King Arthur Flour's Best Fudge Brownies

This recipe was featured in an email from the www.kingarthurflour.com website: "Fudgy, cakey, fudgy, cakey... can't make up your mind? If you're looking for a brownie that's right in between those two styles, you've found it. These brownies combine a fudge brownie's ultra-moist texture with a subtle cake-like rise, for the best of both worlds. " Our guarantee: These brownies, deep chocolate brown inside with a lighter-colored top crust, will be about 3/4" to 1" tall when cut. They'll be ultra-moist without crossing the line into gooey/underbaked. Tips from our bakers: When testing to see if brownies are done, take a cake tester or the tip of a sharp knife and carefully poke it into the center of the pan, digging around just enough to see the interior. You should see moist crumbs, but no uncooked batter. Yes, you'll be left with a small divot in the center of your brownies; just cut around it when you're cutting the brownies into squares.

• Ready In: 40 mins
• Serves: 24
• Yields: 24 2 inch brownies

Ingredients

• 1  cup unsalted butter, 2 sticks
• 2 1⁄4 cups sugar
• 4  large eggs
• 1 1⁄4 cups  Dutch-processed cocoa powder
• 1  teaspoon salt
• 1  teaspoon baking powder
• 1  teaspoon  espresso powder (optional)
• 1  tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 1⁄2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2  cups chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F Lightly grease a 9" x 13" pan.
2. In a medium-sized microwave-safe bowl, or in a saucepan set over low heat, melt the butter, then add the sugar and stir to combine. Return the mixture to the heat (or microwave) briefly, just until it's hot (about 110°F to 120°F), but not bubbling; it'll become shiny looking as you stir it. Heating this mixture a second time will dissolve more of the sugar, which will yield a shiny top crust on your brownies.
3. While the sugar heats a second time, crack the 4 eggs into a bowl, and beat them with the cocoa, salt, baking powder, espresso powder, and vanilla until smooth.
4. Add the hot butter/sugar mixture, stirring until smooth.
5. Add the flour and chips, again stirring until smooth. If you want the chips to remain visible in the brownies, wait about 20 minutes before adding them to the batter. Otherwise, they'll melt.
6. Spoon the batter into a lightly greased 9" x 13" pan.
7. Bake the brownies for about 30 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, or with just a few moist crumbs clinging to it. The brownies should feel set on the edges, and the center should look very moist, but not uncooked. Remove them from the oven and cool on a rack before cutting and serving.