These Fudgy Vegan Gluten-Free Low-Fat Brownies are made with white beans in the food processor with no bowl required! These are the most decadent, rich and fudgy brownies without the guilt! You will truly be amazed that these are so low-fat!
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FUDGY VEGAN LOW-FAT BROWNIES
I get excited about many, many recipes I share on this blog…obviously, or I wouldn’t share them. But today’s recipe has me OMG so excited. While I’m ok with some fat, I know many of my readers simply try to avoid a large amount due to health problems and nut allergies as well. And who in the world wouldn’t want to eat more brownies if they could because they are super low-fat?? *All hands raised* Well, friends, these are LOW-FAT brownies that don’t TASTE low-fat.
These Fudgy Vegan Low-Fat Brownies are only 2.6 g of fat per brownie!! But don’t let that fool you, these are rich, decadent and do not taste low-fat at all.
WHAT INGREDIENTS DO I NEED TO MAKE VEGAN FUDGY BROWNIES?
First, you will need a food processor and to gather these ingredients:
- White Beans
- Cocoa powder
- Oat Flour
- Maple Syrup
- Applesauce
- Vanilla
- Baking Powder
- Chocolate Chips
WHY I LOVE THESE LOW-FAT VEGAN BEAN BROWNIES
Now, I typically am not a fan of low-fat desserts because they tend to taste like crap, sorry. To me, there is no point in eating a dessert if it’s healthy, yet it’s boring, bland and not enjoyable. In fact, why bother? I want to enjoy my dessert! But when my reader Diana wrote me awhile back begging me to recreate a healthier low-fat, oil and nut-free version of my Double Chocolate Sunflower Brownies, I could not let her down. She and her hubby have fallen in love with those brownies and made them regularly. That is until her hubby’s doctor said he needed to avoid nuts and even seeds, and to greatly reduce his fat intake for health reasons.
HOW TO MAKE THE BEST VEGAN BEAN BROWNIES
The secret? Cannellini White Beans!
Don’t add an alarming amount of beans! Too many beans will obviously be impossible to cover up the detection of beans. I want the beans for fudginess but I don’t want to just be eating beans…
Add enough cocoa powder! We want our brownies to taste like chocolate, right
I literally had this idea one night while laying in bed and wondered if it would truly work. Now, I know bean desserts are not a new thing, they’ve been around for years. Black beans and chickpeas are a big thing in brownies and bars. The only problem I’ve found with them? I always taste them. Sooo that is why I wondered if the white beans would work. I also don’t like seeing black bean skins in my desserts…I’m such a visual eater, that it doesn’t work for me. Cannellini beans totally worked because they hardly have any taste to them!
Sooooo, if you haven’t had success with bean desserts before, I urge you to try these.
Now, I know that adding ice cream on top defeats the low-fat factor, but that is for those who aren’t concerned with the fat. These brownies are so low-fat that a nice scoop of my Vegan Vanilla Cheesecake Ice Cream with a sprinkle of espresso powder sent me straight to brownie heaven.
Looking for more vegan brownie recipes?
- Zucchini Brownies
- Double Chocolate Sunflower Brownies
- Fudgy Coconut Butter Brownies
- Chocolate Pumpkin Cake Brownies
- Raw “Nutella” Brownies
- No Bake Brownies with Raspberry Glaze
Fudgy Vegan Low-Fat Brownies
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup (150g) of canned white cannellini beans, drained and rinsed well and patted dry
- 3/4 cup + 3 tablespoons (300g) pure maple syrup (seems like a lot, but there's a high amount of cocoa, so it's necessary for them not to be bitter)
- 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (90g) unsweetened applesauce
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (8g) vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup (72-90g) unsweetened cocoa powder. I really packed mine in to get 90 grams because I like a RICH chocolate taste. If you prefer more sweet, then ONLY DO 72 grams!
- 1 cup (128g) superfine oat flour (I use Bob's Red Mill)
- Optional: 1 teaspoon dried espresso powder for a richer taste
- 6 heaping tablespoons (95g) dairy-free chocolate chips (the larger ones really work best in these versus the mini ones. I used Trader Joes)
- I use this scale.
NOTE
- Always use a scale for accuracy when baking, following MY gram weights listed. You never need cups, just the scale and bowl.
Instructions
- Preheat an oven to 350°F (177°C) and lightly spray an 8x8 metal square pan with nonstick spray. I found these to cook much better in a metal pan than a stoneware dish.
