The BEST Healthy Vegan Gluten-free Brownies that are so fudgy, oil-free, nut-free and so rich, chocolatey, fudgy, (not cakey) and are incredibly moist. Dairy-free, egg-free and made with only 8 ingredients and all made in a food processor.
BEST HEALTHY VEGAN GLUTEN-FREE BROWNIES
Warning: the following post will produce extreme salivation. You have been warned. To me, a brownie that decides to call itself a brownie should require these characteristics: dense, fudgy, chewy and very chocolatey. Cakey brownies, step aside. You are not brownies, you are cake. Accept it and move on. These are the vegan brownies you want in your life.
These healthy vegan brownies are gluten-free, nut-free, oil-free, coconut-free and kid-friendly. Bonus that these only have 8 ingredients (+ salt & water)! These oil-free vegan brownies are just as rich and decadent, but much healthier. See all my oil-free baking tips and guide here!
These are some of the best brownies I’ve ever had and I’m not exaggerating. It doesn’t matter if they are vegan brownies or gluten-free brownies. What is shocking about that statement is that these are filled with ingredients that you would NEVER expect in a brownie recipe. Ya know, like the expected all-purpose flour, butter, sugar and eggs.
So, what’s the main secret ingredient?
Yes, sunflower kernels make it possible for all of you nut-free folks out there. You can now have your brownies and eat them too.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED
- Raw, unsalted sunflower kernels: These provide all the fat that normally oil or butter would provide. Using the sunflower seeds makes these extra fudgy and rich, but healthier.
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Pure maple syrup
- Baking powder
- Brown rice flour: This keeps these vegan brownies gluten-free and whole grain.
- Oat flour: Using oat flour also keeps these gluten-free and provides a bit of chewy brownie texture that we all love.
- Vanilla
- Dairy-free semi-sweet chocolate chips: I use Enjoy Life.
HOW TO MAKE VEGAN GLUTEN-FREE BROWNIES
Step 1: Make the brownie batter. Add just the sunflower kernels to a food processor and process into a flour. Add the remaining ingredients and blend for several minutes until completely smooth and no bits of seeds remain.
Step 2: Transfer the batter to a bowl. Add the chocolate chips and stir.
Step 3: Bake the brownies. Add the batter to a loaf pan and bake at 350°F for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with sticky crumbs, not wet batter and not dry.
Step 4: Cool 45 minutes to an hour before cutting. This is important so they hold together and not fall apart, which cutting them while warm will yield crumbly brownies.
TIPS FOR SUCCESS
- Use a scale: This is so important for baking, especially vegan gluten-free baking. Without eggs, traditional flour or oil, precision is key!
- Follow the recipe closely: Omitting any step will affect the outcome and texture. It’s imperative to blend the ingredients as instructed until completely smooth. This is how the brownies turn out fudgy and hold together.
MORE VEGAN BROWNIE RECIPES TO TRY
- Vegan Peppermint Brownies
- Vegan Fudgy Coconut Butter Brownies
- Vegan Fudgy Zucchini Brownies
- Chocolate Pumpkin Cake Brownies
- Raw Brownies with Raspberry Coulis
- Fudgy Vegan Low-Fat Brownies
UPDATE: I originally wrote this recipe using the Oriya protein powder. However, I NO longer use the protein powder, I only use the flours listed below now. The specific protein powder that I used in the recipe is no longer available and therefore do NOT recommend protein powders in the recipe anymore because so many will yield an unpleasant aftertaste, so please use the flours listed.
If you make this recipe, be sure to leave feedback below and share your pic on Instagram or Facebook and tag me @thevegan8 #thevegan8!
Healthy Vegan Gluten-free Brownies (So Fudgy!)
Ingredients
- 1 cup (140g) raw, unsalted sunflower kernels (Do NOT use roasted or you will get an aftertaste!)
- 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (36g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/2 cup (160g) pure maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons (10g) vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (90g) water
- 3 tablespoons (30g) brown rice flour (Or sub with 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons (16g) oat flour (or sub with 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour if you can't tolerate oats)
- 1/4 heaping cup (60g) + extra on top dairy-free chocolate chips
NOTE
- This makes a small amount in a loaf pan, so if you want a larger batch, double the recipe and use an 8x8 pan. If you want to use all regular all-purpose flour, then leave out the oat flour and brown rice flour and just use 1/4 cup (32g) all-purpose flour in place of both. The texture was slightly more cakey/puffy with the all-purpose flour. I preferred the more dense/fudgy texture using the gluten-free flours, but both are delicious .
