Almost Betty Crocker Brownies

(This recipe was originally posted in conjunction with August's theme of Snacks from Scratch.)

Our family loves fudgy, chewy brownies!  Fresh out of the oven or cold, plain or frosted, brownie sundaes, as a dessert crust...any way you serve it, we'll eat it.  And the basic Betty Crocker Fudge Brownies that come in the red box are our favorite!  That's why I knew I wanted to try this recipe as soon as I saw it mentioned on Money Saving Mom.


These brownies are really, really close to the kind that we mix up from the red box.  The taste is almost identical, as is the texture.  As promised by Heather at Fake-It Frugal, they are quick and easy.  Not only that, but if you make this brownie mix instead of the Betty Crocker mix, you're avoiding things like soybean oil and corn syrup...which makes these healthy, right?  :)  Whether you're interested in making more things from scratch, or you just realize you need/want brownies and don't have a box mix in the house, this recipe is for you!  I highly recommend this recipe, with the following tips and cautions:
Options and Tips:

• I found that the original recipe, as posted at Fake-It Frugal, really only makes enough for a 9x9 pan.  This means that if you want a 9x13 pan (as you can easily get out of the red box) you have to double the recipe.
• Doubling the recipe and baking the brownies in a 9x13 pan means that the bake time is more like 25-28 minutes.
• Doubling the recipe also means that you need FOUR eggs to make a 9x13 pan of brownies.  This definitely increases the final cost of your brownies...so although Heather's breakdown of 30 cents per brownie mix might be accurate, the ingredients that you need to add to the homemade mix will cost you more than the ingredients you add to the Betty Crocker box mix.