Fudgy Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Brownies (that happen to be vegan!)

Is there such a thing as too much chocolate in a brownie? I think I got close in this brownie recipe, but I haven't crossed the line yet!

I wanted to try out a vegan brownie recipe I found, but as often ends up being the case, I modified the source recipe by loading it up with chocolate. Hot tip: lots of dark chocolates are vegan - just make sure to check the ingredients label and ensure there are no milk products! I had several kinds of dark chocolate laying around in my pantry that I wanted to get rid of, so I ended up using a combo of dark chocolate chips and a chopped up dark chocolate bar.

Rather than chewy or cakey, this is most definitely a dense, fudgy brownie. This is probably in large part due to all of the melted chocolate I unintentionally incorporated into the batter - I planned to just add in chocolate chips as a traditional mix-in, but the batter was much hotter than I anticipated and melted most of the chocolate! I actually ended up really liking this end result, as it made an incredibly rich brownie.

Vegan Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Brownies

adapted from Chocolate Covered Katie

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 

1 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 tsp baking powder

3/4 cup brown sugar 

2/3 cup granulated sugar

2 tbsp cornstarch

1 2/3 cup hot coffee

1 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract

3/4 cup oil

2 cups + 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate, separated

Flaky sea salt

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 350F. Line a 9×13 pan with parchment. 

2. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl and stir well. (I recommend sifting at least the cocoa powder and brown sugar.)

3. Whisk in wet ingredients. Let batter cool to warm, then fold in 2 cups of the dark chocolate. (Some of the chocolate will melt as you incorporate it.)

4. Bake on the center rack for 20-22 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. Take it out when the batter looks mostly set, though some jiggle in the center is okay. 

5. While the pan is still piping hot, sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup of chocolate over the top, then sprinkle some sea salt over the top.

6. Let cool, then refrigerate at least 8 hours (preferably overnight).

If fudgy brownies and chocolate overload are your style - I recommend you give this recipe a shot!