Brownie Cookbooks So You Can Make All The Brownies

Baking brownies is easy. Choosing a new recipe to bake isn’t. I turn to the recipes I’ve shared here on Little Indiana Bakes when I want to bake brownies. They are our family favorites and what I consider the best of the best. But that list isn’t static. Sometimes, I like to mix things up a little, try something new, and see how it goes. You know, I am always on the hunt for our new favorite brownie.

When I feel the itch to try a new brownie recipe, I turn to cookbooks. While every other cookbook seems to include a recipe for brownies, some cookbooks are entirely devoted to the sweet treat. I love it.

The following cookbooks may be “must haves” if you or yours are true brownie fans. After all, you can never have too many cookbooks, right? Right. This list may update over time.

Brownie Only Cookbooks

When you want a brownie, and only a brownie, but you need a NEW brownie, your cookbook browsing journey might just begin and end right here. It can be hard to tell what cookbooks carry what you want. No worries, that’s where this list of cookbooks with brownie recipes comes in, all ready to save the day.

These cookbooks are devoted to brownies so you won’t have to sort through cookies or other bar recipes to get to what you crave. These are a great option for people who love single-subject cookbooks are or interested in expanding their brownie horizons. You’ll find plenty of brownie flavor twists. The hardest part will be deciding if you want a fudgy or cakey brownie recipe.

If you own one of these brownie cookbooks, please let me know some of your favorite recipes so I can be sure to try them too. Who doesn’t love discovering a new favorite recipe?

The 55 Best Brownies in the World: The Recipes that Won the Great American Brownie Bake Contest (1991) by Honey and Larry Zisman (Amazon) (eBay)

After receiving close to 3,500 recipe entries in the Great American Brownie Bake Contest, and baking up more than a few of the entries, the authors compiled this 5.58 x 0.38 x 5.5 inch brownie-filled cookbook containing the best of the best.

As you may have guessed, at just 55 recipes, and 133 pages, it isn’t a large cookbook. Does that matter when the recipes sound so good? Lemme answer that for you: Nope. I love the way the authors included the name and location of each winner. I enjoy seeing where people are from, don’t you? No images here, but the occasional call-out possesses brownie facts or trivia.

No chapter divisions here, but recipe offerings include Cherry Brownies with Chocolate Cherry Frosting, Raspberry Truffle Brownies (you know I LOVE raspberry anything), Chewy Honey Frosties, Old Vienna Brownies with Irish Creme Frosting, and Snow Drop Brookies. I could go on.

The Brownie Lover’s Bible: Over 100 Delicious Recipes (2008) by Lisa Slater (Amazon) (eBay)

This 7.08 x 0.69 x 8.24 inch cookbook contains one of the more comprehensive introductions regarding technique and tips on brownies that I’ve seen. Sidebar advice is sprinkled throughout the book offering clever ideas, variations, and nudges to get you baking in the right direction.

Chapters include: Warm and Oozy, Crispy, Crunchy Brownie Building Blocks; Fabulously Fudgy Brownies, Deep, Dark, and Delicious Brownie Cakes; Crunchy, Munchy Brownie Cookies; Smooth and Sensual Brownie Puddings; and Icy, Hot, Fruity, Fudgy Brownie Desserts. Gluten-free, flourless, and other specialized brownies are part of this comprehensive book.

At just over 200 pages, plus plenty of images, you will not know where to begin. I mean, do you start at the Jackson Pollock Bars, the Coffee Toffee Bars or Brownies, or the Seville Orange Hazelnut Brownies? Not every recipe will be a “win” with you, since the recipes are truly diverse. My suggestion? Flip to a random page and start there.

Brownies to Die For! (2006) by Bev Shaffer (Amazon) (eBay)

I appreciate the useful bits of info Bev offers up as “Bev’s Bites,” such as why a particular recipe uses cake flour or how to best store leftovers. Not every recipe includes images, but there are enough full-color images to grab your attention.

