Is this a LOT of sugar for a brownie recipe?

[Scott]

I've inherited a bottle of coffee liquer that's sat unused in a cabinet since... maybe the Carter Administration.

Aside from needing to be sure it's drinkable, I've been looking for something to do with it. I don't drink liquor, but that's just habit and not any sort of position on it. But I've been looking for a dessert recipe.

I came across this brownie recipe. Along with 8 oz unsweetened chocolate and 1-1/2 cups AP flour, it calls for 3 full cups of sugar.

I don't have a real sweet tooth. I don't like sweet main or side dishes (no glazed- anything), and I tend to stay away from very sweet desserts (e.g., baklava), but even taking that into account this seems like a lot of sugar. Looking through the brownie recipes in my archives, the next largest amount uses 2-1/2 cups, but that's for three times as much flour, about the same amount of unsweetened chocolate, plus 1-1/3 cups (unsweetened) cocoa powder.

To me, the sweetness of the brownies would overwhelm everything else. Is 3 cups within the realm of the reasonable (for most people) or is this a mistake?

 

[Norcalbaker59]

I've inherited a bottle of coffee liquer that's sat unused in a cabinet since... maybe the Carter Administration.

Aside from needing to be sure it's drinkable, I've been looking for something to do with it. I don't drink liquor, but that's just habit and not any sort of position on it. But I've been looking for a dessert recipe.

I came across this brownie recipe. Along with 8 oz unsweetened chocolate and 1-1/2 cups AP flour, it calls for 3 full cups of sugar.

I don't have a real sweet tooth. I don't like sweet main or side dishes (no glazed- anything), and I tend to stay away from very sweet desserts (e.g., baklava), but even taking that into account this seems like a lot of sugar. Looking through the brownie recipes in my archives, the next largest amount uses 2-1/2 cups, but that's for three times as much flour, about the same amount of unsweetened chocolate, plus 1-1/3 cups (unsweetened) cocoa powder.

To me, the sweetness of the brownies would overwhelm everything else. Is 3 cups within the realm of the reasonable (for most people) or is this a mistake?

Vintage recipes would be based on a dip
and sweep measuring method. This standardized method was established by Fannie Merritt Farmer (The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book, which became the Fannie Farmer Cookbook). This method of measurement was taught in every Home Economic class through the 1970’s. It was used by every cookbook author and recipe developer.

This method yields approximately 140g flour per cup. A recipe from the 1970’s should be considered 140g flour per cup.

So 1.5 cups flour would be approximately 210 g flour.

If you are comparing modern recipes, the method of measuring is scoop and level. This method produces approximately 120 g flour per cup. So 1.5 cups is approximately 180 g.

A recipe is developed based on the weight of ingredients against the weight of flour.

Flour is always 100%

One cup of sugar weighs approximately 200 g.

3 x 200 = 600

divide the weight of the sugar into the weight of the flour

600÷210 = 2.85

The sugar is 2.85 weight of the flour.


Now, if you look at a modern recipe, such as the Baker’s German Chocolate

Flour 1/2 cup (60g)
Sugar 3/4 cup (150g)
Divide the weight of the sugar into the flour

150÷60 = 2.5

The sugar is 2.5 times the weight of the flour.


The sugar:flour difference is 0.35 by weight.

Now let's look at the ratio of sugar to chocolate

Your recipe

sugar 600 g
chocolate 226

divide the weight of the sugar into the weight of the chocolate

600÷226 = 2.65

Sugar is 2.65 times the chocolate

in the Bakers Chocolate recipe

sugar 150 g
chocolate, 113 g

150÷113 = 1.32

2.65 vs 1.32 sugar to chocolate ratio in two recipes.



Your recipe contains a significant amount of flour, so that will dilute the sweetness.

But it still contains a significant amount of sugar. The sugar:flour ratio isn’t bad, but the sugar:chocolate ratio is high. so you can definitely reduce it.

 

[Scott]

Thanks for the reply. The intro says the author "...first served these at a company Christmas party in 1991." How can we be sure she used dip and sweep rather than scoop and level? Is this presumed from how little flour there seems to be?

And maybe more to the point, is there a more reliable recipe I can use this chocolate liquor in? If possible (since I'm trying to go through the bottle faster than 1-2 T at a time) one that uses a decent amount of the liquor.

 

[Norcalbaker59]

Thanks for the reply. The intro says the author "...first served these at a company Christmas party in 1991." How can we be sure she used dip and sweep rather than scoop and level? Is this presumed from how little flour there seems to be?

And maybe more to the point, is there a more reliable recipe I can use this chocolate liquor in? If possible (since I'm trying to go through the bottle faster than 1-2 T at a time) one that uses a decent amount of the liquor.

Does the recipe date to the Carter administration, or did she make it the first time in 1991?

The recipe ratios will not change unless she rewrote it.


If she re-wrote the recipe in 1991, the method of measuring would probably scoop and level (spooning flour into the measuring cup, then leveling it off), so approx 120g flour per cup. In that case there the ratio would change.

120g flour x 1.5 = 180g

Divide the weight of the sugar into the weight of the flour


600÷180 = 3.33 for sugar:flour ratio

That would be a lot of sugar-way more than most cakes. Most cake is 1:1 flour:sugar ratio. There’s a couple of exceptions, angel food, cake, chiffon cake, real sponges (not Victoria Sponge which is a butter cake), but they are less than 1:2.60.

 

[Scott]

Does the recipe date to the Carter administration, or did she make it the first time in 1991?

The recipe ratios will not change unless she rewrote it.

Ah, OK, that clears things up. I think you misread what I wrote: "I've inherited a bottle of coffee liquer that's sat unused in a cabinet since... maybe the Carter Administration."

The bottle of liqueur has been around, unopened, since the 1970s, and I have just recently begun to look for recipes to use it up. So, AFAIK, the recipe I linked to dates from 1991 at the earliest.

 

[Norcalbaker59]

Ah, OK, that clears things up. I think you misread what I wrote: "I've inherited a bottle of coffee liquer that's sat unused in a cabinet since... maybe the Carter Administration."

The bottle of liqueur has been around, unopened, since the 1970s, and I have just recently begun to look for recipes to use it up. So, AFAIK, the recipe I linked to dates from 1991 at the earliest.

OK I guess I was confused I thought the recipe and the liqueur came from the same era.

if the recipe is from 1991, then it would be based on a 120 g cup. So the sugar:flour ratio is very high.

i’m like you I don’t like things cloying sweet. So that’s not a recipe I would try.

 

[Scott]

This, BTW, is it.

 

[Mona]

3 cups of sugar does seem like a lot for brownies, especially if you don't like overly sweet desserts. Most brownie recipes use 1 to 1.5 cups of sugar per cup of flour, so this amount might be excessive. You might want to reduce the sugar to around 2 cups and see if that suits your taste better. Also, adding a splash of coffee liqueur to a less sweet recipe could be a great way to use it up without making the brownies too sweet.