Slow-Cooker Brownies: An Experiment

I'm trying to figure out creative ways to use my slow-cooker in order to keep my oven off this summer. So, I found a recipe via Martha Stewart for these slow-cooker brownies and decided to try them out...

Ingredients...

• nonstick cooking spray
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 6 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

I started by lightly coating my slow-cooker with cooking spray, lining the bottom with parchment paper and then coating that with cooking spray. If I ever made these again, I think I would line the entire inside of my slow-cooker with aluminum foil instead (I'll explain this at the bottom of the post). Now, for the actual batter... in a small bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt. Melt butter and chocolate together. Add sugar and stir to combine.

Stir in the eggs and then add this mixture to your flour mixture. Add the chocolate chips last.

Transfer the batter to your slow-cooker. Cover and cook on low for about 4 hours. Uncover and cook for another 30 minutes.

Let the brownies cool before attempting to remove them. As you can see, I didn't and they came out in two pieces. Let cool completely on a wire rack.

Now, these brownies are good, don't get me wrong. The problem is that the outsides bake much faster than the middle... leaving the middle gooey and the outsides hard. This is why if I attempted to make these again, I would probably line the entire inside of the slow-cooker with aluminum foil that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Not only would that possibly help them bake more evenly, it would definitely make them easier to remove from the slow-cooker.