- Add the beans, syrup, applesauce, baking powder, vanilla and salt to a food processor and blend for a minute. Scrape the top and sides and then add the cocoa powder and oat flour. Process for a minute or so. Scrape down the sides very well and process again for another 1-2 minutes. Walk away and let it run until completely smooth. It should be smooth and thick, like the consistency of a nut butter. Don't judge the result by the taste of the batter (if you try it) because it tastes slightly beany, but not at all once baked! Add the chocolate chips and give it a good stir around the bowl with a spoon to incorporate them, but don't blend them.
- Spread the batter into the pan, making sure to scrape out ALL of the batter from the processor, including underneath the blade. I used a skinny rubber spatula to get it all out and spread the top of the batter flat and out to the corners of the pan. Dampen the spatula with water to help if necessary, as it will be thick and sticky. Sprinkle extra chocolate chips all over the top and make sure to gently press them into the batter, so they remain in tact while baking.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes when they are slightly puffed up and the top is firm. I removed mine at 27 minutes. Do 25 minutes for a more fudgy brownie and closer to 30 for a more dry/firm brownie. I felt 27 mins was perfect. Fudgy, moist and firm. They will seem a bit undercooked at removal but will continue cooking and firm up as they cool, trust me. Let them cool at least 20 minutes before slicing them. If not avoiding fat intake, then serve with my Vanilla Cheesecake Ice Cream!
- Once they are completely cooled, cover the pan tightly with foil and keep stored at room temperature or transfer to a sealed container. This will keep them moist for a couple of days.
Will this work with chickpeas and if so, how many cups? Also, will it work with Walden Farms calorie free maple syrup? Thanks!
Following up on my own comment so I can select to be notified when you reply.
Hi Alexz! Unfortunately, I am not a fan of chickpeas in brownies, which is why I use white beans. To me, chickpeas are too strong of a flavor and are not nearly as creamy or blend as smooth as white beans, so I personally wouldn’t recommend it or vouch for the results. As far as that syrup, I have no idea since I only use pure maple syrup. Usually those calorie-free syrups are artificial ingredients and corn syrup or fake sweeteners and I’m not a fan of the taste so I can’t say how it would taste with it. You are certainly welcome to experiment though! I just can’t say since I’ve not tried it.
These are amazingly good! Don’t overcook! Next time I will use less maple syrup though. Very sweet. Maybe use only the 3/4 c
Which flours can I substitute for oat? Tapioca?
Hi Joan, no tapioca won’t work in place of oat flour. Tapioca is a starch that binds things and would make these extremely dense and hard to eat. You could try brown rice flour or spelt flour would actually be the best sub in place of the oat flour.
I love this! It tasted so good, even my parents!
Wonderful! So glad you enjoyed it!
Brandi!!!!! I don`t know how they are going to turn out, they are in the oven right now, but this is the most delicious brownie batter I have ever taste!!!! I couldn`t stop eating it, problably I had half of the batter before put in the oven!!! Can`t thank you enought, even if turns out a disaster after baked, it`s already a winner!!!! Love, Tati
Yay! Hahaha, I know, the batter is yummy but the baked brownies taste even better. These are one of my most popular recipes, so I hope you loved them baked as well!
Hi Brandi, I finally got round to making these Brownies, and I think they taste ok but probably too cocoa-y. (This from someone who relishes 90% chocolate, so you know, it’s not because i’m a wuss where cocoa is concerned!) I just now measured out 3/4 cup of cocoa, and weighed it and even packing it down (and probably getting nearer to 7/8 cup) i can only get it to weigh 60g. Knowing that weighed ingredients are more accurate I had put the full 90g in mine. Then i saw someone else had noticed this discrepancy! So my question is, when you make them, are you using cup measure or weighing out the full 90g? Could it be an error? Don’t get me wrong, they are perfectly edible, but probably need ice cream to offset the intensity. I will probably try them again going with less cocoa to see if I can get them better!
Thanks for your blog!
