Which food writer identified the 1899 'Brownie cake' as a proto-brownie?

Food writer Stella Parks identified the 1899 “Brownie cake” as a proto-brownie.

Parks examined early American baking evidence and described a recipe published in a 1899 Chicago cookbook as a “proto-brownie”—an early predecessor rather than necessarily the first modern brownie. The recipe was for an unleavened chocolate cake, giving it the dense format associated with brownies while still differing from many later formulas.

The date matters because brownie history is not tied to one universally accepted invention. Several early recipes appeared around the turn of the twentieth century, and some early brownies were blond or spice-based rather than chocolate. The 1899 recipe is important because it combines the name “Brownie cake” with chocolate and an unleavened preparation.

Parks is also known for her baking work and the cookbook BraveTart: Iconic American Desserts. A common mistake is to treat her identification as proof that she invented brownies or that the 1899 recipe was identical to today’s fudgy squares. Her point is historical: it is an early documented ancestor in the evolution of the dessert.