The book opens with info you’ll need to know before it gets to the good stuff. Chapters include: Classic Brownies: Old and New Favorites; Top ’em Off, Just a Little Fruity; Chocolate and Coffee, Anyone?; Shake ’em Up; White Chocolate Versions; Derivations on a Theme; Brownie Pairings; Brownies as Art: Dipped, Dunked, and Layered; and Frostings and Glazes.

Chocolate-Ganache-Topped Brownies use an 11 x 17 pan and NINE eggs. Wow! But, it sounds like one incredible brownie. Then again, that describes a lot of what I saw inside this 8.72 x 0.89 x 10.22 inch, 226-page cookbook.

Brownies: Easy and Delicious Recipes (2010) by Parragon Books (Amazon) (eBay)

Chapters include: The Classics, New Twists, Made to Impress, and Cookie Sheet Treats. Upside-Down Toffee Apple Brownies, Mint Julep Brownie Cake, Mochachino Brownies with White Mocha Sauce, and Black Russian Brownies are delightfully different.

It’s easy to pick out what you want to try, since there are images with each recipe. Superfine sugar is about as odd as it gets, in terms of pantry staples, so either give your granulated sugar a quick whir in the food processor or sub in granulated sugar for good results (if not a slight difference in texture).

If you know the Love Food books from Parragon Books, this 8.9 x 8.9 x 0.47 inch cookbook follows the same format (and features the same padded kind of cover). It’s not quite 100 pages, but it sure does look like fun.

Brownies: Fudgy, Chewy, Nutty, Fruity, Frosted, Cakelike, Crunchy, Comforting and—Indisputably Delicious (1991) by Sharon Moore (Amazon) (eBay)

The chapters are: The Ten Best Brownie Recipes Ever, Fruity and Nutty Brownies, Unexpected Brownies, Sumptuous Brownies, Blondies, Healthy Brownies, International Brownies, The Brownie Controversy: Fudgy Versus Cakelike, Frostings and Toppings for Brownies, and How To Build a Brownie House. I know what you really want to know is the chapter about building a brownie house!

It is exactly like it sounds, the instructions for building a house out of brownies, much like a graham cracker house, but as blocks instead of thin rectangles. While I’m not sure about that one, I AM sure about the rest of the book. The author includes recipes for Bourbon Brownies, Amaretto Brownies, Cheesecake Brownies, and then some.

At 142 pages, it’s going to take time to work your way through this 5.9 x 5.9 x 0.3 inch cookbook. Do note there aren’t images. With clear directions, you can still easily work your way through this one.

Brownies: Over One Hundred Scrumptious Recipes for More Kinds of Brownies Than You Ever Dreamed of (1984) by Linda Burum (Amazon) (eBay)

As with most brownie cookbooks, this one also opens with tips and tricks—including a tip for brownie storage I’ve never seen. She adds a piece of apple to the container. Have you ever heard of such a thing?

Chapters in this cookbook include: A Quest for the Best (Twelve Recipes for the Perfect “Basic” Brownie), Deluxe Brownies, Nut Brownies, Fruit brownies. Unchocolate Brownies, Healthful Brownies, Cups and Fancies, Big-Pan Brownies, Beyond the Basics (other Chocolate Brownies), Brownie Lover’s Desserts, and Frostings. Chocolate Mousse Brownies, White Chocolate Marshmallow Brownies, Brownie Almond Bark, and and Kahlua-Chocolate Chip Brownies have me drooling (and we’re barely halfway through the book).

I love the way Linda organized her brownie cookbook. The recipes are split up by the type and, happily, there are 169 pages of recipes and helpful advice sans images (sorry).

Fabulous Brownies (2010) by Annie Rigg (Amazon) (eBay)

This isn’t just a cookbook, it’s a highly visual feast for your brownie-loving eyes, encouraging you to see brownies in a whole new way. Consider it a creative nudge. Annie provides four recipes for your brownies: White Chocolate Buttercream, Chocolate Ganache, Milk Chocolate Frosting, and Chocolate Glaze. Although a couple recipes will have their own frosting recipe, these four main recipes will be referenced throughout the 7.75 x 0.5 x 7.5 inch book.

