Clarification I made the pioneer woman’s ( Ree Drummond) Texas sheet cake recipe many times, adding little bit of cofffee for depth of flavor
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/the_best_chocol/
Whether something is a good brownie recipe or not is so dependent on personal taste. I like brownies ONLY if there are tons of nuts in them. I want the ratio to be mostly nuts with a little bit of brownie dough holding the nuts together. I feel the same way about chocolate chip cookies. The nuts temper the sweetness for me.
Another vote Ghirandelli brand. They are simply delicious and you have your choice of different types. You can add nuts, or not, sprinkle powder sugar on top, or not. And it is easy,
I cook more than I bake, at least that is what I have been saying for a long time as I get more and more into baking. I don’t like mixes of anything as a rule . mostly because they use a lot of oil and ingredients that one cannot pronounce
Baking is a lot like chemistry in that the measurements have to be precise ( with the exception of breads )
I prefer less processed ingredients than any mix can offer.
I have experimented with basic recipes , such as blonde brownies and come up with variations that range from chocolate based to fruit based and they have worked out well. I happen to love pumpkin and have tried variations , but no luck with making this work as a brownie