Do you have some 85% chocolate you’d like to use in a brownie recipe? Any chocolate between 80 and 90% will do! These 85% chocolate brownies are delicious!
If you’ve been following this blog from the beginning, you’ll know that it used to be called “The Perfect Brownie.” This week, I renamed it to avoid future trademark conflicts. I’m actually happy about the renaming, and I hope you like the new name, too. You can be sure that there will still be plenty of brownie recipes as I continue my search for the perfect brownie- not to mention other perfect recipes!
In most of my recipes for brownies, I’ve used cocoa powder or unsweetened chocolate, but today I used an 85% single origin Colombian chocolate bar. Why? There were a couple of reasons.
- I wanted to know how different percentages of chocolate behave in a brownie recipe.
- I had a bar of 85% chocolate in the pantry, and I don’t really eat 85% chocolate straight. I find it a bit too strong and bitter.
Before melting this chocolate and adding it to the batter, I had a quick taste. This particular bar was a bit more harsh than the average high-percentage dark chocolate, yet had a strongly creamy flavor as well. That didn’t make a lot of sense until I looked at the ingredient list, which included vanilla. A hefty dose of vanilla would definitely explain the taste of cream. It was almost as if a little extra vanilla had been included to try and smooth out the harsh flavor of the chocolate.
I was pleased to see that these brownies had the sought-after crinkly crust that shatters at the slightest touch. I’m beginning to think that this is a function of both the mixing method and the amount of superfine sugar (from chocolate bars, but also found in brownie mix) present in the batter. More experiments will be needed. But, hey, if I cracked the secret of chewy brownies, I can crack this secret, too!
In the mean time, I hope you enjoy these brownies. They’re a bit sticky, very chewy, and quite sweet. They remind me quite a lot of these Milk Chocolate Brownies, except with a darker chocolate flavor. You can use any chocolate between 80-90% for this recipe and it should turn out fine.
85% Chocolate Brownies Recipe
Ingredients
- 3.5 oz 85% chocolate broken or chopped in pieces (any percentage between 80% and 90% will work)
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/4 tsp vanilla
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 eggs
- 1/3 cup all purpose flour
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 350 and prepare an 8 inch square pan by lining it with parchment paper or foil.
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In a microwaveable bowl, microwave the chocolate on 50% power in 30 second bursts, stirring in between, until the chocolate is completely melted and smooth. Set aside to cool until warm but not hot to the touch.
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In a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter, sugar, vanilla, and salt until well combined. Whisk in the eggs one at a time.
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Stir in the melted and cooled chocolate. Add the flour and stir until just combined. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.
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Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out with moist crumbs but no wet batter. Place pan on a rack to cool for 15 minutes, then use the foil or parchment to lift out the brownies. Place them on the rack to cool completely.
BritishMumUSA
I so wish that my laptop screen were ~ Scratch ~ Sniff ~ Eat…. Oh those look so good. I love love love dark chocolate, and so therefore would have eaten that bar, it would not have made it into the Brownie Batter, although by the looks of things, if I were to make these that is where it would best be served!!!
I love your brownies!!!
Katie
Now THERE’S a blog title- “Scratch, Sniff, Eat!” LOL! I tried a taste of the 85% but it was too bitter for me. Wait til you catch my flourless brownies, though, they’re insanely chocolatey in a way that even I like. The most chocolate brownie ever. You’re gonna love it. 🙂
Thalia @ butter and brioche
I am seriously craving brownies right now – these look so incredibly chocolat-y, rich and delicious!
Katie
Indeed, these truly are the very dense, very fudgy variety of brownies. Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
Liz W
I had an extra 3.5 oz 85% dark chocolate bar I was almost going to throw away, and this was the perfect solution! The flavor is not bitter to me at all- just a yummy brownie indulgence, which is what I was hoping for! The only thing I would change next time is to avoid the foil. I like brownies a little chewy/undercooked, and the foil did not want to let go. Bad for dental fillings, I imagine! Anyway, now I feel like keeping 85% cacao chocolate around just for emergency brownies! Thank you.
Katie
Thanks for the feedback! I’m so glad it worked out for you. I vastly prefer parchment paper over foil, but many folks don’t keep parchment paper handy, so I always say that you can use either foil or parchment paper. It’s my way of making cleanup easier and for lifting the brownies out of the pan to stop them from continuing to cook after removing them from the oven. If you like a milder chocolate brownie, you may also like my Milk Chocolate Brownies, or even my incredible White Chocolate Brownies! 🙂
Sarah
What brand did you use? I usually buy Lindt but adore the super dark flavours
Katie
Hmm, let me think… it was a gift, and I think it was a bar from Trader Joe’s. I am a long time Lindt fan, too- used to buy their dark chocolate bars when I was a kid. They came in a beautiful white paper wrapper with embossed gold on it.
Melanie
Easy and delicious!
Jaya
I tried it with 90% bitter chocolate. It came out so good. When tasting, it starts on the sweeter note and leaves a little bitter taste on the end which was perfect. So gooey too.
Jaya
It was so tasty.
Karen
Can the recipe be doubled and cooked in a 9×13 pan or is that asking for trouble? They get gobbled up so fast I often don’t get any! We used 88% Chocolove and they came out great. Have you tried them with a sugar substitute like the 1:1 monk fruit/erithrotol blends?
Katie Moseman
Brownie recipes are easily doubled. You should have no trouble there. However, I’ve never tried a sugar substitute – if I were you, I might try reducing the sugar first, then going lower the next time if it worked out. Sugar plays a big role in the texture and flavor and if it’s all gone, they might taste weird. Let me know if you find a workable variation! 🙂
D W
I wanted to use up 86% dark chocolate. I used half 75% and half 86% to equal 3.5 oz. This produced an outstanding finished brownie. I added walnuts, baked 25 minutes at 350, 10 minutes at 325. Thank you so much for publishing. This recipe is a keeper.