Sourdough Brownies
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Sourdough brownies are rich, fudgy and delicious. They are made with sourdough discard, 2 types of chocolate, and 2 types of sugar for a totally indulgent treat!
Fudgy Brownies? Yes, Please!
The joy that a perfectly cooked brownie brings to life is unquantifiable. It cannot be measured, it cannot be replicated. It’s just a damn good brownie.
And these browned butter brownies are damn good. They’re indulgent, and irresistible, with a paper thin, crackling top crust and intensely dense, chewy chocolatey crumb.
I will say that this brownie recipe is not for you if you like your brownies cakey, and its not for you if you prefer super sweet brownies. This recipe is thick, dense, chewy, and reminiscent of buttery dark chocolate.
This sourdough brownie recipe is dedicated to joy.
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Tips
- New to sourdough? Need a starter? Check out my 24 hour sourdough starter! Got lots of discard? Learn what to do with sourdough discard!
- This process is a little different than making most brownies, but the browned butter makes it so worth it. Please make sure to follow the steps as described to ensure success.
- Don’t rely on the toothpick inserted into the center method of testing these brown butter treats for doneness. I find this can result in an overcooked and even dry brownies. I prefer to use visual cues. The edges should look set and be pulling away from the liner and the center should look still soft. The brownies will continue to cook once removed from the oven and this ensures a rich, indulgent brownie.
Key Ingredients
Sourdough Discard
This recipe is pretty flexible when it comes to using up excess sourdough starter or discard. Use the stuff you’ve been saving in the fridge for a week or use the leftover’s from this morning’s feeding. Just make sure your starter is 100% hydration, and you stir down any bubbles before measuring!
Sugar
This recipe combined both granulated and brown sugar. The granulated sugar helps to make the brownies chewier and delivers that undeniably delicious papery crust all good brownies have. The brown sugar helps keep the brownies softer and fudgier as the molasses helps to moisten the batter.
Dutch Process Cocoa
Dutch process cocoa is less acidic and has a more mellow flavor profile. As an added bonus, this cocoa is also more easily dissolved. If you’re in a pinch, you can definitely use regular cocoa powder but the magic happens with dutch process!
Read More: How To Tell If Your Sourdough Starter Is Bad
How To Make Sourdough Brownies
Brown The Butter + Melt The Chocolate
- In a medium-sized sauce pan, over medium-low heat, melt 1/2 cup unsalted butter and simmer the butter, stirring regularly.
- The milk solids will brown, and the butter will smell nutty. This will take between 3-5 minutes of simmering, but do watch it closely because the butter can burn. If it simmers too rapidly, simply turn down the heat.
- Once the butter has browned, turn off the heat, and add in 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips. Stir in the chocolate chips until completely melted and smooth.
- Set the pot on a wire mesh rack to cool for 10-15 minutes, it doesn’t need to cool completely just somewhat.
Preheat The Oven And Prepare The Baking Dish
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Prepare a 9 x 9 inch baking dish by lining with tinfoil or parchment paper and spraying a light coat of cooking oil or greasing lightly. Set aside for now.
Mix The Batter
- Once the chocolate-butter mixture has cooled for 10 or so minutes, it’s time to make the batter!
- In the bowl of your stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment, beat 3 large eggs, 3/4 cup granulated sugar and 3/4 cup light brown sugar on high speed, until lightened in color and somewhat frothy. This will take 2-3 minutes. Add in 1/2 cup sourdough discard and beat again at high speed for 2 minutes.
- While the mixer is beating at high speed, slowly pour the melted chocolate mixture down the side of the mixing bowl. By whisking at high speed and pouring the hot chocolate mixture down the side of the bowl, we are giving it a chance to cool before coming into contact with the eggs. This will help prevent the coagulation of egg proteins in the batter.
- Whip until the chocolate is completely combined in the batter.
- Combine 1 cup all purpose flour, 1/2 cup cocoa powder, and 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt in a small bowl, and stir to combine.
- Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients with a spatula. Stir only until completely mixed, avoid overmixing.
- Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish.
Bake + Cool
- Bake sourdough brownies in 350 f oven for 30-35 minutes.
It’s important to take out the brownies when the edges look set and the middle looks slightly undercooked. As with all brownies, under-cooked is more desirable than over-cooked. The brownies will continue to cook while resting.
- Cool the brownies on a wire mesh cooling rack until room temperature before cutting, otherwise they’ll be super soft and difficult to cut.
Variations + Substitutions
Batch + Storage
Batch:
This sourdough discard brownies recipe makes 1 delicious 9×9 inch pan of brownies. I usually cut my brownies into 9 pieces. That gives 2 for each kid and Kevy. And coincidentally 3 pieces for me. Ha!
This recipe can be doubled and baked in 2 9×9 pans. I would not recommend halving this recipe.
Storage:
Store your sourdough discard brownies in an airtight container at room temperature or in the fridge for up to 4 days. I actually wrap mine in plastic wrap and store them in the cookie jar for easy grab and go lunch box treats!
These brownies can also be frozen. I individually wrap each piece (let’s be real, by the time it’s time to freeze them, there are only 3 left!) then place my wrapped brownies into an airtight freezer container. They’ll keep in the freezer for up to 3 months.
When you’re ready to enjoy, simply thaw the brownies on the counter at room temperature for about an hour.
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📖 Printable Recipe
Brown Butter Sourdough Brownies
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter unsalted
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 3 large eggs
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ¾ cup light brown sugar lightly packed
- ½ cup sourdough discard stirred down & room temperature
- 1 cup all-purpose flour unbleached
- ½ cup dutch processed cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
Instructions
- In a medium-sized saucepan, brown 1/2 cup butter over medium-low heat. Once butter is browned, remove the saucepan from heat and stir in 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips until completely melted and smooth. Set aside on a wire cooling rack to cool for 10-15 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350f and prepare a 9×9 inch baking dish by lining with tin foil or parchment paper and spraying with cooking oil or greasing lightly.
- Once the chocolate-butter mixture has cooled for 10 or so minutes, add 3 large eggs, 3/4 cup granulated sugar, and 3/4 cup brown sugar to the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat the eggs and sugars at high speed for 2-3 minutes, until lightened in color and fluffy.
- Add 1/2 cup of sourdough discard and beat again at high speed for 2 minutes, then without turning off the mixer, pour the chocolate mixture slowly down the side of the mixing bowl.
- Combine 1 cup all purpose flour, 1/2 cup cocoa powder, and 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt in a small bowl, and stir to combine.
- Fold the flour mixture into the wet ingredients with a spatula. Stir only until completely mixed, avoid overmixing.
- Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish.
- Bake at 350f for 30-35 minutes, or until the edges look set and the center looks slightly undercooked.
- Allow the sourdough brownies to cool to room temperature before cutting.
Notes
Variations + Substitutions
While delicious in its own right, this brownie recipe can easily be tweaked!- add 1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
- serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream
- add 1/2 cup of coarsely chopped chocolate or chocolate chips
- add a little mint extract for a minty brownie
- give them a pinch of cayenne for a Mexican chocolate brownie flavor
- swap some or all of the chocolate chips with white chocolate, peanut butter, or butterscotch chips
Batch:
This sourdough discard brownies recipe makes 1 delicious 9×9 inch pan of brownies. I usually cut my brownies into 9 pieces. That gives 2 for each kid and Kevy. And coincidentally 3 pieces for me. Ha! This recipe can be doubled and baked in 2 9×9 pans. I would not recommend halving this recipe.Storage:
Store your sourdough discard brownies in an airtight container at room temperature or in the fridge for up to 4 days. I actually wrap mine in plastic wrap and store them in the cookie jar for easy grab and go lunch box treats! These brownies can also be frozen. I individually wrap each piece (let's be real, by the time it's time to freeze them, there are only 3 left!) then place my wrapped brownies into an airtight freezer container. They'll keep in the freezer for up to 3 months. When you're ready to enjoy, simply thaw the brownies on the counter at room temperature for about an hour.Recommended Equipment + Ingredients
Nutrition
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This brownies are amazing and a hit in our family. The first time we made them we couldn’t wait for them to cool down and loved how gooey they were. We had some the next day when cooled and they were 1000x better amazing either way!
