# Help me tweak this brownie recipe. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 10, 2012, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-tweak-this-brownie-recipe/615412 "2012-03-10T22:13:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Batsinma\_Belfry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ea5d25/32.png) [@Batsinma\_Belfry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Batsinma_Belfry)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-tweak-this-brownie-recipe/615412/21 "2012-03-26T02:47:49Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > Reporting back. > > In the interests of science I made the OP’s recipe using only confectioner’s sugar. Needed [1.8 cups](http://www.traditionaloven.com/conversions_of_measures/sugar_amounts.html) cups of the stuff to make the weight (I erroneously thought it would be denser, not the other way round). > > Mixing it with the melted butter was a problem as it absorbed it all and went very dry immediately. However on addition of the vanilla and eggs it went to the right consistency and the flour mixed in in fine. > > I have a very spartan kitchen and only a small toaster oven with no temperature control, but the results were spectactularly good. Best from-scratch brownies I have ever made in my life. > > So there you go - you can definitely make your recipe with no crunchy crystals if you substitute the sugar. I’ll have to try that. ---
**Author:** ![StrangeBird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e480ec/32.png) [@StrangeBird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StrangeBird)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-tweak-this-brownie-recipe/615412/22 "2012-03-26T06:38:01Z")
Glad to hear the confectioner’s sugar worked. Using caster sugar (which Wikipedia tells me Americans call ‘superfine’) would also probably work (I use it as a matter of course in baking) and possibly be more similar to regular sugar when mixing than icing sugar (confectioner’s sugar). ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-tweak-this-brownie-recipe/615412/23 "2012-03-26T07:24:43Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > [rant] What idiot did the metric conversion at [food.com](http://food.com)?! They clearly don’t know the first thing about cooking in metric regions. We use metric for dry _weights_. We don’t use volume. Why the hell would I measure 118.29 ml of butter?!?! Looks like the problem was left in the hands of a junior developer rather than an actual cook. [/rant] I agree it’s idiotic, but it’s probably because the butter is specified as melted in the list (as if you’d melt all the butter in your house first, then measure it as a liquid :smack: ) ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-tweak-this-brownie-recipe/615412/24 "2012-03-26T07:27:17Z")
To the OP though… I would whip the sugar into the butter with an electric beater - keep going for 5 minutes if necessary, then add the cocoa and proceed with the rest of the recipe. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-tweak-this-brownie-recipe/615412/25 "2012-03-26T07:39:05Z")
I think it would help to change the order that the ingredients are combined. Try mixing together all the wet ingredients (eggs, melted butter and vanilla), then adding the sugar and mixing until the sugar is dissolved. Then you can add the cocoa, followed by the salt and flour. It would probably also help for the eggs to be warm, rather than refrigerator temperature. You can heat the eggs in a bowl of warm water. Powdered sugar contains some cornstarch. This might have an effect on the texture of the brownies. The suggestion to use caster sugar is a good one. ---
**Author:** ![Batsinma\_Belfry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ea5d25/32.png) [@Batsinma\_Belfry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Batsinma_Belfry)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-tweak-this-brownie-recipe/615412/26 "2012-03-26T16:54:49Z")
I’ve never heard of caster sugar. It may be that I wasn’t looking for it. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-tweak-this-brownie-recipe/615412/27 "2012-03-26T22:00:39Z")
For a little treat, make brownies as usual. Pour half into the pan. Then line the pan with Symphony bars, the kind with toffee. Pour the rest of the brownie mix in the pan. Bake like normal. Mmm, chocolate-toffee goodness. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-tweak-this-brownie-recipe/615412/28 "2012-03-26T23:09:48Z")
> [@Batsinma\_Belfry](#): > > I’ve never heard of caster sugar. It may be that I wasn’t looking for it. It can be hard to find in different regions. It’s labeled “superfine”. It also costs more than regular granulated sugar. What I do instead is when I buy a bag of sugar, before I use it, I put it in batches in the food processor and grind it until it’s finer than regular granulated sugar but coarser than powdered. It’s better all-around that way. It dissolves quickly in cold beverages like iced tea, and bakes better than regular granulated sugar in baked goods. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-tweak-this-brownie-recipe/615412/29 "2012-03-26T23:11:25Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > To the OP though… I would whip the sugar into the butter with an electric beater - keep going for 5 minutes if necessary, then add the cocoa and proceed with the rest of the recipe. This is how you make cakes that you want to be airier, but for brownies, you usually melt the butter. ---
**Author:** ![belladonna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9fc29f/32.png) [@belladonna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/belladonna)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-tweak-this-brownie-recipe/615412/30 "2012-03-26T23:15:34Z")
> [@Batsinma\_Belfry](#): > > I’ve never heard of caster sugar. It may be that I wasn’t looking for it. They don’t carry it in the supermarkets in my area. I have to go to a cake supply store to find it. Might be the same where you’re at, although if you have a decent food processor then **needscoffee** ’s suggestion is a good one. ---
**Author:** ![Albert\_Rose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9de053/32.png) [@Albert\_Rose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Albert_Rose)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-tweak-this-brownie-recipe/615412/31 "2012-03-27T01:40:02Z")
I’m a professional vegan baker at a health food store. I like the caster/powdered sugar suggestion. I’m going to try that one myself (not at work). My own method is to replace some of the sugar with an equal **weight** (not volume) of brown rice syrup, but Karo corn syrup will do the job just as well. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-tweak-this-brownie-recipe/615412/32 "2012-03-27T01:48:47Z")
**Albert Rose** , out of interest, if you can’t use eggs at work, what protein do you substitute for binding the things that you bake? ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-tweak-this-brownie-recipe/615412/33 "2012-03-27T06:37:43Z")
The C & H brand of caster sugar is labeled as “Baker’s Sugar.” [Here is a like to it on the C & H web site.](http://www.chsugar.com/Consumer/bakers_sugar.html) It’s common around here, but maybe not where you live. ---
**Author:** ![Albert\_Rose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9de053/32.png) [@Albert\_Rose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Albert_Rose)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2012, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-tweak-this-brownie-recipe/615412/34 "2012-03-29T04:57:16Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > **Albert Rose** , out of interest, if you can’t use eggs at work, what protein do you substitute for binding the things that you bake? I use [Ener-G Egg replacer](http://www.ener-g.com/egg-replacer.html). I am not well-versed in the chemistry involved and I don’t know which of my **secret ingredients** \* do the emulsifying. \*which are listed right on our store’s price label. Included are brown rice syrup, canola oil, flour and vegan chocolate. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-tweak-this-brownie-recipe/615412.md?page=1)