I made some awesome Black Bean Chili the other day and what goes great with chili? Chocolate! In the spirit of not wanting to “accidentally” eat an entire pan of brownies, I decided to make two little single-serving fudge brownie pots instead. Sure, I could have made a Chocolate Mug Cake and killed the craving in about 60 seconds, but I wanted an extra rich, oven-baked brownie this time. You know, the kind that has your whole house smelling like chocolate heaven?
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These fudge brownie pots are kind of smack dab in the middle of being fudgy and cakey. It’s a little more cakey on the outer edges and a little more gooey and fudge-like in the center. The cakey part is not dry, but compresses into a nice rich fudge texture. Okay, wow, I’m going to need to stop talking about this before things get too serious over here…
Oh, and be prepared. This dessert has a lot of butter and a lot of sugar, as all good brownies do. It’s the nature of the beast, my friends.
Fudge Brownie Pots (for two)
Servings 2Ingredients
- 4 Tbsp butter ($0.40)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar ($0.08)
- 1/4 tsp vanilla ($0.07)
- 1 large egg ($0.19)
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour ($0.05)
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder ($0.21)
- 1/4 tsp baking powder ($0.02)
- 1/8 tsp salt ($0.02)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.Cut the butter into chunks and place it in a large microwave safe bowl. Microwave on high for 30 seconds, then stir until the butter is fully melted. Add the sugar and microwave for 15 seconds. Stir again, then repeat the 15 second intervals until the sugar and butter no longer separate from each other after being stirred (about 30-45 seconds total).
- Add the vanilla extract and egg to the melted butter and sugar, then stir to combine.
- In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt until well combined.
- Pour the bowl of dry ingredients into the bowl of wet ingredients and stir just until a smooth, chocolatey batter has formed. Pour the batter into two 8oz. ramekins.
- Bake the brownies in the preheated 350 degree oven for 25-30 minutes, or until the center of each brownie has risen up into a dome and the surface looks glossy and cracked. Let the brownies cool slightly before eating.
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Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Fudge Brownie Pots – Step by Step Photos
Start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees. Melt 4 Tbsp of butter in a microwave safe bowl. I usually microwave on high, then stir until the butter finishes melting. This and the next step can be done on the stove over low heat, if desired.
Add 1/2 cup sugar to the melted butter, microwave for 15 seconds, then stir again. Repeat the 15 second intervals until the sugar no longer separates out from the melted butter after stirring. This should only require 30-45 seconds total. (When you first add it, the sugar will look very granulated and the oil from the butter will seep out. After heating it a bit more, the sugar melts a bit and the two incorporate into a mostly smooth mixture. It may still looks every so slightly granular.)
Add 1/4 tsp vanilla extract and one large egg.
Stir those in until the mixture is smooth.
To a separate bowl, add 1/3 cup all-purpose flour, 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 1/4 tsp baking powder, and 1/8 tsp salt. Stir until they are very well combined and no clumps remain.
Pour the bowl of dry ingredients into the bowl of wet ingredients and stir until everything is combined and a smooth, chocolatey batter has formed.
Pour the batter into two 8oz. ramekins.
Bake the brownies for 25-30 minutes, or until the centers have risen up into a dome and the surface looks glossy and cracked. Mine could have gone for a minute or two longer because the center deflated a bit upon cooling, but I was okay with that because it just meant that the center was extra fudgey. Yessssss.
Let the fudge brownie pots cool for a minute so you don’t burn your tongue off, then DIG IN.
A little fudgey, a little cakey, a LOT of delicious.
soooo good! i used dark hershey’s cocoa powder! when done i lopped off the top, plopped some natural pb in the middle, re-topped and then snarfed it up with homemade whipped cream. the other one i’ll eat tonight!!!! sharing, indeed.
Thank you for the inspiration. I made Italian chocolate cakes in pots instead, they were overwhelmingly rich, despite that I cut the sugar. Will try this recipe next time.
Do you think using mini pie tins would work for this if I greased them? I have a couple of them lying around that would definitely be able to fit the batter, and I don’t have any ramekins. Also thanks for all of your awesome recipes, you’ve made a broke college student a much happier (and fuller) person! :)
Probably, yes! Just keep an eye on them while they bake. Pie tins are a bit thinner than ceramic ramekins, so they may bake a bit faster.
Love seeing the variations your readers have come up with so far. I feel like this would be extra fabulous with a swirl of raspberry jam inside. I really need to buy cocoa powder this paycheck and give them a try!
Delicious! Rave reviews from all the family. Next time I will cut the baking time by 2 minutes; I’m sure this will make it extra fudgey!
If Goldilocks were to make a brownie, this would be it. Not too little, not too much, not too gooey, not too cakey and perfectly quick and easy to make. :)
Do the ramekins need to be greased at all? Sprayed? Sticking not an issue?
I didn’t spray or grease them and it really didn’t stick too bad. I don’t think I could have taken the brownies out of the pots, but that’s okay because I ate it right in the dish with a spoon. :)
Agreed – since you are probably eating them right away, you can use the spoon to get every last crumb.
I just made these for the first time. I had everything at home, which is a bonus. They turned out perfect! Rich and chocolatey and delicious! Thank you!
I made this last night and it came out fabulously even though I messed up. I accidentally melted 6 tbsp butter and then had to add more sugar and flour as well. Had to make three ramekin brownies but they were delicious even so. Thanks so much!
I made these last night. I added 1/4 of espresso and they turned out really well! I had to bake them an extra 10 minutes, though.
Beth, you are a Godsend. Totally satisfied by chocolate craving. This recipe is definitely going in the rotation! (I admit, I make one of your recipes at least 2x a week.) :)
Looks delicious!!!
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not sure how i screwed this up. my wet portion with the butter didnt come out nearly as liquidy as yours so i added more butter. Still not sure how this didnt turn out properly. Baking might not be my forte.
Baking quantities are generally much more precise than cooking, so making corrections as you go (like adding more butter) is only a good idea if you’re a really accomplished baker.
It’s usually better to make a recipe exactly as described, and do some troubleshooting afterwards if it doesn’t work out well.
I have 3 kids who can devour a half sheet of brownies in no time. If I want to make a cake pan worth of brownies, can I double/triple recipe?
I’d say at least triple it, if not quadruple. I’m not sure about the baking time with a different sized dish, though, so you’ll have to play that part by ear.
This is basically the Hershey Fudgey Saucepan Brownie recipe from the 80s that I’ve been making forever; to make a 9×13 pan,
1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
3/4 c cocoa
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cup flour
1 cup mini chocolate chips (don’t skip these!!)
Bake in 9×13 pan at 350 about 30 minutes. Yes, they are totally amazing!!
Cakey on the outside and fudgy in the middle is my kind of chocolate dessert. I love to surprise my boyfriend with special desserts after a lot day, so this will be perfect.