Time Traveling Table

I’m not gonna lie—I did not have high hopes for this one. I’ve tried my fair share of old-school brownie recipes, and let’s just say history has not always been kind to this dessert. A lot of them end up dry, bland, or just straight-up disappointing. So when I set out to make what’s arguably the first-ever chocolate brownie, I was fully prepared for another wa wa waaaa letdown.

But this one actually is quite good.

The texture is definitely different from today’s fudgy or cake-like brownies. It’s a little grainier, almost like you can feel the sugar granules. But somehow, that works. The rich chocolate flavor still shines, the walnuts add the perfect crunch, and honestly? I will 100% be making these again.

So where did these pioneer brownies even come from? Well, we owe this beauty to Fannie Merritt Farmer, a total legend in the world of American cooking. In the early 1900s, she was out here standardizing recipes and measurements like a boss, making sure home bakers could actually replicate dishes with consistent results (which, trust me, was a game-changer). This brownie recipe was one of her creations and comes from the 1906 edition of “The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book,” and while it’s not quite the gooey, chocolate-loaded bars we’re used to today, it’s a piece of dessert history—and a surprisingly tasty one at that.

If you’re a brownie purist, a history nerd, or just in the mood to try something old but gold, this one’s for you.

Recipe

• 2 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 2 eggs
• 4oz unsweetened chocolate, melted
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup chopped walnuts

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Directions

1. Set your oven to 325°F (165°C). Grease a 9×13-inch pan
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar and melted butter until smooth and combined.
3. Crack in the eggs one at a time, whisking between each one until the batter is silky smooth.
4. Pour in the melted chocolate, whisking it together. Follow that up with the vanilla extract.
5. Gently fold in the flour until just combined (don’t overmix—nobody wants tough brownies). Then, fold in the chopped walnuts for that classic crunch.
6. Pour the batter into your prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the edges are set and the center is just firm.
7. Let the brownies cool completely in the pan.

Notes

• In the original recipe it advised “Line a seven-inch square pan with paraffine paper”. One: you will notice it asks for a 7 inch square pan…. I do not have this so I doubled the recipe and put in a 9×13, feel free to half this recipe and make a smaller batch. Two: you will also notice it was advised to line with paraffins paper, which is just an old-timely way of saying wax paper. BUT they must’ve made it different back in the day cause wax paper is not oven-safe, so if you’d like to line your dish, I’d recommend parchment paper instead, unless you enjoy peeling melted wax off your brownies.