Ina's Outrageous Brownies (2024)

Diane — April 6, 2023 @ 12:28 pm Reply

You pictured the brownie with frosting, is it coffee buttercream?????

Stephanie Schiltz — March 12, 2022 @ 11:02 am Reply

Best brownies ever. Truly decadent. Not your everyday brownie for sure but for very special occasions!❤️

Melissa — February 6, 2022 @ 4:34 pm Reply

These are amazing! Simple to make and wow they taste fantastic!

Heather — February 5, 2022 @ 3:44 pm Reply

What does wrap the pan in between the oven shelf mean?

Rita — June 27, 2021 @ 11:20 pm Reply

These were the best brownies I have “EVER “ made in my life!!! I bit into one and my eyes rolled in my head, I had to go get some milk!! Definitely made the tip of my chocolate list!! AWESOME!

Carol Taylor — May 5, 2020 @ 11:13 am Reply

Wow! Wow! Wow! Just made these last night – I’m quarantine baking!! – and they’re amazing! My husband usually is indifferent to brownies, and when he eats one it has to be a center piece. But he thought these were GREAT and has happily eaten several of the edge pieces. They’re not dry at all and not too dense. Just a really amazing taste and texture. We’ll definitely be baking these again! Thanks for sharing!

Lindsay — April 8, 2020 @ 3:47 pm Reply

Hi there, I have everything but the unsweetened chocolate. Would it turn out ok if I just sub more regular chocolate chips?

LuAnn — July 19, 2019 @ 6:19 pm Reply

Wow. That is a lot. Where would a person find a pan that size. 13 x 18. Never heard of a pan that big. I checked out the recipe where you cut the recipe in half using a 13 x 9 baking pan. Couldn’t a person use 2. 13 x 9 pans to make the full recipe. Dividing the batter in half? Thanks in advance.

Stacy — July 19, 2019 @ 9:19 am Reply

We are excited to try these brownies. In your Friday Things email you mention freezing them. How do you package them for freezing? Thanks

Rosy Rairie — July 19, 2019 @ 6:13 am Reply

This brownie sounds delicious. I would prefer to have the halved recipe you mention but the link does not work.

Mikie — April 10, 2019 @ 12:00 am Reply

I am unable to go to the website for the halved recipe. Can you send another link.
Thanks so much, love your site!
Michele

Carol — October 8, 2018 @ 2:56 pm Reply

How should I adjust recipe if I want to omit the nuts?

nicole — August 13, 2018 @ 8:40 pm Reply

How could I incorporate chocolate stout to the outrageous brownie recipe? Any ideas?

Cinzia — November 29, 2017 @ 12:59 pm Reply

I make these all the time. However I only use half the amount of butter and add a 1/4 cup cream cheese. I also do not add the additional chocolate chips. Hasn’t changed the consistency at all. You can actually take a bite without leftover butter grease around your mouth or hands.

Margaret — October 25, 2017 @ 10:51 pm Reply

These are, without a doubt, the best brownies I have ever made/tasted. I loved the dimension that the two chocolates created, and the walnuts gave them such a nice chewiness. My family was obsessed. This is definitely my go-to brownie recipe now.
Thank you soooooo muc

Nancy Addington — August 17, 2017 @ 12:00 pm Reply

Ina’s recipe calls for 3 tablespoons of granulated instant coffee. Not indicating this makes a significant difference in taste

Lynda — May 23, 2017 @ 3:44 pm Reply

I used a 12 x 16-1/2 x 3/4″ pan, 6 “large” eggs, eliminated nuts, added 1 tbsp “espresso” to melted chocolate instead of using instant coffee. Baked 20 minutes, rapped pan 5 times (to be sure), baked only 10 minutes more. Thank God, a good, moist and chocolately recipe from Ina. Thank you much.

Janice — April 23, 2017 @ 7:35 am Reply

A lot of reviews say one tablespoon of baking powder is too much it’s wrong should it be one teaspoon

Vanessa Leona — March 7, 2017 @ 8:56 am Reply

Can I use self-raising flour instead of all-purpose flour and baking powder???

