If you have ever followed a brownie recipe and you find a few cracks on the top of the finished products, there’s no need to worry as this is very common and can actually happen to a few different baked goods.
Brownie cracks are certainly nothing new, however, there are a few precautions you can take when following a good brownie recipe to ensure that these cracks don’t show up so that you can tuck into some perfect brownies without any cracks or air bubbles ruining the tasting experience.
Here is all you need to know about cracks appearing on the surface of brownies, and how they can be prevented.
Why Do Cracks Appear On Brownies?
Unless you have much experience in making homemade brownies, it’s very easy after you bake brownies for them to come out cracked, and this is mainly due to the sheer amount of ingredients some recipes will require you to use in order to serve some delicious baked brownies.
In reality, this abundance of ingredients can sometimes cause cracks to appear on the surface since they can easily be overmixed.
Many brownie recipes will tell you to mix ingredients for far too long when in reality, you only need to be mixing the melted butter, vanilla extract, white sugar, and other essential ingredients for only a few minutes until the mixture is thick and creamy.
Baking brownies for longer than you need to is also an easy way to make them crack on the top since the excessive exposure to heat will evaporate the moisture and make the brownies very dry and prone to cracking.
If too many cracks appear on the surface of the brownies, it can result in brownie batter crumbling and becoming flaky, which is not what you want.
What Brownies Can Have Cracks?
Since it depends on how the mixture is beaten and how long the brownies are baked during the cooking process, all types of brownies can be cracked whether it’s chocolate brownies, fudgy brownies, gooey brownies, brownies that use dark chocolate, melted chocolate, milk chocolate, and even vegan brownies, however, the lack of eggs does make it much rarer in these.
How To Prevent Brownies From Cracking
There are several ways you can prepare the best brownies without exposing them to too much air which can lead to them cracking. Here are some useful tips to keep in mind during preparation:
Avoid Overbeating The Mixture
Overbeating the brownie mixture is the most common reason for brownie cracks appearing since this can add more air bubbles to the mixture, drying out the batter and resulting in cracked brownies.
These bubbles will expand when the brownies are in the oven, so you want to always make sure you are only beating the ingredients for no longer than 8 minutes and stop as soon as the ingredients are mixed together and become thick and creamy.
Brownie Batter
The mixture of the batter is another common reason some good brownies can quickly turn into cracked brownies. You will want to try mixing the batter as little as possible to prevent the brownies from getting dried out and becoming too flaky.
Brownie Recipes
While many recipes are designed to help you create some soft brownies that are warm and chocolatey, you will still want to double-check that you are following the correct recipe’s instructions.
While you may be looking for a recipe to help you make chewy fudgy brownies or chocolate brownies that are soft and gooey to bite into, some people actually prefer their brownies cool, or even completely cold, and will use a recipe that will help to make the brownies dry and a little more solid to bite into.
Make sure you are not using the same recipe as this can be an easy mistake many people will make since they are unaware of these alternate recipes that can be found across the internet.
Avoid Overcooking
During the baking process, try not to let the brownies bake for more than 25 minutes. Any longer than this can cause them to become overcooked and result in a large crack on top.
Alongside the actual duration of the baking, you also need to make sure the oven temperature never exceeds 350 degrees Fahrenheit since an elevated exposure to heat is when the brownie batter dries.
At the same time, you don’t want to end up with underbaked brownies, so you should never attempt to cook under the recommended oven temperature.
Use A Dull Crust Over Shiny Crust
While fudge brownie recipes with a nice shiny crust are what many people look for, this requires a mixture of sugar and melted butter which can easily lead to most brownies coming out cracked.
Creating brownie batter with a shiny crust also requires you to beat the mixture for longer than usual, which should always be avoided. They also include an abundance of chocolate chips, and while a few are okay to add, too many can make the batter flakier than it needs to be.
Alternatives To Cracked Brownies
If you like the idea of making brownies cool so that they aren’t as gooey or warm with each bite, you can still do so without causing any cracks to appear on the surface.
Once the brownies are done baking, insert them into an airtight container and let them sit at room temperature for around 30 minutes to 3 hours. You can even simply leave them on the brownie pan or baking pan to let them cool off and shuffle them around the brownie pan every so often with a rubber spatula.
If you want to add some extra crunch to the texture, consider adding some chocolate chunks or chocolate chips to the brownie mixture.
Testing The Brownies Texture
It’s not always clear how dried out your brownies actually are once they are baked, so it never hurts to test their texture in case the surface is a little flaky.
The simplest method of doing this is simply guiding a plastic knife down the middle rather than a sharp knife. If the knife cuts through to the bottom easily, then chances are you will have some chewy brownies to tuck into.
If however the chocolate batter is putting up a little more resistance with some visible cracks, this means the brownie mixture has either been overbeaten, or it may have been in the oven for too long.
Summary
Make sure to check your recipe, cook to the right temperature, and never overbeat your mixture to avoid your baked brownies from becoming cracked.
