2cups(12 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided (we like Ghirardelli brand)
½cup(1 stick) salted butter, cubed
3largeeggs
1 ¼cupsall-purpose flour
1cupgranulated sugar
1teaspoonvanilla extract
¼teaspoonbaking soda
¼teaspoonkosher salt
½cupchopped walnuts or extra chocolate chips(optional)
Powdered sugar,for dusting
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-inch square baking pan with cooking spray. Line with a parchment paper overhang for easy removal, if desired. Set aside. In a large saucepan, melt 1 cup of the chocolate chips and all of the butter over very low heat until smooth, stirring constantly. Remove the pan from the heat.
Add the eggs; whisk to combine. Add the flour, sugar, vanilla extract, baking soda, and kosher salt. Stir to combine. Fold in the remaining 1 cup of chocolate chips and the optional nuts.
Pour into the prepared pan.
Bake for approximately 27-33 minutes, or until the brownies are set but still soft in the middle. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out with just a few moist crumbs. If it looks like it’s too wet or just has batter on it, the brownies need to bake for a little bit longer. Cool completely before dusting with powdered sugar and slicing into squares.
Video
Notes
Be careful not to scorch the chocolate. Melt the chocolate chips and butter in a heavy saucepan or Dutch oven over very low heat. This only takes a minute or two, so don't walk away -- and stir constantly!
To get a shiny, flaky, light-colored crackly crust on the top of your brownies, beat the batter really well with your whisk after adding the eggs (but before adding the flour). This incorporates extra air bubbles in the batter, and when the brownies cool the air bubbles shrink — giving the tops that cracked texture that so many of us love.
Do Not Over-Bake. Be careful not to over-bake the bars or they will not have that soft, fudgy texture. When you remove them from the oven, the center will still be soft and may even look slightly underbaked. That’s fine! The brownies will firm up as they cool, and will be perfectly moist.