How do I stop my brownies from rising?

Question

I have been trying out brownie recipes baked in a muffin tin. I am using the muffin tin so that I can get all edges. (And I have been decorating the tops!)

My brownies tend to rise, in my opinion, too much. This rising is also not quite uniform for all the brownies. Some are flatter than others. The result tastes fine, but is not dense like other brownies.

Other than maybe air that I beat in, there are no rising agents. How do I stop the brownies rising to get denser brownies?

Edit, recipe ingredients: Butter Cooking chocolate Sugar Eggs Regular flour Vanilla essence Cocoa powder Salt

Edit, some of the process: melt butter and choc together, let cool, mix in the eggs, then the sugar, then everything else.

Answer 1

Well, if air is the only raising agent, simply add less of it by not beating the mixture as much. Failing that, beat as normal, then give the mixing bowl a couple of (careful) bangs on the counter top to knock the air out it again.

A bit of experimentation will be necessary to get the right results, I think: perhaps pour some of the mixture into the tin as is, then knock the air out of the remaining mixture and compare the results.

Answer 2

Well, nobody seems to have touched on the reason I see as most likely - overcooking them. Cakey brownies are cooked too long, regardless of the size of pan. The difference between a good fudgy brownie and a horrible caky brownie is typically ~5 minutes too much cooking time.

With a muffin tin, you probably need to reduce time from what works in a normal baking pan.

Answer 3

This could have something to do with the muffin tin itself: aren't the slanted sides meant to promote a nice domed top? (It seems to make sense: cake pans, used for baking items that should be reasonably flat, have straight sides, while pie pans, used for baking items that are often piled high with fillings, have slanted sides.)

If you want brownies that are all edge pieces (though why on earth you'd want to do that to poor innocent brownies, I cannot fathom), you might have better luck using one of those brownie pans with a separator-grid in them:

Edit: just thought of another possibility: how much batter are you putting in the muffin cups? Try using less, no more than half full (if that). Naturally, watch the baking time like a hawk, because the only thing worse than an all-edges brownie^* is an overbaked one.

^* :·þ

Answer 4

I can only give second-hand advice (for I bake, but usually bread, not cakes and such), but my s.o. drops the pan of brownies roughly half-way through the baking process from maybe 15 cm (~6 in) onto the countertop a few times. Obviously, this does not work with something that is prone to shattering. But the effect is that many of the air bubbles are forced up and burst, much like vibrating concrete does to prevent voids.

Answer 5

It's the egg, add one less than called for and mix your batter by hand. I also think that the person who commented about the angle of the sides is on to something there. You can buy pans that are specifically for all edges.

Answer 6

What about halfway through the baking process, take a spoon and lightly press the center so it collapses.

Answer 7

I think you need a larger shallow pan. Thinner brownie= less air trapped. The deeper the pan traps more air and it will bake more like a cake or a muffin.