NOTE
- As always, I recommend highly to use a scale to prevent room for error. You don't need cups or to compare the weights to cups, just simply follow the weights listed, as this is exactly how the recipes are tested and made. Make sure to zero out before adding each ingredient.
- I use this scale.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C) and spray WELL a 9X5 loaf pan with nonstick spray. I tried some with parchment paper and didn't like how they stuck to the paper and were more fragile.
- Add the sunflower kernels to a food processor and process for 30 seconds until a flour is formed. Add the cocoa powder, baking powder and salt and process again until just mixed.
- Add the syrup, vanilla and water and process for 3 minutes or so until completely smooth. Scrape the sides down and process for a few more seconds. It should be COMPLETELY SMOOTH and no chunks of sunflower kernels left before adding the flours next. If it's not all mixed and smooth, you will end up with dry crumbly brownies since the fat from the sunflower kernels is what makes these so fudgy!
- Add the brown rice flour and oat flour (or all-purpose flour) and process again until it is all blended and thick like a smooth nut-butter consistency. Add the batter to a bowl and make sure to scrape out all of that chocolatey goodness. Stir in the chocolate chips.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread out evenly to the corners. Place extra chocolate chips on top.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes depending on your oven. I would suggest checking yours at 35 minutes. I took mine out closer to 40 minutes. Here is the thing, these will not look done based on the top of the brownies, but will form that shiny firm top AFTER they are out of the oven cooling. Do not check for a clean toothpick either, it will not come out clean. It shouldn't be wet batter, but more of a sticky batter. The edges should be firm and have slightly pulled away from the pan. If you are doing a version with all of all-purpose flour in place of the oat and brown rice flours, then they were done at 35 minutes and just slightly more cakey/puffy.
- Cool for 45 minutes to an hour, with no exception. They will fall apart if you try to remove them earlier. Carefully cut them with a smooth sharp knife. Gently remove the first brownie and then the others by sliding a spatula underneath. Then they will firm up considerably even more as they sit on a plate. They will be firm, moist and super fudgy. Store at room temperature wrapped tightly in foil.
Nutrition
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Thanks for another amazing recipe, as always! For sweetness, I added one banana (I only had one!) and two spoons of brown sugar, and it turned out great, not too sweet. Next time I will definitely try to completely replace the sweetener with bananas, trying to avoid sugar as much as possible (including syrups).
Hi Neringa! Glad you enjoyed them. Banana would make these much more dense and much less sweet, but I’m glad it worked out for you! Thanks for making them!
What a fabulous idea to use sunflower seed flour! These were fantastic. There was a unique and lovely taste to these brownies. Thank you for a fabulous recipe!
I’m so happy you loved these!! Thank you so much for making them!
I LOVE these brownies, and have made them several times. In fact, I have a pan cooling right now. I leave out the salt and the chocolate chips, and the brownies are nice and fudgy without them.
The first time I made them, I didn’t process the sunflower seeds long enough, and had little gritty bits in the brownies. They’re just for me, so it wasn’t a big deal. Since the food processor didn’t get them fine enough, I now process the seeds for a minute in my Vitamix before dumping everything into the food processor.
Thank you so much for this recipe!
So happy to hear you love these Barbara!! My Cuisinart processor is really powerful and gets the batter perfectly smooth, but that’s a great tip to use the vitamix first if one’s food processor isn’t that powerful!
I just made these and they are AMAZING! Thank you! <3
Yay, so awesome to hear that Sherri! Thanks for the feedback!
Delicious! Thank you!!!
Thank you so much Erin!!
I made these for the second time and I doubled the batch. These are the fuddgiest brownies ever (vegan or non-vegan)! I made sure to blend a little longer to get that smooth texture and that was the trick to get them so fudgy. I wish I could post a picture here. They look out of this world good! Pictures coming up on my IG.
Thank you so much Sherri for sharing the beautiful photo on IG! They are perfect and I’m so happy to hear how much you love them!!
Yum!! these turned out so well and were so quick and easy to make. I love all your recipes! every one I have tried has turned out delicious. Thank you so much!
Wow these are delicious!!! I have been searching for a vegan brownie recipe for a long time (one that wasn’t too hard!). Thank you !!! 🙂
Yay thank you Amy!!
Hi Brandi, can I use pumpkin seeds instead of sunflower seeds?
Lydia
You are welcome to try it but they are more bitter, do the taste may be strong!
I was wondering if sunbutter can be used in the place of the sunflower seeds in this recipe! This looks awesome!
