PrintHow to cut super-fudgy brownies cleanly
So I made 12 batches of triple chocolate Oreo brownies to give as gifts for my husband's co-workers this year, and because of the Oreos they are SUPER moist and fudgy. I am having a hard time making clean cuts as the insides tend to cling to my knife and break apart. I considered spraying my knife with non-stick spray before cutting, but was worried it might affect the taste. Anyone have any other suggestions for making my brownies look as good as they taste?
Thanks!
Add a comment:
Previewing your comment:
HTML Hints
Some HTML is OK: <a href="URL">link</a>, <strong>strong</strong>, <em>em</em>
Comment Guidelines
Post whatever you want, just keep it seriously about eats, seriously. We reserve the right to delete off-topic or inflammatory comments. Learn more at our Comment Policy page.
If you see something not so nice, please, report an inappropriate comment.
Start Talking!
Need a question answered? Have advice to share? Start a Talk topic now!
Sign up to get your questions answered and share advice.
14 Comments:
I'm wondering about soaking the knife in really hot water, and re-dipping it and shaking it off between cuts.
LunaPierCook at 6:45PM on 12/19/07
refrigerate, then cut? the chill of the fridge should reduce the fudgy factor long enough to cut them, and people can always reheat them later.
veggiesattva at 7:02PM on 12/19/07
I've read that a disposable plastic knife works well, but haven't tried it myself.
I've used a bench scraper with success, but my scraper has a fairly sharp edge. I've also used a pizza cutter on thinner bar cookies, but never brownies.
pieninja at 7:10PM on 12/19/07
Refrigerating them was my first thought, but I'm also wondering if you can turn out the entire pan on to a piece of wax or parchment paper (on the counter) and use dental floss...?
Curlz at 8:25PM on 12/19/07
Pizza cutter. Also, dental floss (unwaxed and non-flavored).
ccbweb at 9:47PM on 12/19/07
I was about to suggest dental floss, but I see ccbweb beat me to it. This obviously works best if the brownies are removed from the pan in one large piece, so unless you used the Cooks Illustrated parchment "sling" method of baking them, or used disposable pans that can be taken off with scissors, this may be difficult
ChristineB at 10:39PM on 12/19/07
I always bake ahead and freeze and cut. Put them on a nice half sheet and put them in the freezer for 2 hours or more. Then take your knife and cut. If you don't have 2 hours I would still firm them up in the freezer, I been doing that for over a decade.
JerzeeTomato at 10:58PM on 12/19/07
I would chill them, then try and turn them out of the pan onto a flat surface, and cut with a large chef's knife. You could also use the hot water knife technique for this. I use this method with sticky cheesecake bars, and it works really well. The only difference is that before I bake them, I line the pan with foil so that I can sort of lift the bars out when they're done.
kmnola at 12:58AM on 12/20/07
I, too, line pans w/foil so they are easier to remove. And to cut cookie bars neatly, I always freeze first, then cut while frozen w/a good sharp knife. Use the dental floss for cheesecake.
SavtaShayna at 10:22AM on 12/20/07
Try a bench scraper. If you use a knife, don't drag it through -- use an up-and-down technique instead and wipe the blade clean after each cut.
Dominic
the zen kitchen
dvchurch at 10:23AM on 12/20/07
Heat is what you need.
Running a knife blade under hot water, and wiping it off after each cut, works pretty well. A pizza wheel or bench scraper work better if you run them under hot water too.
srhcb at 10:48AM on 12/20/07
I've use the plastic knife technique and it works surprisingly well! If it starts to get sticky, just wipe it off.
peachfish at 11:42AM on 12/20/07
For an entire year, I baked at least one batch of brownies per week--the best way to get a good cut easily is the plastic knife.
jsd517 at 12:26PM on 12/20/07
Definitely chilling and pizza cutter.
Cathy at 1:02PM on 12/20/07