Decadent Fudgy Whole Wheat Brownies. If you follow Paul DeFord on Instagram you may have seen these brownies. The first time I saw them on his feed I was interested. Then I started seeing them popping up on other feeds as well. From there I knew I HAD to try them. Everyone was raving about these fudgy delicious brownies. Not only are they fudgy, but these brownies are THICC!
What Makes These Brownies So Good?
Let me just tell you, there are a lot of things to love about these brownies. They have that perfect fudgy texture that is hard to resist.
They are dark chocolate and use a blend of cocoa powder and a chocolate bar. The combination of the 2 gives them the perfect flavor.
That crinkly top. These are created only by using a good amount of real chocolate, obviously, but also eggs. Not a small amount either, this recipe uses 4 eggs. Then of course the sugar caramelizing on top as well.
They have walnuts. I am not sure if this is a thing for you or not, but I love my brownies with walnuts. These can be limited if you aren't into them though.
Ingredients
- Eggs
- Granulated and brown sugar
- Vanilla
- Whole wheat flour
- All-purpose flour- I love to use a blend of both for the best results in this recipe.
- Cocoa powder
- Salt
- Chocolate- this can be chips, chunks, or even a bar cut into chunks.
- Butter
- Walnuts
How To Make
Start by beating your eggs in a bowl or stand mixer. You can mix these by hand, but that will take a lot of arm strength as they need to beat for quite a while.
They should change color and get light and fluffy. Add in the sugars and vanilla and continue to mix them.
Next, melt your butter and chocolate together and add them into the batter. Then it is time for the wheat and all-purpose flour, cocoa powder, and salt. I like to mix these in a separate bowl, then into the batter.
Last, add in your walnuts if you are using them. Fold them in and pour them into a parchment-lined pan.
Now for the baking. To get that perfect fudgy texture, mine baked exactly 55 minutes. You can see in the photos this produces just the texture I was going for.
Whole Wheat Addition
The OG recipe is an all-purpose flour recipe. Being obsessed with whole grains, I decided I wanted to try these with whole grains. Paul commented that I should try original and whole wheat and see if my family noticed the difference.
2 batches of brownies is always a good idea. So, I am typing this on a full, brownie-filled belly. What were the results? My family had no idea which were whole wheat and which weren't. The takeaway? Every recipe can be modified to use whole grains and be just as good!
Notes
There are a few things to note about this recipe before starting. Let me teach you all my tricks for getting the perfect brownie.
Make sure you mix the eggs well. This is important for the texture of the brownie, and also the crinkly top.
I used white wheat for my wheat flour, but there are a lot of great varieties out there you can use as well- rye, red wheat, kamut, and einkorn. I like to use a blend of all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour.
This blend gives you are really great texture and flavor. If you want to try the 100% whole wheat, go for it! The texture will be different than this version, but the flavor is still amazing.
Baking time is really important, especially to get that fudgy texture. 55 minutes worked great for me out of the 3 times I tested. I would not bake this for more than 65 minutes.
FAQ
If you always thought this would ruin the brownies, let this recipe prove you wrong. If you are new to whole wheat flours, make sure and only sub in partial whole wheat as I did in this recipe. I promise you are going to love it!
They need to have a high fat to flour ratio. This recipe is just that!
They are overbaked. You might be tempted to blame this on the wheat flour, but trust me, it is you baking time.
Is Dark Chocolate Your Thing?
It is mine too and I have so many recipes to share with you! Most are very simple and totally delicious!
- These Dark Chocolate Rye Cookies are to die for. You don't even want to know how many of these I ate.
- Dark Chocolate Cake Roll with Peppermint is one of my highest ranking recipes over the last few months. I can promise you it is worth it!
- If you are looking for something with a little less chocolate, how about this Dark Chocolate and Dried Cherry Oatmeal Cookies!
- Maybe you need a healthier chocolate treat. This Dark Chocolate Bark with Popped Amaranth is amazing.
Whole Wheat Brownies
Equipment
- hand mixer, 9x9 metal pan
Ingredients
- 4 eggs, room temp
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- ¾ cup whole wheat flour I used a white wheat, but you could also red, rye, or other of your choice.
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup cocoa
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ heaping cup dark chocolate chips you can also chop up a dark chocolate baking bar
- 7 tablespoons butter
- 1-2 cups chopped walnuts optional, but highly recommended
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a 9x9 baking pan with parchment. This isn't necessary, but makes removal of the brownies so much easier. I also like to spray the sides as well. In a medium-sized pan over medium heat, melt the butter and chocolate chips together. Stir this constantly, as the chocolate can burn easily. Once the chocolate is almost melted, remove from heat and stir until the chocolate IS melted. Set aside to cool slightly while you work on everything else. Add eggs to a medium sized bowl. Mix on high for about 1 minute. Then add in your granulated and brown sugar. Continue to mix until the mixture is light and fluffy. Towards the end of that time, add vanilla and mix in as well.Sift in your flours, cocoa, and salt. Fold this in to combine. Then pour in your melted butter/chocolate combo. Again, mix to combine. Last step is the walnuts. Mix them in as well. Pour your batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 50-60 minutes. Now, the toothpick test won't work here, as you want them to come out underbaked slightly. Mine were baked to exactly 55 minutes. If you want to go longer, I wouldn't do more than 65 minutes. These will continue to cook ever after you remve them from the oven in a process called carry over cooking. Once they are removed from the oven, allow them to cool in the pan at least 10 minutes before trying to remove them. If you have used the parchment paper, it will come right out!I like to let mine cool for awhile before trying to slice, but if you can't resist, go for it! These are awesome on their own. They are delicious with a scoop of ice cream. They are so good even to use as a dessert prep. Bake them, once they are cooled, freeze them. When you are ready, pull them out and heat them just a touch in the microwave. They are perfect and ready to go!Now, sit back and enjoy. You deserve it!
Well, yes. I mean, you can do it with them cold, but the results are so much better at room temp. Why? Well, it has to do the eggs being viscous. The beat into a foam much better than cold eggs- a process we use in this recipe.
You can also use red winter wheat or rye. I have also used a whole wheat pastry, but preferred the higher protein in the white winter.
You can easily swap it out for semi-sweet or even milk chocolate. No adjustments to recipe necessary.
The transfer heat is so much better between a thick metal pan, than glass. You will have better, chewier crusts with the metal pan.
Aerated eggs are essential for optimal brownie making. They provide the beautiful structure these brownies have.