Chapters include: Simple, Pretty, Indulgent, and Kids. Each recipe isn’t about only tasting great, it’s about upping the presentation level of the usual (let’s face it) kind of blah looking brownie. And that’s what this book does, in a smidge under 65 pages.

The brownie flavors themselves sometimes run to the unique, like Cherry and Coconut, Peanut Butter and Jam, or White Chocolate and Raspberry. But even those more everyday flavors benefit from Annie’s decorating expertise (like the malted milk brownies) or the “Love Hearts” which are adorable (and when have you ever used the word “adorable” to describe a plate of brownies?). Images accompany each recipe. This one uses grams and ounces, so be prepared.

The Ultimate Brownie Book: Thousands of Ways to Make America’s Favorite Treat, including Blondies, Frostings, and Doctored Brownie Mixes (2002) by Bruce Weinstein (Amazon) (eBay)

This 7.5 x 0.56 x 9.25 inch, 224-page cookbook does include a section on doctored up brownie mixes, which is a disappointment, but the rest of the many pages of recipes make up for this blunder.

All the recipes are different, so it’s not one of those “here’s a recipe” and then 1,021 variations of it. It is, however, a cookbook without any images. So, if you need images to get you through or to help you decide what to make, you won’t find it here.

I do like how the chapters keep blonde brownies and chocolate brownies separate. When I want chocolate (which is, admittedly, often) I don’t want to sort through non-chocolate items. Love frosted brownies like I do? He includes frosting recipes and suggestions to keep you in frosted brownie heaven.

Wild About Brownies (1985) by Barbara Albright and Leslie Weiner (Amazon) (eBay)

Get acquainted with brownie recipes in a 7 x 0.75 x 6.5 inch book that had me reading more than researching. “New” doesn’t always mean better, as the 139 pages of this 1985 book goes to show.

Chapters include: Basic Brownies, Chocolate Plus, Spirited Brownies, Layers and Toppings, Not by Chocolate Alone, No-Bake Brownies, On a Brownie Theme, and Brownie Sundaes.

Her Double Chocolate Brownies, for example, are baked, then immediately covered with foil, and whisked away to the fridge. She writes it “creates dense, fudgelike brownies,” while her Triple Chocolate Brownies use sweet, milk, and semisweet chocolate for a serious chocolate punch. Brownies! Brownies! Brownies! The authors loved them and you will too.

Cookbooks Featuring Brownies, Bars, and Cookies

You would be amazed by what you can give up, lose, or break, and yet still be a person who gets happy over brownies.

Augustan Burroughs

Brownies are in a category of their own, yet blend perfectly well with bar cookies and regular ol’ cookies. Lucky for us, brownies are often included in these other treat-themed cookbooks. It makes sense. I mean, if you want to bake something, and you are already leaning toward a cookie, but then you decide you want to make a bar cookie, a brownie isn’t much of a stretch.

Given the versatility of a brownie, the following cookbooks include brownie recipes you maybe haven’t seen before or at least some great new brownie bases. I look at it as a bonus: You’ll find new recipes for cookies and bars too. Don’t you love when things work out like that?

Have you baked from any of the following cookbooks? If so, what’s your favorite recipe? What do you find yourself turning to again and again? Ignore the groaning of my bookshelves. I want to know what you think.

The 250 Best Brownies, Bars and Squares (2013) by Esther Brody (Amazon) (eBay)

Roughly thirty brownie recipes cover a lot of bar cookie ground. Factor in the rest of the content, and you’ve got a 7 x 0.5 x 10 inch cookbook that’s going places or, at least, a brownie batter-filled pan that’s heading into the oven. Mmm!