Hi Jane! No, 90g is correct and what I use. Are you sure you aren’t using dark cocoa? Because these are plenty sweet. I’ve had hundreds of reviews on these and they’ve all been excellent with only one other person that mentioned that about the cocoa. I haven’t heard that before from others. I know several readers that have made them weigh it as well. So, the only thing I can think is maybe the cocoa brand is different. I use plain Hershey’s natural unsweetened cocoa, NOT the dark cocoa. If I pack in a tablespoon of cocoa powder, I get 7-8g and that comes to 90g. I always use grams with all of my recipes when I make them. I basically measure with the cups and pat them down and weigh it and then post what that measurement is, that way the results are accurate for readers. But if you feel you want them less chocolatey, then definitely use less. You are using the full amount of syrup, correct? That should be more than enough to counteract the sweetness, as well as the chocolate chips! I hope that helps some. Just use less cocoa I guess next time! 🙂
Thanks so much for replying Brandi! I was using raw cacao, it didn’t seem especially dark but it may be compared to Hersheys – we don’t have that brand here in Australia. Anyway, no worries at all, I will simply adjust next time! Or i might make one of your other delectable sounding brownie recipes instead!!!! 🙂
Hi Jane! Yes, raw cacao actually has a bit of a stronger chocolate taste, so that could definitely be it. But yes, just add less next time and taste the batter. The chocolate chips, make sure they are semi-sweet, not bittersweet, that could make a big difference in the taste as well 🙂
Oh and yes, try these or these! 2 very big reader favorites. The sunflower ones are actually my favorite and the coconut ones are just like traditional brownies 🙂
https://thevegan8.com/2015/04/22/vegan-double-chocolate-sunflower-brownies/
https://thevegan8.com/2014/01/28/vegan-fudgy-coconut-butter-brownies/
I have a documented deficiency when it comes to baking. I’m horrible at it. Horrible. This is what makes this recipe so amazing!! I’ve made it multiple times and it has always turned out awesome. I even mixed it up and added mint chocolate and peppermint candies at Christmas. So good!!
So very awesome to hear how much you loved these, thank you so much for the great review! The mint sounds so yummy!
Hello.
Can I replace apple sauce with mashed banana?
Hi Erika! I’ve never personally tried it so I can’t say for sure, but you can certainly try! Just make sure it’s really smooth purées.
Finally made these, with some trepidation because although I always love your stuff, I haven’t loved bean brownies…until now! You are so right—white beans rather than black make all the difference! Fudgy, delicious, moist. Perfect texture. The only difference I may make in the future is putting some cacao nibs instead of the extra chocolate chips on top since they took a while to firm up and the cacao nibs would add some crunch and less fat (although these are so low-fat to begin with). I did feel a little guilty using all that maple syrup, but raw cacao is a health food, so I figure I was definitely counterbalancing it.
I thought it was brilliant of you to warn people not to taste the raw batter since it could taste beany but to have faith that the finished product wouldn’t. You think of everything!
You’ve done it again!
Thank you so much for your kind review Ellen! So very happy you loved these so much! Haha, yeah, I’m pretty darn picky and although several readers have stated they loved the batter, I personally tasted beans, so I needed that warning, haha.
are you suppose to use canned beans for these? i have cannellini beans. but they are dry. some clarification would be nice here. thank you
Yes, definitely, canned. Dry beans wouldn’t blend up too well, as they are dry and hard. I have listed to drain and rinse the beans, which means from a can. Yes, you can most definitely cook your own beans first, and then measure.
ON MY GOODNESS! These are so good! Thank You so much for sharing this recipe! It’s been so hard for me to find a good treat that is both began & gluten-free.
Oh that is so fabulous to hear Susan, thank you so much for the awesome review!
These are fantastic! Followed your recipe to the T! Next time I will get the big dairy free chips verses the minis…..other than that, what a treat! To think these are made with beans. No one would be the wiser. Thank you for this amazing recipe!
Oh Yay Kristy! I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you so much for such a fantastic review, I really appreciate it! If you get a chance to leave a star rating, that would be awesome, they help me out so much. Thank you for making them!
These are by far, our favorite brownie recipe! I made them tonight with a swirl of cream cheese mixed with powdered sugar for a ‘zebra’ effect. Love! Pic is on Instagram:)
Yippee! Best review, thank you so much Nina! I ran over to IG and saw your amazing pic of the swirl in the brownies, omg, great idea! I’m so happy you all loved them so much!
What type of cocoa powder did you use?
Just regular unsweetened natural cocoa powder by Hershey’s. Not the dark cocoa.
These are amazing! My kids loved the brownie batter!
So happy to hear that Cheryl, thank you for sharing!
I have to tell you…I just made your Fudgy Vegan Low-Fat Brownies and they are to DIE for! Amazingly, unbelievably fudgy and chewy! They are PERFECT! I’ve made black bean brownies before, but these are way, WAY better! Thanks for sharing!
I’m so glad you loved these Tammy! Thank you for the wonderful review!!
Wow! White beans really were a surprise ingredient for me! but they turned out better than I couldve imagined, I feared you may be able to taste the “bean” haha
Haha nope! Was my goal to completely disguise them! So glad you loved these!
