Step 1

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9x9 baking sheet with parchment paper.

Step 2

In a bowl, stir together the brownie mix, melted butter, eggs, and water. Stir in chocolate chips. Batter will be thick.

Step 3

Spread batter into 9x9 pan. Bake approx 26-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center of the brownies comes out mostly clean (a few crumbs are ok). If the toothpick comes out covered in chocolate, that means you've hit a chocolate chip, so test again in another spot.

Step 4

During the last five minutes of bake time, mix up the fudge frosting. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat.

Step 5

Take the saucepan off the heat and whisk in the cocoa, water, vanilla, and salt. Mixture will be thick and may look a little grainy.

Step 6

Whisk in the powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time. Continue whisking until frosting is smooth and glossy.

Step 7

Poor frosting on hot brownies and spread out if needed. Allow brownies to cool COMPLETELY, 4-6 hours, before serving.