Fudgy Espresso Chocolate Brownies

Why You Will Love This Recipe

I know you will adore this recipe because:

1. Easy to make! Just a few ingredients and about an hour of your time and you can have these cooling on your kitchen counter. The only drawback is you need to have patience to allow them to cool completely before cutting into them. 
2. So delicious! These brownies are rich and fudgy - perfect to combine with a cup of coffee or glass of milk!
3. Coffee lovers brownies! The espresso powder helps amplify the chocolate flavor, but you still can taste that bold flavor of espresso. 

If you want to try some of my other best brownies on the blog, I recommend trying my Mexican Hot Chocolate Brownies or my Birthday Cake Brownies!

Ingredients

Please read through the ingredients list so you can familiarize yourself with each ingredient, along with suggestions or recommendations during the preparation or baking process. Please see the Recipe Card for all details.

Chocolate Morsels. I use semi-sweet chocolate morsels in this recipe so supply a bit of sweetness to balance out the espresso. You can use your preferred chocolate flavor as a substitute, just make sure it is 1:1. 

Black Cocoa Powder. Helps give the brownies a deep, dark color but also helps intensify the chocolate flavor. You can substitute with natural cocoa powder 1:1.

Espresso Powder. This ingredient is key because it helps boost the chocolate flavor, but also helps provide the bold espresso flavor. A little goes a long way, so I recommend sticking to the recommended quantity. You can also substitute with instant espresso powder.

Butter. I use unsalted butter, but you can opt to use salted butter. Just omit the added fine sea salt. I also recommend melting over the stove to ensure it is melted and very hot when adding to the chocolate. 

Vanilla Extract. We will use a whole tablespoon of vanilla in this recipe. If you want a stronger coffee flavor, you can substitute it with coffee extract. 

Flaky Sea Salt. Optional but highly recommended! Flaky sea salt will help balance out that rich chocolate flavor with just a touch of saltiness. 

Pre-Bake Tips

Use Kitchen Scale. The greatest advantage you can give yourself when baking is using a kitchen scale. It helps more accurately measure ingredients by weight vs. volume.

Room Temperature Ingredients. Make sure your eggs are at room temperature before you begin. You can speed up the process by placing it in warm water for a few minutes.

Sift Your Dry Ingredients. Cocoa powder is notorious for clumping together which makes it hard to fold into the wet ingredients. Sift the dry ingredients together to help ensure your ingredients fold into each other well. 

Prepare 8x8 Baking Pan. I like to line mine with parchment paper so I can easily lift it out of the baking pan once it has completely cooled. Simply take a piece of parchment that is no more than 12” in length, fold it lengthwise, and then cut along the folded seam. Spray the baking pan with baking spray, and lay each piece across each other. You can use metal clips to secure in place.

Variations

Use natural cocoa powder. You can substitute the black cocoa powder with natural cocoa powder (Hershey’s for example). Your brownies will not come out as dark or with an intense chocolate flavor, but they will still be good! 

Add nuts! You can chop walnuts and add to the batter if you’d like for that added texture and crunch. 

How To Make Fudgy Espresso Chocolate Brownies

This Fudgy Espresso Chocolate Brownies recipe uses baking tools and ingredients that can be found in most homes. Please see the recipe card for the full list of equipment and ingredients.

Step 1: Sift flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder, and fine sea salt. Set aside.

Step 2: Melt butter on a stovetop. Place chocolate morsels in heat heat-safe bowl, and pour in hot butter. Let sit for about 2 minutes and move to the next step.

Hot Tip! Sifting dry ingredients, especially cocoa powder, is critical because it helps break up the cocoa powder clumps. Without sifting, you may find clumps of cocoa powder in the batter after baking.

Step 3: Add eggs, sugar, and vanilla to separate bowl.

Step 4: Whisk on medium high for at least 2 minutes.

Step 5: Back to the butter and chocolate bowl, use a whisk to mix until the mixture is shiny and smooth.

Step 6: Slowly pour the chocolate mixture into the egg-sugar mixture and whisk on low as it is poured in.

Step 7: Batter will appear smooth and shiny once well mixed.

Step 8: Add dry ingredients, and use a rubber spatula to fold in until no dry streaks remain.

Hot Tip! Folding uses a scooping method to help combine ingredients without releasing too many air bubbles. Use a rubber spatula to cut through to the bottom and then lift from the bottom to fold over. Continue until the dry ingredients are mostly combined.

Step 9: Fold until just combined and you no longer see flour streaks.

Step 10: Pour into an 8x8 baking pan. Use a rubber spatula or offset spatula to spread evenly.

Step 11: Bake for 22-24 minutes. Remove from oven and place on cooling rack. Allow to cool for a few hours before cutting.

Hot Tip! Allow brownies to cool completely before cutting. If you cut too early then you risk the brownie batter to loosely run (similar to chocolate lava).

FAQ's

Storage

You can store this in an airtight container or ziplock bag for up to 3 days at room temperature. Or place in refrigerator for up to one week. 

If freezing, place in freezer freezer-safe airtight container or ziplock bag, and freeze for up to 3 months. Remove from freezer and place at room temperature for a few hours before enjoying. 

More Recipes To Try

Easy White Chocolate and Raspberry Blondies

Favorite Vanilla Ameican Buttercream Frosting

Soft Strawberry Sugar Cookies