Chapters include: Brownies, Chocolate Bars and Squares, Coconut Bars and Squares, Fruit Bars and Squares, Nut and Peanut Butter Bars and Squares, Specialty Bars and Squares, No-Bake Bars and Squares, Esther’s Special Favorites: With Thanks to Family and Friends, and Frostings and Glazes. What images are included are in full-color, but there just aren’t a lot in the 192-page cookbook.

But, it is brownies. Do you really need an image? I have the utmost in confidence you can figure it out (or will have fun trying).

365 Great Cookies and Brownies (1993) by Joanne Lamb Hayes and Bonnie Tandy Leblang (Amazon) (eBay)

You may be familiar with other cookbooks in the “365” series. Although written by different authors, they follow the same format: No images and a paperback 7 x 1 x 9.5 inch size or spiral-bound option. Some recipes include a little blip about the recipe (which I love), but otherwise, it’s page after page of sugary sweet recipes (and more than 250 pages).

Chapters include: A Spoonful of Sweetness, Rolling in Dough, In Great Shape, Ready and Waiting, In the Chips, Chocolately Brownies, Golden Brownies, Eve’s Temptation, Other Squares and Bars, American Classics, International Favorites, Holiday and Celebration Cookies, Quick and Easy, and Cookie Creations.

Browse through the pages and just try to choose one. German Chocolate Brownies, Fruit and Cream Cheese Brownies, Coconut Brownies, and Blackout Brownies: Oh my! Chocolate After-Dinner Mint Squares sound like something our youngest son would love, while the oldest would definitely go for Peanut Butter Brownie Sandwiches. Uncomplicated ingredients and a simple layout combine to make this a potential hit with every baker.

1500 Best Bars, Cookies, Muffins, Cakes, and More (2008) by Esther Brody (Amazon) (eBay)

If you want to considerably up your brownie-baking game, this is a chunky, hefty 7.75 x 1.38 x 10.5 inch cookbook containing 1500 recipes of Esther Brody’s favorites.

There will be a little overlap with the previous title, however, the 1500 version offers double the amount of brownie recipes as the smaller version. Chapters include: Classic Muffins; Wholesome Healthy Muffins; Low-Fat Muffins; Fruit and Vegetable Muffins; Quick-Mix and Microwave Muffins; Buffins, Cuffins, and Puffins (not a typo—those Canucks!); Muffins Just for Kids; Special Occasion Muffins; Drop-Cookies and Hand Shaped Cookies; Cut, Sliced, and Sandwich Cookies; Biscotti, Shortbread, and Holiday Cookies; Brownies and Chocolate Bars and Squares; Fruit Bars and Squares; Coconut, Nut and Peanut Butter Bars and Squares; No-Bake Cookies, Bars and Squares; Specialty Cookies, Bars and Squares; Cakes; Cheesecakes; Cupcakes; Pies and Tarts; Cobblers, Crumbles and Crisps; Popovers;, Turnovers and Scones; Custards, Crème Brûlée, and Flans; Mousses and Puddings; Esther’s Favorites; and (finally) Spreads, Toppings, Frostings, and Sauces. Whew!

As with the rest of the cookbooks by this publisher, it will not be packed with photos. Images are few and far between considering its 624 pages. If the size and heft of this cookbook doesn’t scare you, then do consider adding this to your “need” list if you could use a new baking-centered cookbook. And who couldn’t?

Alice Medrich’s Cookies and Brownies (2001) by Alice Medrich (Amazon) (eBay)

Alice Medrich is the winner of numerous James Beard awards for many of her cookbooks, introduced chocolate truffles to the US in the early 1970s, and is responsible for the “California truffle” (a lumpier, non-tempered truffle). #amazing

This 120-page cookbook doesn’t have a lot of brownie brownie recipes (and 25 images total), however, it does clue you in on the Steve method (which is totally worth it). Chapters include: Shortbread, Butter Cookies, Chocolate Cookies, Cookie Classics, Biscotti, and Brownies and Bars.