London Baker — February 21, 2017 @ 6:08 am Reply

I’m dying to try this recipe… but does it exist in metric or imperial measurements? I’m in London and have no idea how big one of the “cups” might be! :O

Sandra Minnich — December 11, 2016 @ 10:48 pm Reply

Please email Ina Garten’s brownie recipe to me. I love good and easyrecipes for cookies and bars.

Patricia — October 26, 2016 @ 5:33 pm Reply

By mistake I melted all the chocolate chips…. 1 pound Plus 12 Ozs. Plus 4 ozs.of unsweetened squares plus 1 pound butter. Have I ruined the recipe? I am letting the chocolate cool. Hope you can up help me!

Matthew — July 22, 2016 @ 7:18 pm Reply

How do I make this recipe more “cake like”? Do I add more flour and less chocolate and butter? I don’t know. You tell me.

Michelle — May 21, 2016 @ 6:31 pm Reply

These just came out of my oven, and I’m having a really big challenge in allowing them to cool before sampling “just 1″ ;) I do have a question: the recipe says 1 tablespoon of baking powder, and one of the first few comments questioned that amount, to which you replied 1.5 teaspoons . . . I’m not sure which amount should be used, but I decided to go with the lesser amount (since you don’t have a helpline to call ;) ). Judging by the way these look once baked, I think the 1.5 teaspoons is sufficient, but I don’t know since I haven’t cut into them. Also, I baked mine in a 9x13x1” pan, which I lined with parchment paper. I think that’s a good sized pan for this recipe as written, but I would highly recommend using parchment to line the pan as it seemed to keep what would have been a slight spill-over of batter in the pan. So . . . which is the correct amount of baking powder to use, and what about pan size? Thanks, Michelle!

Barbara Dicker — February 17, 2016 @ 4:07 pm Reply

You forgot the coffee powder!

Amanda — February 10, 2016 @ 7:50 pm Reply

I have a pan with the interior dimensions of 19.5 x 13.63 x 1 inches. Do you think that will work? If so, should I use the same cook time? Thanks!

basketpam — February 8, 2016 @ 8:40 pm Reply

As any consistent viewer of the Barefoot Contessa Cooking show knows THIS is the brownie recipe Ina used to “court” Jeffrey when he was away in college and the military. Now any GOOD woman knows there are two ways to a man’s heart and although the one way works well in the short term, THIS (meaning incredible food) is the way to capture the attention of any GOOD man and keep it for life. And trust me, You NEVER want a man who doesn’t appreciate GOOD cooking. For those single ladies out there, it may be an old fashioned idea but baking and cooking for a man STILL works wonders if you want to capture his attention and KEEP it. Men like women who are good at the “other” route you can take to capture his attention and keep him entertained. He can have a LOT of fun with a person like that. But despite what many might tell you, ESPECIALLY the big, tough, tattooed, redneck, guys (they can be the biggest softies at times), when it comes time to choose the one they will MARRY it will be the one who can cook, bake and the one they can be proud to take home to Mama. Don’t let the men fool you, many times they’re far more old-fashioned about these things than most women. And the mother’s, they’re the worst of all. Even here in the 21st you STILL have to prove yourself to a guy’s mother if she’s going to reluctantly and even a little graciously give up “her little boy” to you. If you feed him THESE brownies he’s going to go to bat for YOU to convince “Mom”. you’re incredible You may laugh at this but you would be surprised at how true so much of these old-fashioned ideas and values still are and still exist. I’ve learned in my 50+ years people do a lot of talking big and have a lot of modern excuses and crazy ideas, but when it comes right down to it most still want all of those old-fashion things to happen that they heard their grandmothers and mothers talk about all of their lives. All I can tell you is that if these brownies were good enough for Jeffrey Garten, they’re good enough for YOUR man.

Donna Smythe — February 6, 2016 @ 11:42 am Reply

My mouth is drooling looking at these, but would cut recipe in half, 3 c. walnuts, added on to the amounts of butter and chocolate, would make a smaller batch so I could still indulge.

Hannah — January 20, 2016 @ 10:55 pm Reply

Hi Michelle! Do the brownies turn out well if omitting the walnuts? I am not a fan and my dad is allergic, so I normally leave any nuts out of my baking.