I just made these and they are spectacular!!! So fudgy and delicious. I used great northern beans and added a bit extra maple syrup. We ate them fresh out of the oven and I cooked them just under 25 mins. so they were perfectly fudgy. Thank you so much for creating not only a vegan but very low-fat version of brownies!!!! I can’t wait to serve them next time with some banana “nice” cream. I’m also going to try a version with carob powder for my mom who cannot have cocoa because of the caffeine in it. Thank you again for this fantastic recipe!!!
Woohoo, so happy to hear that Julia, thank you so much for the incredible review!
Wondering if you got around to making these with carob? If so, how did they turn out? Did you also leave out chps for your mom or did you find carob chips?
Brandi, I just made these and they are without a doubt, the best brownies I have ever eaten! Thank you, thank you, thank you! I made these exactly as you said going with lots of cocoa!DELISH!!!!!
Yay Helen! This thrills me so much to hear! Thank you so much for the awesome feedback!!
I have been doing a whole foods plant based diet for 6 weeks to lower my blood pressure – but my sweet tooth has been suffering! Then I made these brownies, and O.M.G. Really. These are outstanding, and you are a genius!!!!
That is awesome to hear Jenny, thank you so much for making them!
Hello,
great reviews. I do not have a food processor. Can I make these with a hand mixer?
Hi Mary, hmm, that will be tough because the beans need to be completely pureed to a smooth consistency. A hand mixer won’t quite do that well and you would end up with an odd texture of the brownies with bits of beans throughout. Do you have a blender? Perhaps have a food processor you could borrow from someone?
I have searched long and hard for the perfect fudgy, oil free, plant based brownie recipe and this is it! I reduced the syrup to 250g and they were still plenty sweet and not a hint of bean! I am traveling, so I only had my ninja bullet rather than my full size food processor. I blended the wet ingredients in the bullet and then whisked in the cocoa and flour until incorporated, then beat well with a spatula. Just wanted to add that note in case anyone is considering not making these fabulous brownies due to equipment issues 😉 Thank you so much!
Aww thank you so much Ainslee! That is so wonderful to hear how much you loved these!
I just made these and cannot believe how delicious they turned out (even though I accidentally overbaked them:() I ate (read: licked) whatever batter was left in the food processor and even though I love beans and bean desserts, I didn’t taste them in the batter.Oh, btw, my house smelles like chocolate heaven! Brandi, please be my roommate. 🙏❤️😂
Haha, I’m thrilled to hear this Sherri!! So happy you loved them! Thank you so much for making them!
You continue to amaze me each time I try one of your recipes!! These are so fudgy with just enough sweetness to satisfy. Zero bean taste and my kids gobbled them up without even knowing how healthy they are! Thank you once again for knocking it out of the park!! On to the next recipe!
That is so amazing Amanda! Especially with the kiddos gobbling them up! I was determined that these would have no weird taste or bean taste, haha!
I was hoping to make this recipe with my kids, but my usual stock of white beans is out and I’m avoiding going out during this COVId-19 era. Have you used canned pinto beans for this recipe? Would that work? I do have black beans too, but it seems from comments here that the white beans trump it. Please let me know if you think pinto beans will work…. I’ve never made any bean brownies so I can’t imagine. Thank you in advance!
Hi Janu, I apologize, I missed this comment! Hopefully by now you’ve been able to get some white beans! I don’t think pinto would taste very good in these, to be honest.
Thank You for such a good healthy brownie recipe. We love them, this will now be my go-to brownie recipe!
You are welcome, so glad you loved it!
I LOVE these brownies! First of all, I have tried other black bean brownie recipes which I found to be pretty unpalatable so I was skeptical when I tried this recipe but I was pleasantly surprised when these came out of the oven! I taste tested these on my carnivore eating boyfriend and he couldn’t stop talking about how great they tasted! This recipe will be my new go to as a dessert option….or even breakfast 😉
I did leave out the chocolate chips since I was completely out and only used 100g of maple syrup since that’s all I had remaining in the jar when I went to make these!
That is so fantastic to hear Mary!! Yes, I know what you mean, I do not like black bean brownies at ALL. You can always detect the beans no matter what. So happy you and your boyfriend loved these!
I’ve always wanted to try these but never got around to making them. Thank heavens my husband is now perusing recipes since we started eating vegetarian. He saw a recipe and I said “wait!” Use Brandi’s recipe. He actually made 2 different recipes – one using black beans and this one using white beans. This recipe won hand’s down and smashed the competition. Event better, I just got to eat them. These will be made again and again. Only issue is the chocolate chips keep falling off the top so I may suggest they either be folded into the batter or left off? (I diidn’t make them so I’d have to review the recipe to see if this works.) Thanks Brandi for all the chocolate recipes that keep me going!