Love it! So glad you enjoyed them! I have a bunch of discard in my fridge and it’s like -35 here today (for the 10th day in a row), I feel like eating warm brownies out of the pan with a spoon would be the perfect cure for the cabin fever we’ve all got!
Can you let these ferment a while before baking to increase the benefit of fermented flour?
I don’t see why it wouldn’t benefit from a rest, personally, I can hardly wait till they come out of the oven and cool, but I would definitely try letting them rest at room temperature for a couple of hours – the pan may need to be banged on the counter before baking to remove some of the bubbles.
I used fed discard and the brownies turned out great and 1 1/2 inches high! I will make them again.
I’d leave a photo but can’t seem to get that to work.
So happy to hear!
My family loved them!! They didn’t last a day, thanks you very mucho for sharing the recipe 🙂
My 4 year old asked if we could add marshmallows (he is in a marshmallow eating face jaja) but I don’t know if I could add them as an add it or at which point. If you have an idea we really appreciate your input.
I think your 4 year old might be my spirit animal!!
If I were adding marshmallows, I’d either top with marshmallows in the last few minutes of baking OR use some dehydrated marshmallows (they are suuuuper easy to make – just follow that link). Dehydrated marshmallows would be my choice because they actually absorb some steam during baking and end up ooey-gooey delicious in the finished product. I’ve used them a LOT in baking – like my smore’s cookies and they are literal magic haha
Terrific recipe with the added subtle flavor of browned butter and the tang of a little starter. So good!
Dry, brick like product. Too much flour. 1/2 c would be appropriate.
Is this a recipe where you can use allulose and stevia brown sugar instead?
Sorry Joy, I have no baking experience with either of those ingredients, but I’m going to publish this comment in hopes that maybe another Crave reader can give some guidance!
Can I double the recipe and bake in a 9×13 pan?
I never have, I don’t think it would be a huge problem, but I’d probably recommend making it as written at least once before doubling 🙂
Please could you do your recipes with weights as well as cups? Your ‘revive the starter’ page used weights and it was perfect. I’m not American so I don’t use cups. Thanks.
Hey Sally, I use weighted measurements for my sourdough starter recipes, and cups for my discard recipes as most people prefer to use cups. Next time I make these, I’ll try and get weights!
Can I used natural cocoa or does it have to be dutch processed?
You can certainly use natural cocoa if that’s what you have on hand, I prefer the flavor of dutch process, but regular will work too!
I’m so disappointed. These came out so Casey. What did I do wrong? Do you think I over mixed it or measured something wrong?? The smell was amazing but was not a fan of the texture at all!
Hey Paulene, so sorry to hear the texture wasn’t quite right for you. These should be super dense and fudgy – my husband calls them doughy even. If they’re cakey and airy they may have been overmixed as the action of stirring builds gluten which traps the gasses causing rise. I really only stir it until the dry bits are moistened, even if the batter is lumpy. Hope that helps.
tasty, but the inside was still batter and the outside was suuper crispy.
Sorry to hear that, I’ve not had that happen to me. What size pan did you use?
Could I make this with AFB starter, maybe reducing the sugar? I need more recipes for that starter! And thank you!
Hey Melissa, love that idea… I should do more with my AFB starter, I usually just make the friendship bread or turn it into muffins – but I like the idea of series.
Best brownies I have ever had no joke!!
These were great!!! I doubled the recipe and made 2 trays. I added semi sweet chocolate chunks to both and one pan also had Carmel sea salt chips. Big hit with my fam and my 5 year old loved making them! Thanks for the recipe!
Julie, that sounds delish! I love caramel sea salt chips! Happy to hear your family enjoyed the treat too!