The secret to perfectly fudgy brownies? Duck eggs!

In the past I’ve always struggled with making a perfectly fudgy brownie from scratch. No matter how hard I would try they could never compare with the perfection of the boxed brownie mix. For years, I felt like I was chasing a mythical unicorn in my pursuit of making a perfectly homemade fudge brownie. When I thought all hope was lost, I had an epiphany after making a tray of orgasmic lemon bars. What if the secret for a deliciously fudgy brownie wasn’t actually in the method, what if it lies with the egg? Yes, the egg! 

I know this sounds like the ramblings of a mad woman but this thought obviously comes with a story. During the summer I had acquired duck eggs from my local farmer’s market. In acquiring them, I felt obligated to bake with them since I’ve heard tales that duck eggs are supposed to be a baker’s best friend. So I made my favorite recipe for lemon bars for a family picnic and oh my god, when I tell you that these were possibly the best lemon bars that I’d ever made that would be an understatement. They were incredible! Perfectly rich and gooey, it was hard to believe that these were my standard lemon recipe. Just adding in two duck eggs instead of my typical chicken egg completely transformed my normally wonderful lemon bars into a masterpiece! At that moment it struck me like a bolt of lightning! I must use duck eggs for brownies and the rest is history. Thanks to a simple egg swap, I had finally found my brownie unicorn and produced a homemade fudge brownie recipe that is miles above any boxed brownie mix. 

Duck Egg Brownies

120 grams unsalted butter

340 grams semi-sweet chocolate chips

40 grams burgundy cocoa powder

10 grams pure vanilla extract

2 large duck eggs 

310 grams dark brown sugar

120 grams all-purpose flour

5 grams kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a 8" x 8" baking pan with parchment paper.

In a medium pot, melt the butter and chocolate chips over low heat. Once melted, add the vanilla extract and cocoa powder. Mix until the chocolate mixture is smooth. Remove the pot from the burner and set it aside to cool slightly, about 8-10 minutes.

Once the chocolate has cooled, mix in the brown sugar. After the brown sugar is incorporated, add the eggs in one at a time and mix. The mixture should look a little glossy and will be slightly thickened. Add the flour and salt, stir with a rubber spatula until no more dry flour remains. . 

Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and spread out evenly, smoothing out the top. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the brownies are crispy on top and slightly fudgy on the interior when tested with a toothpick. 

Allow the brownies to cool completely in the pan on a wire rack. Remove the brownies from the pan by lifting them with the parchment paper and cut into squares. Enjoy!

*Notes:

In contrast to what the recipe states, you don’t need to use duck eggs to create the rich and fudgy consistency, it’s just highly recommended. However, you can easily substitute the duck eggs for two large chickens plus one yolk. For the substitution you need to add in the extra yolk to reach that desired fudgy consistency. 

For this recipe, I do specifically use Burgundy cocoa. I believe it gives these brownies a rich chocolate flavor because of this specific cocoa powder’s fat content. I’ve bought this specific cocoa powder from King Arthur Flour. However, if you can’t get your hands on the Burgundy cocoa powder you can substitute with a Dutch process cocoa. 

For this brownie recipe, I only have weight measurements and I highly recommend using a kitchen scale. This is the most precise way to consistently get the best brownie possible.