Sold yet? Or do I have to keep going? Okay, how about this: You will likely have the ingredients and the pans you need. BOOM! No wonder the first edition won the 1999 Best of the Best Award from Food and Wine Magazine—and there’s a newer version. Alice wrote, “My latest book, Chewy Gooey Crispy Crunchy Melt-in-Your-Mouth Cookies (2010), includes updated and expanded versions of the best recipes from Cookies and Brownies and much, much, much more.” For a couple extra bucks, you can snag a multitude of great recipes.

Best-Ever Cookie, Brownie & Bar Recipes (Everyday Cookbook Collection) (2017) by Gooseberry Patch (Amazon) (eBay)

It’s a 5.84 x 0.69 x 8.91 inch, community-sourced cookbook focusing on everything cookie, which of course contains brownies. That’s 150 recipes of sugary goodness.

Images are included, just not with every recipe. If you know these cookbooks, then you already know the format: Simple, no-frills recipes across 256 pages bedecked with the occasional cutesy country illustration.

Categories include: Cookie Jar Favorites, Cookies for Sharing, Celebration Cookies, Scrumptious Brownies, and Best Ever Bar Cookies. The number of brownies, and the variety, exceeded my expectations. I think you may find yourself pleasantly surprised as well.

Brownies & Bars: More Than 70 Inspiring Recipes (2005) by Liz Franklin (Amazon) (eBay)

Chapters include: Something Sticky, Something Sweet, Something Fruity, and Something Special. You won’t find “cup” measurements here. Everything is listed in grams and ounces. Again, not a lot of images, but there are at least images. You can do it! Besides, this cookbook features a slew of UK baked good kind of items. It makes sense, since I saw on Simon & Schuster that the author lived (lives?) in the South of England.

As with every other brownie book, you’ll find the basic recipes here too. But, since it’s a brownie AND bars cookbook, you’re about to put that brownie pan to good use! Toffee and Hazelnut Shortbread Crumble Bars, Banana and Nutmeg Custard Brownies, Sticky Pecan Slices, Iced Coconut Squares, and Caribbean Rum and Spice Bars are waving their little bar cookie hands, begging and pleading to be made.

Well, what would you expect from a finalist in the BBC TV’s MasterChef competition, who then created cooking segments for the BBC radio? If words like “Bakewell,” “treacle,” “slices,” and “sticky” intrigue you, you’ve got to get this book.

Brownies, Blondies, and Bars (2015) by Stephanie Brubaker (Amazon) (eBay)

Yes, the layout is a bit…wonky. It’s not the easiest cookbook to read with most recipes scattered over two pages, so you have a bit of page flipping here and there. It’s my opinion that the recipes are worth the hassle of page flipping. And, hey, there are images for every recipe, so it has that going for it too.

Chapters include: Brownies, Blondies, and Bars. It’s choosing between them that’s the hard part. Cherry Cordial Brownies, Coconut Almond Fudge Brownies, Chocolate-Covered Potato Chip Blondies, and Nutella Brownies with a Pretzel Crust need to just get in my belly already.

At 8.3 x 0.5 x 9.3 inches and 160 pages, it’s pretty clear how you’ll be spending the next few days. It’s the kind of cookbook that will make you excited to get in the kitchen and bake (and we can all use more of those).

Brownies, Blondies and Other Traybakes: Easy recipes for delicious treats (2012) by Ryland Peters & Small (Amazon) (eBay)

Different writers contributed recipes to this 7.5 x 0.6 x 9.25 inch, 160-page cookbook. I like that each writer contributed more than one recipe. If you find something you like, you can continue through, baking more brownies in a similar vein.

Chapters include: Sweet and Simple, Fabulously Fruity, Absolutely Nuts, Healthier and Wholesome, Little Kids and Big Kids, and Deliciously Different.

This is an English cookbook but measurements are in both cups and by weight. Isn’t that nice? Since it is a cookbook from overseas, it contains British goods like lamington, parkin, and moonies. Do I know what all of those things are? Nope. All the more reason to bake them.

