I liked how there was only one pot to wash, and I loved how the hot butter bloomed the cocoa powder, perfuming the whole house with delicious chocolate fragrance, but it did take a lot longer to cook, at least in my oven, a full 38 minutes, and it was really, really fudgy. My oven runs cool, especially at lower temperatures, so probably my fault. Next time, I might mix in a touch of leavening with the flour to lighten it up a bit, maybe 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder. Brownies aren't supposed to be pillowy devil's food cake, but they aren't fudge with a little flour thrown in, either. I was using it as a base for egg-free chocolate mousse, so the dense base worked in context, but if I was serving it on its own, I would like it to be a little lighter. I never got the crispy, lifted glaze on top that some brownies get, but that's always down to user error. That glaze is formed when the sugar is perfectly dissolved in the fat, so if I don't have it, it means that I didn't allow the sugar to fully dissolve in the butter before I added other ingredients, not because there's anything wrong with the recipe. By way of full disclosure, I also heeded another reviewer's advice to reduce the sugar, so I added 225g as opposed to the 250g. I liked the sweetness balance, but I'm not sure that 25g mattered all that much. It was still plenty sweet, and a nice foil for the airy mousse.