Abby — January 8, 2016 @ 10:03 am Reply

Do you have the halved recipe up still? I can’t find it anymore.

These are definitely a brownie to remember!

Kathi — November 5, 2015 @ 9:12 pm Reply

I agree. I’ve made these a number of times. They are incredibly delicious, and the chill time is a must.

Deepa — November 5, 2015 @ 5:37 pm Reply

Halving Ina’s recipes always brings out my inner geek…trying to substitute large eggs for extra large is trying enough…but to substitute an odd number of extra large eggs sounds impossible…Michelle how many large eggs did u use when you halved this recipe?

Dawn Canfield — November 5, 2015 @ 3:40 pm Reply

These have been my go to Brownies for several years now. They are always a huge hit. I usually halve the recipe, and I don’t add the coffee that her original recipe called for. I agree- these are best when chilled

Erin — November 5, 2015 @ 11:27 am Reply

I’ve made these before, but it’s been several years. I do remember that they were really good, but then I got on a Baked Brownie kick and have been using that recipe ever since. I’ve been meaning to bake them side by side and compare. I know you are a Baked Brownie fan as well, so which one do you like best?

Lynn — November 5, 2015 @ 11:18 am Reply

OMG! The first heart attack comes when you read the recipe, the second heart attack comes after you eat these!!! I am all for occasional indulgences but (IMHO) this recipe is a bit ridiculous!!!

These sounds like the ultimate brownies! They seem like a chocolate overload! Would it be terrible if I made this and used less chocolate?

Michelle — November 5, 2015 @ 9:38 am Reply

These look like pure decadence! Ina is my cooking/baking hero. Love watching her, learning from her, and making her recipes. When you’re in breakfast mode, try her overnight yeasted Belgian waffles. They are SO good. Love that they are to mixed up the night before and sit on the counter overnight and in the morning they’re ready to go to the waffle iron. I don’t have a Belgian waffler, so just use my normal waffle iron. I need to make cookies today for a function this weekend – wonder if brownies just might “have” to be substituted ;)

H — November 5, 2015 @ 8:51 am Reply

When you make a half recipe, what size of pan do you use?
Thanks.

Kelly — November 5, 2015 @ 6:20 am Reply

In the post you mention that there is a pound of chocolate. I just looked at the recipe and it seems that there is over 2 pounds. Wow! They would have to be good:)

Sally — November 5, 2015 @ 3:15 am Reply

Love Ina, but have never made these brownies. If I were to make them I’d omit the chocolate chips. I am not a huge chocolate fan. I’m aware that this i snot normal. :-)

Samina @ The Cupcake Confession — November 5, 2015 @ 2:12 am Reply

These brownies are outrageous in the most decadent way possible! I love the number of eggs, butter and chocolate used! I can only imagine how deliciously fudgy these will be! Yum!

Thank you for reposting this, new photos, and for making me yearn for the day when I ‘need’ a half sheet pan of brownies to happen!

Looks delicious I love brownies!

xoxoBella | http://xoxobella.com

Michele — December 11, 2014 @ 12:06 pm Reply

Made these last night. Baked them for 27 minutes. Cooled on counter and then in trudge. Tried to cut too early and the first one crumbled. Left in ftidge for a couple of hours. Then cut easily. Will definitely make again. Thinking about adding caramel bits and chopped pecans for a turtle brownie.

Sally Dwyer — September 4, 2014 @ 7:19 pm Reply

I make these wonderful brownies all the time with the original recipe and in the large pan. Never seem to have any leftovers. I do frost them tho, with a White Russian buttercream and just because we can, mini chocolate chips (for color!) on top. Great for cutting and bagging for giveaways…add a ribbon and make it pretty. My favorite part is the crispy edge…
Sally D

gil — July 20, 2014 @ 4:14 am Reply

I baked these but they came out crumbley

dianne — July 3, 2014 @ 1:57 pm Reply

These are hands down the best brownies I’ve ever made. I make them for every occasion and am often asked for the recipe. Cool in the fridge before cutting – critical, otherwise you get nothing but big crumbs. For variety, instead of nuts I’ve added peanut butter cups, white chocolate chunks, mint chips… just be sure to account for the space these things take up, or your oven will need a major cleaning from the overflow. :)