Cooking Class: Chocolate Cookies and Brownies Cookbook (1994) by Publications International (Amazon) (eBay)

The premise behind this cookbook is to teach you how to make and bake cookies and brownies. This book isn’t big on brownie recipes compared to the amount of cookie recipes, yet it IS big on images. Every recipe includes a full-color image—and there aren’t only pics of the recipe.

Since the idea here is to help a baker gain confidence and learn the right techniques, each and every recipes includes three sidebar images highlighting a specific step. There could be an image showing how to melt butterscotch chips or beat in eggs.

Chapters in the 9 x 1/2 x 9 inch, 94-page book include: Quick as a Wink, Chips Galore, Family Favorites, Brownies, and Extra Special. Irish Brownies with Irish Cream Frosting is high on my list (because Bailey’s is amazing), as are Butterscotch Brownies, and Fudgy Bittersweet Brownie Pie. It has one of those padded, cushy covers. My copy is much-loved, and I’m eager to try the splattered pages, as that is always the best place to begin.

Dessert For Two: Small Batch Cookies, Brownies, Pies, and Cakes (2015) by Christina Lane (Amazon) (eBay)

When you don’t have to feed a crowd, flip open this 7.9 x 1 x 10.3 inch cookbook for homemade goods formulated to make less. Gone are the days of leftovers out the wazoo.

As the book blurb reads: “Dessert recipes typically serve eight to ten people. Finding the willpower to resist extra slices of cake can be difficult; the battle between leftover cookies and a healthy breakfast is over before it starts. Until now.” Christina proves it over 240 pages with these chapters: Cookies, Bars, Cakes, Southern Delights, and Candy.

You won’t need fancy pans. Use small pans, ramekins, muffin tins, or small pie pans. It’s the same kind of recipes, including the same amount of time, you would need for making the same kind of baked good, but the end result produces far less.

The Everything Cookies and Brownies Cookbook (2009) by Marye Audet (Amazon) (eBay)

It’s an oldie, but a mostly goodie. There are zero images and a few brownie mix-based recipes, but the assortment of brownies makes it a good find as a whole.

Helpful tips are sprinkled throughout the 8 x 0.9 x 9.25 inch book. Beginning bakers may especially appreciate the advice denoted with icons to let you know if it’s a fact, essential, alert, or a question as fits the call-out text. Everyone will appreciate the content.

Chapters include: All Kinds of Chips; Easy Drop Cookies; Brownies and Bars; Shaped Cookies; Rolled Cookies; The Best Cookies for Shipping; No-Bake Cookies; Just Like, Kids Can Bake!; Homemade for the Holidays; Exotic Favorites (International); Meringues; Cookies for Special Needs; Refrigerator Cookies; and Glazes, Fillings, and Frostings. Anyone needing to add a few more cookie and bar recipe books to their shelf will find over 300 pages to explore.

Fat Witch Bake Sale: 67 Recipes from the Beloved Fat Witch Bakery for Your Next Bake Sale or Party: A Baking Book (2014) by Patricia Helding (Amazon) (eBay)

Fat Witch Bakery opened in 1998 in Manhattan and, according to the book blurb, the bakery churned out 7500 brownies each day. Yeah. Every day. Mind boggling. I think it’s safe to say the Fat Witch Bakery knows a thing or two about brownies. Patricia began as a trader on Wall Street, baking brownies to unwind, before sharing her treats with coworkers. She ditched that career to open a bakery.

Get past a whole chapter devoted to setting up and running a bake sale, and you get to the good stuff. Red Velvet-Milk Chocolate Brownies, Pecan-Caramel Brownies, and Cookies and Dreams Brownies look amazing. Just amazing!

Chapters include: Chocolate, Chocolate, Chocolate; Here’s Baking for You, Kids; Halfway Healthy; Gluten-Free Goodies; Vegan Goodies; The Unexpected; Foreign Accents; Tipsy Treats; and Over-the-Top Icings. Images accompany each recipe in the 7.67 x 0.63 x 7.77 inch cookbook, not quite 200 pages long.