Make this and you’ll be amazed!
can you make these without the chocolate chips? I really need to go as low fat as possible for a heart condition Thank you
Hi Alice, yes, if you are okay with them being less sweet, then yes, they will still work!
Hi Alice! Did you make this without the choc chips? I’m curious how it turned out for you? 🙂
Well, I gave it my all and I must have done something wrong. I used a scale like a pro and everything but it burned out my vitamix 3 times and once baked what I ended up with is similar to rubber and not very sweet for what I consider a very high amount of sugar to portion ratio such a bummer! It must be the brand differences or something… because clearly your version n is good!
I think you did something wrong. Mine didn’t come out like rubber. They were thick and fudgy. I didn’t use the chocolate chips. She probably recommends the chocolate chips because without them it’s not too good. Lacks lots of sweetness.
Hi! Yes, the chocolate chips are meant to be part of the recipe. There is a lot of syrup in these so I do not find them lacking sweetness at all. However, I do not like my brownie base to be overly sweet if there is chocolate chips added, which provides the perfect balance of sweetness with the rich chocolate flavor. So that would be why yours maybe didn’t taste sweet enough, you definitely aren’t supposed to leave out the chocolate chips. They taste balanced, so add them for sure.
Hi can I use black beans in this?
No it must be white beans. I’ve gone into detail in the post why white beans are used. There are lots of black bean brownies recipes online if that’s what you’re looking for but the white beans are far superior in taste and texture in this recipe.
What would the calories be for these with dark chocolate chips not dairy free? I’m not sure how to count it out.
Hi there. I have no idea, because I don’t know what brand of chocolate chips you would be using. Every brand will vary. The best way for you to figure it out is to look in the back of your bag that you’re using. All the nutritional info is on there. Just multiply the serving listed by how much you add and then divide that into the number of brownies you cut them into.
Also, I list to use semi-sweet to balance how dark chocolate the brownie base is. So if you use dark chocolate, be prepared for them to be quite bitter and not very sweet.
Ok so what about the calories from the brownies do I add that to the calories from the chocolate. Also my chocolate is only 49% dark would that work?
If they are about 49% dark, then that isn’t considered dark chocolate, but semi-sweet, so just use the nutrition stats given for the recipe. That is the closest you will get. Since many brands can greatly vary, I can’t give you an exact, other than what I used specifically for my recipe. There are many nutrition calculators online that you can use if you want to plug in your specific ingredients, like caloriecount .com
can I use great northern beans instead?
Yes, any white bean will work, just don’t use black beans. Way different taste and texture.
My brand has 170 calories in it does that help?
These are amazing!!!
So glad to hear that, thank you Cyndee!
Hi!
I would like to try this recipe but with a smaller amount of maple syrup and using organic raw stevia instead. What would you recommend the proportion of maple syrup and stevia to be?
Thanks!
Hi Rita, I’m so sorry, but I never use stevia and have no idea how to tell you to adjust the recipe for that and it still turn out right. The maple syrup is part of the liquid ratio, so you can’t just omit or reduce it or it will affect the texture of the brownies. You can try replacing some with milk, but again, they bake up differently (syrup versus milk) so you’ll just have to experiment.
i want to soak my canneli beans and then cook them. and then can i use them in the recipe? you do not say what bean to use, cooked or dried? can we soak them?
Hi! I have made this recipe a few times and love it dearly. However, I am wondering if I can swap the maple syrup for honey? If so, would I use a little less honey due to it being thicker than maple syrup?
Hi Hannah! I’ve never tried it with honey so I can’t say for sure. I do know honey is much thicker and much sweeter, so you could probably use the same amount since the brownies are so dark/bitter, but might need a tablespoon or so of milk to get a similar batter consistency.
I made theses today because Im trying to find recipes that are no oil and vegan. I used canned navy beans because only white bean I had. Accidentally used entire can. Oops. I used dark chocolate chips because, again, it was all I had. However they are really good and not quite as sweet as traditional vegan brownies. I’m sure it’s because I used dark chocolate. Thank you for this great recipe that will be my go to with a few adjustments to chocolate!
So glad you loved them! Yes, using dark chocolate will make them much less sweet/more bitter!
This will be in our regular dessert rotation. I topped it with dandy marshmallows and vegan chips and it was really good. I also reduced the maple syrup to 1/2 cup and made up the liquid with a 1/4 cup of almond milk. Very good.