Stella — June 5, 2014 @ 4:49 am Reply

DO NOT leave out the coffee! You don’t actually taste it , it just bring out the chocolate flavour and takes these brownies to another level!! (I’ve made them with and without coffee – I don’t like coffee, but will never make it without again)

nancy — April 8, 2014 @ 9:34 pm Reply

sounds great! just wondering if i can use 3c of cocoa powder instead of 3c of sweetened chocolates. thanks

jeremy — April 4, 2014 @ 12:54 am Reply

This is a great recipe. Real thick

kayleeguy — March 3, 2014 @ 12:07 am Reply

Did you see Ina’s carmelized brownies show? Salt and chocolate! she talks about the different salts she uses.. know I recently discovered the wonders of salt and chocolate; its like using the coffee granules.. (I see someone already mentioned this) ;-)
BTW; how do I get unsweetend cocoa? is it the powdered kind and do I measure out the oz’s called for in the recipe? Ina uses the bars of unsweetened chocolate and I don’t have that handy..is powdered ok? and do I measure it the same? Thanks!
Oh wait; it says to substitute 3T powdered cocoa + 1T oil to = 1oz baking chocolate; so I guess 9T powdered cocoa + 3 T oil might work…I’ll try it and see

Rosene S — February 28, 2014 @ 3:20 pm Reply

I made this for work and it was gone less than an hour.. I am so glad I saved me a piece

Mandi — February 19, 2014 @ 6:19 pm Reply

I hope this isn’t a dumb question but ….can I substitute the unsweetened chocolate for unsweetened cocoa powder?

Rebecca — February 7, 2014 @ 12:26 pm Reply

What do you think of sprinkling sea salt on top when they come out of the oven?

terri — August 21, 2013 @ 1:16 am Reply

Make sure and at least try it the first time with the instant coffee granules. Chefs will tell you that coffee heightens the flavor of chocolate, and they usually sneak it in any chocolate dessert they make. You can’t taste the coffee at all, and with a dessert this size any caffeine would be minimal.

Karen — April 26, 2013 @ 7:13 pm Reply

I MADE IT!! I followed the exact recipe and it was so much easier than I thought it would be. I ate these brownies at a restaurant and really wanted to find and try it. I have never been very successful with any recipe of brownies and sometimes Ina’s recipes are a little challenging, but this was great! Thanks.

Tasha — April 23, 2013 @ 8:06 pm Reply

I have tried sooo many brownie recipes (over 20) and have never had one turn out like the way a picture looks. I followed this recipe to the T and did not find it to be “the” brownie recipe Ive been searching for. They were definitely edible, but were a little crumbly and not really fudgy and thick the way the picture looks. The top of mine did not look cracked either…it was more flat. I baked for 25 minutes at 350 in a glass pan and think that might’ve been too long. I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong with brownies. I hate to admit it but a boxed brownie mix is still the best brownie..I refuse to give up the search for the foolproof brownie recipe.

Bronwyn — April 5, 2013 @ 7:03 am Reply

How long will these brownies keep for?

Mindy — March 14, 2013 @ 3:12 pm Reply

I have been looking for a dense, fudgy brownie recipe to replicate an obsession of mine from a great local bakery. I thought this might be it (judging by picture alone) until I saw there was baking powder in the recipe. Do you think omitting the baking powder or lessening the amount used would effect the outcome in any way? The brownie I am trying to replicate has ZERO cake quality, tastes and feels like a piece of fudge in your mouth and absolutely melts away on your tongue. Thoughts?

Karen — February 24, 2013 @ 1:56 pm Reply

Just found you on bloglovin’ and LOVE that you did this side-by-side comparison! I just made the Ina brownies so my husband can bring to a dept. meeting at work, and he said they were the best brownie he has ever rated; ever! thanks for the great recipe!’