Favorite Brand Name Cookies and Brownies (1997) by Publications International (Amazon) (eBay)

These “Favorite Brand Name” cookbooks come in a variety of flavors. This one, however, is all about cookies and brownies. If you aren’t familiar with the concept, it’s a compilation of recipes from the back of boxes and bags. This 4.25 x 7 inch cookbook includes a lengthy list of participating companies.

These companies include: Best Foods, a Division of CPC International Inc.; Blue Diamond Growers; Domino Sugar Corporation; Kahlua Liqueur; Nestle Food Company; The Sugar Association; and a whole slew of other familiar faces. Chapters are broken down into: Chock-Full O’ Chips, Extra Easy, Family Favorites, Especially Elegant, Heavenly Holiday Treats, Best-Ever Bars, and Blockbuster Brownies.

As with the rest of the titles in this series, it lacks images and any sort of introduction. This cookbook dives right into recipes and keeps on truckin’. Frosted Maraschino Brownies, Coconut Crowned Cappuccino Brownies, Sensational Peppermint Pattie Brownies, and All-American Heath Brownies. Some recipes begin with a mix, but most are, fortunately, entirely homemade. If you need MOAR cookie and brownie recipes, here’s more than 300 pages of ’em.

The Flying Brownie: 100 Terrific Homemade Food Gifts for Friends and Loved Ones Far Away (2013) by Shirley Fan (Amazon) (eBay)

Okay so there are may be a dozen on-topic recipes in this cookbook, but the idea is so fun, I had to share it anyway. This cookbook is devoted to things that travel well. Ship care packages to friends and family wherever they are.

If that sounds like your current situation, then this book is for YOU. Shipping options, freshness details, and full-color images accompany the recipes. Chapters include: High-Flying Brownies and Bars, Cookies for the Road, Confections that Go the Extra Mile, Packable Loaves and Breads, Shippable Savories, Light as Air, and Assemble Upon Arrival.

When my husband was in the Navy (USS Abraham Lincoln, Nuke Mechanic), his grandma used to send him care packages of cookies with a checklist, asking if the cookies were good, undamaged, and a last box asking if he’d like her to send more. Cute. This spiral-bound, 7.88 x 1.13 x 8.25 inch, 176-page book would have been a boon.

The Ghirardelli Chocolate Cookbook: Recipes and History from America’s Premier Chocolate Maker (2007) by Ghiradelli Chocolate Company (Amazon) (eBay)

I know, I know. Four or five recipes relating to brownies does hardly a brownie cookbook make. But…Ghiradelli. I think the name is enough here, don’t you? I do enjoy their cocoa powder in my baked goods and their chocolate chips out of hand…fine, and in cookies too.

Chapters include: Chocolate Cookies; Chocolate Brownies and Bars; Chocolate Cakes, Cupcakes, and Tortes; Chocolate Pies, Tarts, and Other spectacular Desserts; Chocolate Candies and Bonbons; Chocolate Breads and Breakfast; and Anything-but-Boring Chocolate Drinks.

Did you know they began by selling chocolate drinks to miners during the Gold Rush? Combine it with the rest of the neat history of this old company, then add in the chocolate recipes in the 8.29 x 0.67 x 8.27 inch, 160-page book, and you won’t even notice the lack of images (some recipes include them, but not all). I think it’s a total win for any chocolate lover.

Good Housekeeping Brownies!: Favorite Recipes for Brownies, Blondies & Bar Cookies (2010) by Good Housekeeping (Amazon) (eBay)

This is a fun little 7 x 1 x 9.25 inch, 160-page book, if “little” equates to almost 100 recipes featuring brownies. Although you’ll find color photos throughout this cookbook, they do not accompany every recipe. I don’t miss them, but it’s worth mentioning in case you consider such a thing a deal-breaker.

Every recipe includes an active time and a total time so new bakers can better plan their brownie baking. It’s spiral-bound, but the spiral is on the inside, and it’s encased in a hard cover.

