Tomorrow is National Brownie Day! Coming in just a few days after National Cookie Day, I’d really like to meet whoever it is that decides things such as this. I think we’d be friends — you can never have too many sweets or sweet holidays. Despite their proximity and popularly, there aren’t too many similarities between cookies and brownies. Where cookies are a blank canvas for just about any flavor combination you can dream up, brownies tend to have a distinct one that doesn’t change much. The method of getting the flavor or the way of eating it can change, but the base flavor remains — fudge-y and chocolate-y with a dense and gooey texture. I’d had a lot of brownies in my day, and here are 7 of my favorite ways to eat them:
Brownie In A Mug {via weelicious}
Mug recipes are on the rise and for good reason. I mean — who doesn’t want to be able to eat a fresh, hot baked good within a matter of minutes? A normal brownie recipe isn’t that hard to make but it does take a bit of time to pull together and bake. This mug recipe gets you that delicious brownie within 5 minutes from the time you first think “Hey, I definitely need a brownie right now or I might die.” It’s not going to replace a traditional brownie (at least not for the serious brownie lovers among us) but it is the best way to quickly attack that brownie craving when it comes.
Image Credit: deb pearlmen
Brownie Batter Oatmeal {via the oatmeal artist}
No, you read that right, that’s a recipe for brownie. batter. oatmeal. Or oatmeal that tastes like brownies. Or chocolate oatmeal. If you are an oatmeal purist you might be a little freaked right now but if you are a person that sometimes wakes up and thinks “I really need to eat chocolate for breakfast” (hi, mirror!) than this should be looking pretty attractive to you. The best part of this oatmeal is that you not only get that brownie taste for breakfast, but you are still sticking with a pretty healthy choice for breakfast. The chocolate here comes from unsweetened cocoa powder and chocolate chips, if you choose to add them. Not only is this a super chocolate-y bowl of oatmeal but it’s still good for you too.
The “I Need Brownies Now” Brownie {via smitten kitchen}
This is perhaps the most dangerous recipe here — it gets you homemade, perfect brownies in a matter of minutes. Which means that you can have them virtually anytime you want. Like I said — extremely dangerous. We’re playing with fire here, people, but I think it’s worth it. These brownies are so quick because of a short and standard ingredient list that you pretty much just need to combine over heat and pour into a pan. The longest part of making these is waiting for them to cook (about a half an hour). It will be tough to wait, but if I can make it, certainly you can too.
Black Bean Brownies {via brooklyn farm girl}
If you have yet to try out the black bean brownie craze, I really urge you to, and this is a fantastic recipe for that first leap. It’s simple, fast, and unlike healthier recipes can sometimes do — it contains no strange ingredients that will have you running out to the store. In fairness, these are not going to taste like a traditional chocolate & sugar laden brownie — they just aren’t. But you won’t feel like you’re missing anything when you eat them. They still carry those brownie qualities that we love so much, they’re fudgy, chocolate-y and surprisingly decadent (I swear). They’re the ideal candidate for a brownie recipe that leans a little more to the health side for the days when you really are trying to eat better but just can’t rid yourself of that chocolate craving.
Homemade “Box-like” Brownies {via cook’s illustrated via brown eyed baker}
Normally when we try to make something homemade we do it to get away from the taste of the store bought item, which makes these brownies a little different. We actually shooting towards the sun here in trying to recreate the exact flavor of something you can get out of a box but with wholesome ingredients and much less machinery. It turns out, this is a pretty hard task to do, but this recipe is it. Ironically, it’s not even marketed as a box mix replica, but I’ve found that it is much closer to the real thing than the recipes that are named that way are. There’s a substantial list of ingredients here but don’t try to leave anything out or you’ll ruin that box-like taste you’re going for. It’s totally worth the longer shopping list.
Image Credit: ree drummond
Brownie Bites {via chasing delicious}
Who else has childhood memories that are crowded with remembrances of packaged brownie bites? Those things that were (are) so addicting that even though there were five pieces to a bag you still wanted more? Once I realized that I could bake they were one of the things that I stopped allowing myself to buy because I knew I could make them at home (darn attempting to be a responsible adult) but the craving still hits from time to time. This recipe is the one that I make when that happens and I need brownie bites in my life immediately. The bites are super fudge-y (so much so you’ll wonder if they’re baked but don’t worry, they are) and very chocolate-y. Childhood cravings quenched!
Giant Skillet Brownie {via a beautiful mess}
Life-hack/pro-tip/do-this: Baking (or cooking) anything in a skillet is an extremely quick, extremely effective way to make anything look better and more intriguing. Skillets themselves provide that rustic look that we’re all so obsessed with and who doesn’t want to stare at and dig into a huge brownie? No one, that’s who. Nobody will be able to resist this, including yourself. This is great for a party or for, um, say a random Monday afternoon in December. It’s gooey and delicious and is really served by topping it with vanilla ice cream and going at it with a spoon. This recipe includes optional peanut butter chips but I like this one just up straight chocolate chips instead.
What are you favorite brownie recipes?
Featured image is from dichohecho on flickr.
The Hudsucker 
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