These Old Fashioned Fudgy Brownies are dense, chocolatey, chewy, and rich. Even though the inside is immensely fudgy, they have this perfect crispy exterior.
Spray and line an 8 x 8 inch baking dish with parchment
Melt chocolate in a double boiler over medium heat. While chocolate is melting, melt shortening. Add shortening to melted chocolate. Remove from double boiler and add sugar, egg, salt and flour. Add chopped nuts if desired.
Pour into greased loaf pan or individual muffin tins. Bake for 20 minutes in the pre-heated oven. Ruth, from the American Woman’s Cookbook, cautions, “They will look half baked…” They do look half-baked. I know it’s nerve wracking, but take them out anyways! Trust me.
Ruth suggests marking the brownies off into squares or strips as soon as they come out of the oven. While this is certainly not necessary, it would definitely aid in the cutting process. Whatever you do, don’t try to take them out of the pan while they are still hot! They will crumble and be a big mess.