Copycat Starbucks Double Chocolate Brownies
Recently, I was waiting in a long Starbucks line, peering into their bakery case, studying it actually, to see what I could remake at home. Remaking restaurant recipes and coming up with homemade copycat versions is what I do for fun. ‘Fun’ may not be the right word, but after 8+ years blogging about food, self-imposed challenges like this inspire me. In fact, my copycat Starbucks Lemon Loaf is one of the most popular recipes on my site. I personally have been partial to this brownie recipe I created in 2014. I’ve remade it umpteen times, but it relies solely on melted chocolate. However, when I was reading the Starbucks site it says their brownies are made exclusively of cocoa powder, which is a twist I wasn’t expecting. So I turned to a brownie recipe I made in 2013, courtesy of Alice Medrich, doctored it up, and voila we have copycat Starbucks Double Chocolate Brownies. My family raved about these. They’re rich, fudgy, not cakey, perfectly chewy, and so easy to make. One bowl, no mixer, and studded with chocolate chunks. You can save yourself the $2.45 per brownie and when it’s homemade the calories don’t count either.
iPhone photo of the real thing that inspired this recipe
What’s in These Double Chocolate Brownies?
These cocoa powder brownies require very few ingredients. Here’s what you’ll need to make copycat Starbucks brownies:
Unsalted butter Granulated sugar Eggs Vanilla extract All-purpose flour Unsweetened cocoa powder Salt Semi-sweet chocolate chunks
How to Make Chocolate Brownies
To make this brownie recipe with cocoa powder, you’ll first need to whisk together melted butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Then, stir in the dry ingredients before folding in the chocolate chunks. Turn the batter into a greased 8×8-inch baking dish that’s been lined with foil. Sprinkle more chocolate chunks on top, then bake the double chocolate brownies until the edges are set and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter. These chocolate chip brownies will need to cool for 2 hours before you can slice and serve them. Trust me, the wait is worth it!
Can I Double This Recipe?
Yes, you can double the ingredients for these copycat Starbucks chocolate brownies and bake them in a 9×13-inch pan.
Can I Make These Gluten-Free?
I haven’t tried it myself, but if you have a gluten-free flour blend that you trust, I say go ahead and try it in this chocolate brownie recipe!
Tips for Making the Best Chocolate Brownies
If your cocoa powder is lumpy, you may want to sift it before adding it to the brownie batter. You don’t want lumps in your chocolate brownies! Also, if you don’t have chocolate chunks on hand you’re welcome to use chocolate chips instead. Stick with semi-sweet though so these brownies aren’t too sweet. I haven’t been able to make perfectly fudgy, chewy brownies with canola oil, which is why I always use melted butter. As such, I don’t recommend subbing oil for the butter in this recipe.
More Homemade Brownie Recipes:
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Originally posted February 24, 2017 and reposted January 28, 2022 with updated text.
