DIY Brownie Mix
If you’ve been following along on this site, you’ve probably realized by now that I’m not necessarily one to look for easy or simple recipes. While I don’t actively go out of my way for complex or technically difficult recipes, I’m willing to work on whatever techniques or methods are necessary to achieve the results that I want. That being said, if the results are delicious, fudgy, chewy and intensely chocolate brownies with little to no muss or fuss, I say “Yes, please!” That is exactly what you get with this easy DIY brownie mix recipe.
I used my Fudgy Cocoa Brownies recipe as the starting point for this DIY mix making a few tweaks to ensure a loose, stable, powdered mix and to reduce the number of additional ingredients that would be needed to complete the brownie batter from the mix. The mix itself comes together in just a few minutes. Literally dump all of the mix ingredients into a food processor and pulse until the mix is uniformly combined. As long as you store it properly (airtight container, cool, dry place – you know the drill) you can keep a batch or two of the mix on hand in your pantry so you are only ever a couple of refrigerator staples away from satisfying any emergency chocolate cravings. One batch of the mix is good for either two 8″x8″ pans or one 9″x13 inch pan of brownies. Aside from the mix, the only other ingredients required are butter and eggs. It couldn’t be any simpler – mix together the melted butter and eggs, add your DIY brownie mix, spread in a pan and bake! You’ll have your brownies in the oven in just about 10 minutes and you’ll have only dirtied a single bowl.
Now, I will admit that just throwing together the butter, eggs and brownie mix generally does not result in that paper thin, glossy top crust that we all associate with the best brownies. That’s because quickly bringing the batter together doesn’t give the sugar enough time to fully dissolve. But even without that crust, the brownies will be chocolatey, fudgy and delicious. If you just can’t fathom having a brownie without that classic top crust (guilty!), there are things you can do to ensure that you achieve that picture perfect result, which I have thoroughly documented for you in the notes section of the preparation instructions recipe card.
If you don’t want to invest the extra time and effort needed to reliably achieve the glossy crust on the brownies – which I totally get, the whole idea here is to have your brownie fix as quickly as possible – but you don’t want anyone to know that you didn’t take the time (assuming you plan to share your emergency chocolate fix with someone else 🙂), well, just hide the top! Spread some ganache or frosting over the top of the cooled brownies and no one will ever know what the top looked like when it came out of the oven. I often have leftover ganache or frosting in my fridge from other projects, or I know the fudge frosting from my Snickers Brownies recipe comes together in just a few minutes (and happens to be one of my favorite toppings for brownies), or there are numerous store bought frosting options that will do in a pinch if that is something you like to keep in your pantry.
You can also share the gift of an easy chocolate fix with your friends and family. Package the brownie mix (and any optional mix-ins) in either a pint size (8″x8″ pan) or quart size (9″x13″ pan) mason jar. Decorate the lid with pretty/festive/seasonal fabric and ribbons. Create a fun recipe card with the preparation instructions to either attach to the ribbon or glue to the side of the jar (or download one of mine below). Who wouldn’t love to receive the gift of chocolate? I know I would and I hope you would too!
DIY Brownie Mix
Equipment
- food processor
- mason jar(s) optional – for storing or gifting the mix
- As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.kitchen scale or measuring cups and measuring spoons
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cup fine sugar
- 1 cup flour
- 1 cup cocoa powder
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 2 tsp vanilla powder
- 1 tsp espresso powder
- 1 tsp salt
- chocolate chips optional
Instructions
- Place sugar, flour, cocoa powder, cornstarch, vanilla powder, espresso powder and salt in a food processor.2 1/4 cup fine sugar, 1 cup flour, 1 cup cocoa powder, 2 tsp vanilla powder, 1 tsp espresso powder, 1 tsp salt, 2 tbsp cornstarch
- Pulse the mixture until it is completely combined and uniform in color. If there are stubborn pockets of unmixed ingredients, use a spatula to loosen and redistribute them before pulsing again.
- Store the mix in an airtight container until ready to use. Mason jars make an excellent vessel, and a lovely gift. A one pint jar perfectly fits the mix for an 8×8 pan preparation. If the mix is left loose it will fill the jar nearly to the top. If you pack it down you can fill the space between the dry mix and the rim of the jar with about 1/2 cup chocolate chips for a chocolate chip brownie mix. Whenever the craving strikes, bake up a batch of brownies according to the
preparation instructions below. chocolate chips
Nutrition
DIY Brownie Mix – Preparation Instructions
Equipment
- mixing bowl
- brownie pan (8"x8" or 9"x13")
Ingredients
To prepare 8×8 pan brownies:
- 2 cups
DIY brownie mix - ½ cup butter melted
- 2 eggs
- 1 egg yolk
To prepare 9×13 pan brownies:
- 4 cups
DIY brownie mix - 1 cup butter melted
- 5 eggs
Instructions
To prepare 8×8 pan brownies:
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the melted butter, eggs and egg yolk until well combined.1/2 cup butter, 2 eggs, 1 egg yolk
- Add the brownie mix and stir until the mixture is smooth and no dry ingredients are visible. If your mix did not include chocolate chips (or other mix-ins) and you'd like to add them, fold them in just until they are evenly distributed.2 cups DIY brownie mix
- Let the batter rest while you line an 8"x8" metal brownie pan with non-stick foil or parchment paper and preheat your oven to 350°F.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake in the preheated oven for about 18-20 minutes. The edges should be set and slightly puffed, the top should be dry and glossy. For perfect, fudgy brownies, the middle should appear not quite set, avoid overbaking.
To prepare 9×13 pan brownies:
- In a medium to large bowl, whisk together the melted butter and eggs until well combined.1 cup butter, 5 eggs
- Add the brownie mix and stir until the mixture is smooth and no dry ingredients are visible. If your mix did not include chocolate chips (or other mix-ins) and you'd like to add them, fold them in just until they are evenly distributed.4 cups DIY brownie mix
- Let the batter rest while you line an 9"x13" metal baking pan with non-stick foil or parchment paper and preheat your oven to 350°F.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake in the preheated oven for about 30-34 minutes. The edges should be set and slightly puffed, the top should be dry and glossy. For perfect, fudgy brownies, the middle should appear not quite set, avoid overbaking.
Notes
- Make sure your eggs are not just room temperature, but actually warm. You can bring the eggs up to about 100°F in the shell without cooking the eggs. Simply place them in a container and cover them with about 110°-115°F water and keep them there until the temperature equalizes to 100°F.
- When you melt the butter, make sure it gets to about 110°F (if you are doing this in the microwave, be careful not to heat it too rapidly so it does not pop/explode all over the interior of your microwave)
- The relatively low water content in the liquid ingredients and the addition of cornstarch makes it a bit more difficult to develop gluten (that is a good thing in this case!) so you can stir the batter a bit longer (until it is smooth and glossy and a little bit syrupy in appearance) to encourage the sugar to dissolve.
- Because you are heating your liquid ingredients above the melting temperature of chocolate, I recommend not including any chocolate chips in the dry mix for this preparation method. Instead, add them after the batter is well mixed and while it is still warm enough to just start to melt the chocolate. That little bit of melted chocolate in the batter will help with forming the desired crust.
Nutrition
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