Ina Garten Brownie Pudding (Print View)

A rich chocolate dessert with a crackly top and molten center, perfect for chocolate lovers.

# What You’ll Need:

→ Chocolate Mixture

01 - 8 oz unsalted butter
02 - 6 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped

→ Batter

03 - 4 large eggs, room temperature
04 - 2 cups granulated sugar
05 - 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
06 - 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
07 - 2 tsp vanilla extract
08 - 1/4 tsp kosher salt

→ Serving (optional)

09 - Vanilla ice cream or lightly sweetened whipped cream

# Directions:

01 - Preheat the oven to 325°F. Butter a 2-quart baking dish and set it aside.
02 - Melt the butter and semisweet chocolate together in a heatproof bowl set over simmering water, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat and cool slightly.
03 - Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat eggs and granulated sugar on medium-high speed for 5 to 10 minutes until thick, pale, and ribbon-like.
04 - Reduce mixer speed to low. Add vanilla extract and kosher salt, then pour in the cooled chocolate mixture, mixing until just combined.
05 - Sift together all-purpose flour and cocoa powder. Gently fold into the batter with a spatula until just incorporated.
06 - Pour batter into the prepared baking dish. Place it inside a larger roasting pan, fill the pan with hot tap water halfway up the sides of the baking dish, and bake for 1 hour until the top is set and crackly but the center remains soft and pudding-like.
07 - Remove from the water bath and cool at least 15 minutes. Serve warm, ideally with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • It's the rare dessert that feels elegant enough for guests but casual enough to eat straight from the dish with a spoon when nobody's looking.
  • The contrast between the crackly top and molten middle is genuinely theatrical without requiring any special technique beyond patience.
02 -
  • The pudding center is intentional and glorious—if the middle is completely set, you've overbaked it, and the magic disappears. Soft is the goal.
  • Bringing your eggs to room temperature matters more here than in most baking because they'll whip to greater volume, creating the airiness that lets the pudding layer develop.
03 -
  • If you're serving fewer people, you can halve the recipe and bake it in a smaller dish—just keep an eye on the timing because smaller batches bake a few minutes faster.
  • Make this the morning of when you're serving it, then simply reheat it gently in the oven at 300°F for about 10 minutes to bring back that warm, molten magic.
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