The chapters include Chocolate Indulgences, Blondies, Spice Bars, and Shortbread, Fruity Snack and Dessert Bars, Chockfull of Nuts, and Decorative Touches. I have it and love it.

Guittard Chocolate Cookbook: Decadent Recipes from San Francisco’s Premium Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Company (2015) by Amy Guittard (Amazon) (eBay)

I snacked on Guittard chocolate chips when I wrote my first book and would still use them to bake with if they were more easily accessible in my area. *sad panda* Crack the spine and you’ll find 60 recipes with 50 images across 184 pages.

Chapters include: Breakfast; Cookies; Brownies and Bars; Cakes, Cupcakes, Tarts, and Pie; Puddings, Bonbons, Fudge, and Confections; Chef’s Chapter; and Toppings.

There are, what, four brownie recipes in this book. However, it’s Guittard!, and since I included Ghirardelli, I had to include this one too (to be fair). This 8.13 x 0.63 x 10.13 inch, book offers up Guittard history and plenty of chocolaty recipes to make anyone’s day.

The Perfect Cookie: Your Ultimate Guide to Foolproof Cookies, Brownies & Bars (2017) by America’s Test Kitchen (Amazon) (eBay)

Is this a case of “don’t judge a book by its title?” Wait, that’s not a thing, is it? While it may seem as though a cookbook about cookies would leave out the humble brownie, don’t forget that brownies are considered bar cookies, not cakes.

Chapters in the 448-page, 8.88 x 1.19 x 10.31 inch cookbook include: Drop Cookies; Slice and Bake Sweets; Rolled, Shaped, and Pressed; Sublime Sandwich Cookies; Let’s Get Fancy; Brownies and Blondies; Bar Cookies; No-bake Cookies and Candies; Christmas Cookies; and You’ll Never Know They’re Gluten-Free. Images don’t necessarily accompany every recipe, but they will pair with any particular instructions. You won’t be left all by your lone.

Roughly a dozen different brownies made it into the book. While that may not seem like a lot, and, okay, it isn’t, if you are familiar with the brand, you know they have an attention to detail and getting things right. New bakers will learn a ton.

Taste of Home Best of Country Brownies and Bars (2009) (Amazon) (eBay)

At 112 pages, this won’t be the largest cookbook of brownies and bars that you own, but for Taste of Home fans, that won’t even matter.

As you likely already know, Taste of Home includes images with each recipe, so you always know what you are getting yourself into. With more than 200 brownie and bar cookie recipes, you can get into plenty of delicious desserts and snacks.

If you love the crowd-sourced aspect of Taste of Home, then you’ll want to add this one to your TOH collection.

Taste of Home Brownies and Bars: Indulge in More than 300 Favorites (2017) by Taste of Home (Amazon) (eBay)

You know the TOH brand as a community cookbook sort of thing. Folks send in their best recipes, along with a usually minute selection of TOH test kitchen recipes, and form the basis for everything publication. This 7 x 0.6 x 9 inch cookbook is no different which is why we love TOH, amIright?

Basic brownies and unusual brownie recipes are all right here in one handy dandy book. Chapters include: Baking Perfect Brownies and Bars, Chocolate Sensations, Fruit-Filled Favorites, Caramel, Nuts and More, Frosted Bites, Time-Saving Treats, and Brownie Desserts.

Icons will help you know whether a recipe feeds a crowd or uses five or fewer ingredients. It’s a helpful feature great for anyone who flips between entertaining and great food fast.

Brownie Cookbooks for a New Twist

Is that a FUN list of brownie cookbooks or what? It’s hard to decide what to look through next. While your brownies are baking, and the kitchen tidied, take a moment to read over the history of brownies. It’s not only surprising, but incredibly interesting. I think you’ll enjoy it.

If you, like me, read cookbooks like book books, please do feel free to share with me a few of your favorite reads. Of course, you know I’d love to know about the cookbooks you actually use, too. It’s the best way to figure out what to read or bake from next.

As for me, I think I’m going to go make some brownies. Who’s with me?

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