Double Chocolate Brownie Bars are double layered brownie bars with a buttery biscuit/cookie crust base and fudgy, chocolaty brownie on top, studded with more chocolate; chocolate chips or chunks!! With a cold glass of milk, you cannot ask for a better chocolate fix! Ever since my boys grew up and have flown the coop to explore themselves in this wide and interesting world, baking had taken a back seat in my kitchen. When they were around, my oven never had any respite!!! You could smell fresh cookies baking or the kitchen and the whole house would be filled with the aroma of cakes, pizzas, calzones etc.

This food blog has revived my interest in cooking and baking all the myriad of dishes (both International and desi or Indian) and it has become so addictive, you will find me either in the kitchen cooking up or baking something, clicking photos of my creations in all angles possible with my iPad or in front of my laptop (both gifted by my sweet, adorable sons to fuel my passion in food blogging!!), furiously typing out the recipe or sharing my thoughts with all of you! Double Chocolate Brownies is my most favorite brownie recipe (did I tell you it is my sons’ favorite too?), along with the deep dark chocolate fudgy brownies with whole wheat. The difference is the cookie crust. The original recipe which I found in the Eagle Brand website has a crust made of all-purpose flour.  With all this health fad going on, I have also joined the bandwagon and most of the packets of white flour in my pantry remain unused as I try to substitute any dish using all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour.

Looking for a substitution and after scouring the internet for suggestions, I found that many recipes use biscuit or cookies as a base. You can call it luck or coincidence, but I had a large jar full of packaged unopened butter cookies and Marie biscuits lying in my pantry, probably waiting to be used in this brownie recipe. So out came the Marie biscuits, and voila, I had my biscuit crumbs for a healthier crust. Condensed milk is the element of sweetness in these beauties. Instead of all-purpose flour, you can use whole wheat flour in the batter. To raise the chocolate quotient up a level, large chunks of chocolate have been cut up (from a bar of Lindt chocolate; you can use any brand of chocolate bar) and mixed in the brownie batter.  You can use chocolate chips too instead. To make the brownies look pretty, I have studded them with some white chocolate chips.

With Valentine’s Day coming up, instead of bars, cut them up with a heart-shaped cookie cutter and serve these brownie hearts to your loved ones! Any which way you cut them, you are sure to love these fudgy double chocolate brownies with a mildly sweet and crispy biscuit crust; you will find it difficult to stop at just one piece!! So let’s get to it, shall we?

How to make Double Chocolate Brownie Bars with step-by-step Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit or 180 degrees Centigrade. Line a 13x9 inch pan with foil (grease the bottom of the pan lightly to prevent the foil from moving) or parchment paper with some overhang to have ease in removing the brownie from the pan and grease the foil again. Keep aside.

For the biscuit/cookie crust: 1 ¾ cups cookie/biscuit crumbs (I have used Marie biscuits; about 30 to 35) ½ cup melted butter (measure after melting) 2 tablespoons powdered sugar For the brownie layer: 1 can condensed milk (about 400 gms or 14 ounces) ¼ cup all-purpose flour/whole wheat flour ¼ cup cocoa powder ½ teaspoon baking powder 1 egg 1 teaspoon vanilla extract/essence ¾ to 1 cup chopped chocolate (use any chocolate bar flavor you like) Toppings: ¼ cup chocolate chips, white and dark

Instructions Notes For a thicker crust, use 2 cups of biscuit crumbs. You can substitute chocolate chips for the chocolate chunks. Stir in your favorite chopped nuts for additional crunch. You an halve the recipe and make these in a smaller pan.

Place the biscuits in a food processor or blender.

Crush them into fine crumbs. As an alternative, you can crush them by placing them in a large Ziploc bag, closing the Ziploc and pressing a rolling pin over it to crush the cookies fully. You should get about 1 ¾ cups of crumbs.

In a large mixing bowl, add the cookie crumbs, melted butter (just melted, not hot) and powdered sugar.

Mix well with your finger tips to form evenly moist crumbs.

Spread the moistened crumbs into the prepared pan and with a back of a spoon or your hands, gently press the crumbs evenly and firmly to form a tight base.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 10 to 12 minutes to set the base. Remove from oven.

Leave the oven on.

To make the brownies:

Combine condensed milk, flour, cocoa, egg, baking powder and vanilla in a medium bowl.

Using a hand mixer or with a whisk, mix well to a smooth batter. Stir in the chocolate chunks and nuts (if you are adding) and gently mix.

Pour the batter into the prepared crust and spread evenly. Smooth the top. Top with more chocolate chips.

Bake again for about 20 to 25 minutes, until the brownie is set.

Remove from oven and set on cooling rack. Cool completely before cutting with a sharp knife into desired shapes.

Enjoy!!! Store in airtight containers up to 3 days on the counter and after that in the refrigerator.

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Here are more chocolate recipes for you to try:

RICH DOUBLE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES (EGG FREE) BEST FUDGY WHOLE WHEAT BROWNIES

  NUTELLA FILLED CHOCOLATES

CHOCOLATE BEETROOT CAKE