One of my grandma’s most-used cookbooks is a 1980 edition of Favorite Recipes, published by First Broad Street United Methodist Church in Kingsport, Tennessee. Most of the recipes were submitted by women in the congregation, save for a select few relegated to a (relatively small) section entitled “Men’s Recipes.” As a whole, it contains an impressively wide variety of recipes under sections that range from “Appetizers” and “Main Dishes & Meats” to more specific “Pickles & Preserves” and “Cakes & Frostings.”
Despite a somewhat confusing index system, I enjoy flipping through the cookbook for recipe inspiration and a window into Depression-era recipes that my grandmother’s community embraced—and shared—at a particular point in time. Recently, one particular recipe jumped out: Saucepan Brownies, submitted by someone named Phyllis Long. The recipe was in the “Cookies” section, but it caught my eye for a specific reason: it’s a from-scratch recipe that only requires one bowl (or, technically, a pot) and heating on the stovetop.
The One-Bowl Stovetop Brownie Method
There’s absolutely nothing wrong with a good boxed brownie mix, but for my foremothers, there was a time when this was not readily available. Nowadays, from-scratch brownies often elicit an air of wonderment—something about going through so many steps for an ooey-gooey brownie that could be just as well-achieved with a good box of Ghirardelli doesn’t feel worth the time or effort. But before boxed mix made things easy, there was a relatively simple and economical method to ensure a perfectly fudgy brownie every time. The trick? Prepare the batter in one bowl—first by melting butter, chocolate, and sugar over the stovetop—before adding the dry ingredients and eggs, then pour the batter into a prepared baking dish.
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The Fudgiest Brownies
The method isn’t just great for easy cleanup and simplicity—it also serves a purpose. Careful application of heat (which is why it’s done over the stove in a pot), helps create a fudgy brownie for a few reasons:
- Fudgy brownies need a high fat-to-flour content, which can be tricky to properly emulsify without overmixing the batter (which creates a tough brownie). By melting chocolate, sugar, and butter over gentle heat, the fat, sugar, and chocolate emulsify properly to create a sturdy yet tender fudgy base for the brownies to thrive in the oven. Dry ingredients (and eventually eggs) are more evenly distributed into the base mixture with less effort, for softer yet fudgier result.
- By par-heating the mixture on the stovetop and immediately transferring it to the oven, the brownies require less time to bake overall. This makes for a fudgier, richer brownie because the longer brownies are in the oven, the more moisture they lose (running the risk of a dry, crackly, hard, and decidedly un-fudgy, brownie.
Boxed brownie mixes are carefully formulated to account for these considerations, which is why the boxed stuff works so well. But if you find yourself without a trusty package of Duncan Hines, Betty Crocker, or Ghirardelli on your side or are curious about how it used to be done, give this method a try!
How To Make One-Pot Brownies
While Phyllis Long’s recipe in my grandma’s church cookbook calls for baker’s chocolate instead of cocoa and margarine instead of butter, our recipe for Best Brownies captures the same method and nearly the same ingredients. For both, the principle is the same: heat butter to melt it, whisk in eggs and sugar, then proceed with beating in dry ingredients before baking, warm, in the oven. Here are the steps:
- Melt butter over the stove and start adding ingredients. Melt butter in a large saucepan over low, gentle heat. Remove from the heat and add sugar, eggs, and vanilla, whisking to combine.
- Incorporate dry ingredients. Beat or whisk in cocoa, flour, salt, and baking powder until just combined and smooth. Be careful not to over beat!
- Bake the brownies. Pour mixture into a greased 8×8-inch baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees F until brownies in start to pull away from sides of the pan, about 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool; frost with chocolate frosting if desired. Let cool completely before cutting and serving.
Get the recipe: Best Brownies
