omit the salt that this recipe calls for.

BROWNED BUTTER NOTES

While browning your butter isn’t necessary, it is highly recommended. It does add a little bit of time to making these, but the flavor of browned butter is such a rich flavor that adds a lot of depth to cooking and baking. Browning butter takes about 12-15 minutes and requires frequent stirring. It also pairs so well with the melted chocolate and makes for the perfect fudgy brownie.

1. USE A STAINLESS STEEL PAN – Or something light in color. This will make it less likely that your butter will burn.
2. PATIENCE – setting your heat to low medium and stirring frequently will give you the perfect browned butter.
3. BROWNED BITS – You will start to see some browned bits at the bottom of your butter which is normal (do NOT leave those out of your recipe). They add so much flavor and when you start to see golden brown bits, thats when you know your butter is done browning.

GET THE PERFECT ESPRESSO FLAVOR

In this specific recipe, I used two products to get a slight coffee flavor. I’d say that 1 is necessary, and 1 is optional. Here are the two products I used.

1. GROUND INSTANT ESPRESSO – I grabbed this at Target. This is the product that I would say is necessary, however you can use whatever brand of ground instant espresso you have or can find.
2. PURE COFFEE EXTRACT – This product is what I’d say is optional. If coffee flavor is not your thing, omit this. The ground espresso won’t give you much espresso FLAVOR but it will give you an enhancement of the flavors in the brownie. If you want a subtle hint of coffee, I’d say opt in for this coffee extract.

Hope you love these as much as I do! As always, let me know if you make them or have any questions in the comments!

Espresso Dark Chocolate Brownies

megan sheley

These espresso dark chocolate brownies are rich in flavor with the perfect subtle hint of espresso. They are perfectly fudgy from the browned butter and dark chocolate making for the best texture. An absolute must make!

5 from 3 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 32 minutes mins

Resting Time 45 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Equipment

• 1 hand or stand mixer
• 1 8×8 metal pan

Ingredients

  

• 1 cup of dark chocolate chips I love the Trader Joe’s 70% Dark Chocolate Baking Chips
• 1 cup unsalted butter 226g or 2 sticks
• 1 cup all-purpose flour 128-130g
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder 17g
• 2 tbsp espresso powder
• 1 tsp coffee extract optional – read notes above on espresso flavor.
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup white sugar 155g
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar 110g
• 2 eggs room temp
• 1 tbsp vanilla

Instructions

 

• Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
• In a stainless steel or light colored pan, heat to medium and start to brown 1 cup of butter. Stirring frequently and keeping your eye on it so it doesn’t burn. This process should take about 12-15 minutes. You will start to see golden brown bits at the bottom of the pan when it is ready. Scrape it all into a bowl and set aside.
• Add in your dark chocolate chips to your browned butter and whisk together until completely melted. Set aside.
• In a medium sized bowl, whisk together your dry ingredients – flour, dutch cocoa, salt, and espresso powder. Set aside.
• In another bowl, mix your eggs, vanilla, white sugar, brown sugar, and coffee concentrate with a hand or standing mixer. Mix until fluffy (about 2-3 minutes).
• Putting your mixer to low setting, slowly drizzle in your melted chocolate and mix until combined.
• Add in your dry ingredients and fold in with a spatula.
• Line an 8×8 metal baking pan with parchment paper and pour your batter into the pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes. Every oven is different! I baked mine for 32 minutes and it was perfect. To test the doneness, insert a toothpick and if it comes out clean, remove your brownies from the oven. Please keep in mind if you are using anything besides a metal pan (glass or ceramic) your brownies will bake SLOWER and will require more time in the oven – closer to 45 minutes.
• Remove from oven and set on a cooling rack (while still in the pan) and cool for 45 minutes to 1 hour (do not skip this step as it helps your brownies hold their shape).
• Sprinkle with flakey sea salt and cut into 3×3 squares and enjoy!

Notes

Please note: if you are using any other pan aside from metal (glass or ceramic), your brownies will bake slower and require more time – closer to 45 minutes. 

Keyword brown butter, brownies, dessert, espresso