JoBeth Turner — February 20, 2013 @ 9:45 pm Reply

I looooooove this recipe! I am definitely going to make these soon. I love Ina so that is another reason why I enjoyed this so much:)

Anna — February 19, 2013 @ 2:59 pm Reply

If you want to take the outrageousness one step further, after you remove the brownies from the oven and while still warm, drizzle the top of the brownies with a good caramel sauce that has been warmed slightly. Then sprinkle with large granule or flaked kosher salt. Truly decadent! This version is also from Ina Garten in her most recent cookbook.

Shannon Treadway — December 18, 2011 @ 4:34 pm Reply

Great website! Question: Could you tell me what this means in the recipe” Halfway through the baking, rap the pan against the oven shelf to allow air to escape from between the pan and the brownie dough”

Carole — November 9, 2011 @ 3:48 pm Reply

Did you bake these brownies in covection, convection bake or regular bake and if not in regular bake how did you adjust your time and temperature? Ina says her half sheet pans are 2″ high but all of mine are only around 1 and 1/4″ high. Think i will definitely use a metal pan and make 1/2 batch. Can’t wait.

Thanks,

A true chocoholic

Kat — October 10, 2011 @ 6:43 am Reply

Michelle, I have made these brownies for events and many people ask me to bake them. I am not a big walnut fan but really like them in these brownies! I think one of the things that makes these brownies “outrageous” is the addition of the coffee granules. It intensifies the chocolate flavor for me. They freeze great as well. Fantastic flavor!!!!

Great looking brownies… Thank you all for the baking tips. I’m gonna make this for my friend’s birthday next week.

Sarah — January 27, 2011 @ 10:42 pm Reply

Do you think it’d be ok to use all semisweet chocolate (no unsweetened) and reduce the sugar by 2 tablespoons? Or should I just keep the sugar?

Devin B — September 15, 2010 @ 4:57 pm Reply

I have these baking right now and my house smell heavenly!

Steph @ http://mississippibornandfed.blogspot.com — August 7, 2010 @ 12:12 am Reply

I tried the original recipe of Ina’s a few years ago and they are outrageous and decadent!! Bu far my favorite brownie ever!

Liza — June 3, 2010 @ 2:28 pm Reply

I have Ina’s “Barefoot Contessa” cookbook with this recipe and have tried it several times. This is one of the most decadent brownies I have ever tasted! One word of caution (if you are using the original recipe)… It suggests baking them in a 12x18x1 pan. I found that the amount of batter in the recipe is too much for this size pan — unfortunately I didn’t figure this out until it bubbled over the sides of the pan and burned to the bottom of my oven. It ruined that batch as the smoke in the oven spoiled the flavor of the brownies (and wasted a lot of expensive ingredients to boot). Now I just reserve a bit of the batter and bake it in a separate pan — they will rise quite a bit even with rapping the pan on rack halfway through baking (as the recipe suggests). Super delish!

chiew — February 2, 2010 @ 7:39 am Reply

I made these! and OH MY GOODNESS they were good. I kept them in a fridge and nibbled on them all week. Everyone loved them.

One thing: It was really really chocolately – I was just wondering if the amount of chocolate could be reduced without compromising on taste..

Substituted the semi-sweet and unsweet chocolate with some Hershey’s Mint Chips. SMELL HEAVENLY!

Gessica — November 5, 2009 @ 8:27 pm Reply

These look wonderful!! I was wondering..is it really 4 teaspoons of baking powder? It sounded like alot…so I wanted to make sure. Thanks so much!

I’ve been looking for a good chewy brownie recipe and everywhere i look i see this recipe. I love your site so I shall follow in your footsteps and try this yummy recipe! thanks for the post!
Jenn Chambers (www.bakingchamber.blogspot.com)

bev — October 15, 2007 @ 8:28 am Reply

wow, they look amazing!!! oooooh I just love chocolate! x

Oh my, these look and sound amazing!!! I would gladly sample one if you have some left. ;)

carrieskitchencreations — October 10, 2007 @ 2:56 pm Reply

These look and sound heavenly! I love the deep dish recipe but just looking at these is making me question that love! Yum!

Deborah — October 9, 2007 @ 8:48 pm Reply

I haven’t tried this recipe, but it sounds amazing!! I would have a hard time waiting until they cooled as well!