Perfect brownies...

At least in our opinion...these were not TOO sweet, not too rich, the crust was crunchy and the inside was moist and fudge-y. They came together so quickly! I did make one substitution & one addition, but I think it worked out well, see recipe. :) I can see being able to add so many things to this recipe and them all turning out very well!

Brownies Cockaigne
Joy of Cooking Cookbook - 75th Anniversary Edition
Irma S. Rombauer, Marion Rombauer Becker, Ethan Becker

If you want them chewy and moist, use a 9x13" pan; if cakey, use a 9x9" pan.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Melt in a double boiler:
1/2 cup butter
4 oz. chocolate (I didn't do this, instead I added 1/2 cup of Hersey's cocoa powder to the melted butter)
Cool this mixture. If you don't, your brownies will be heavy and dry. Beat until light in color and foamy in texture.
Add 4 eggs at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon salt
Add the following gradually and continue beating until well creamed
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
With a few swift strokes, combine the cooled chocolate mixture into the eggs and sugar.
Even if you normally use an electric mixer, do this manually.
Before the mixture becomes uniformly colored, fold in, again by hand:
1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
If desired, add:
1 cup chopped pecans (I omitted, but did add a very small amount of leftover Heath bits)
Bake in a 9x13" pan (or 9x9) for about 25 minutes. Cut when cool.