You can try it! Just make sure you are using the same gram weight amount, which is 140 grams. That equals to about 9 tablespoons of sunbutter. I’d weigh to get the most accurate result and make sure you are using a sunbutter without added oil, salt and sugar is fine.
These brownies are amazing!!
Thank you sooo much for this recipe. On the inside the batter was smooth but on the top it stays chunky. What can I do?
Wet your fingertips with water and press it down, I do that often with brownies or cookies to smooth the tops.
Thank you Brandi, I’ve been looking for a healthy brownie recipe for almost two years since the whole family became vegan. This is hands down the best by far! The children loved them. Most recipes call for eye-watering amounts of sugar and oil but not this one. The brownies have a perfect soft fudgy center and a crisp top. I added a teaspoon of coffee granules to enhance the chocolate flavour but otherwise followed to the letter. I will definitely try your other recipes.
My partner and I loved these!! I made 6 brownie cakes using a silicon muffin mould, baked for about 33 mins. I also used only spelt flour & came out great!! I asked my bf if he could taste what the main ingredient was and he had no idea! Such a great idea to use sunflower seeds. This will be my new go to brownie recipe! Thank you!!!
Hi Brandi!! I don’t have brown rice flour in hand right now. Is there a substitute for that like arrowroot, cassava or tapioca flours? Please do let me know!! Your recipe seems so appealing. I do want to try it ASAP!!
Hi Aary! Those are starches and they would affect it more negatively. What flours do you have??
I do have Oat flour, almond flour, buckwheat, teff, amaranth and the above mentioned starches.
I’d do oat flour, but keep in mind, they will be a bit more gummy by not using brown rice flour.
These are fantastic! Brandi, you’re a genius.
Love these brownies! Will definitely double next time. Not sweet like regular brownies but that’s a good thing in my opinion.
So glad you love these Laurine! Yes, much healthier and less sweet than traditional, but still plenty sweet in my opinion. Most recipes that call for like 1 1/2 cups of sugar is way overkill to me!
Wow, you’ll be so surprised how fudgy these come out!!!! Very wholesome and delilcious brownies. I made some adjustments as I didn’t want to go to the store, haha, but I’ll make them again and let you know how it goes!
So i first used honey, as we don’t have maple syrup here, but I think they came out a bit too sweet, so i’ll consider using less honey next time, just a tiny bit less, and see how it goes. I’ve also been considering making like a thick syrup from coconut sugar (kind of like a caramel) to substitute the maple syrup, as honey tastes like honey and can be overwhelming.
I did not have brown rice flour, but i did have white rice flour (not the asian kind). I think the brand of rice flour i used is very gritty, so there was definitely an after taste. next time i’m gonna use regular wheat flour, or even get the asian flour that’s glutinous.
Even with all my mess-ups they were still amazing!! My friend’s family really enjoyed them, as did I. I also found the recipe quantity is perfect for me, no need to double it.
I must say though, the edge pieces don’t have the same bite as “normal” brownies, but they come pretty damn close!
I made these for my coworkers at the vegan restaurant where we work and they were a hit! I used all purpose GF flour and they did turn out a bit more on the cakey side but still delicious! Thanks for my new go-to brownie recipe.
So glad you loved them!!
That is amazing to hear Ash!
Haven’t tried making these yet, but want to one of these days! I was wondering if I could sub almonds in for the sunflower seeds? So I know some people in the comments section have tried making it with sun butter… Would blanched almond/almond flour blended into almond butter have the same results? You know, since the almonds would provide the fat to hold everything together like the sunflower seeds do?
I have never tried that so I’m scared to say yes and it not work, but if you try it, definitely use the same gram weight amount!
OMG!!! SO GOOD!!! These are the BEST EVER brownies, much better than the eggs/oil/sugar/AP flour ones!
Just a couple questions: Do you think I could decrease the maple syrup? if so, by how much? I understand it is a big source of moisture. If I can’t decrease it, could I use date syrup instead? I would rather have a more whole food sweetener, but a little maple syrup is OK. I used maybe 1 tbsp less when I just made them, and it worked fine, but I would like to decrease it a little more. I appreciate any input, thank you!!
Woohoo! This is amazing feedback, thank you so much Magy! Yes, you could replace some of the syrup with date syrup, I think that should be ok!! Don’t just reduce it though, as the brownies need the liquid, just replace a bit with the date syrup.
This recipe is amazing! So easy and healthy. My brownies were super fudgy and moist. A rich chocolate taste too. They are perfect with a cup of tea. My whole family loved them. You would have no idea they we’re made with sunflowers seeds. They also don’t taste like they are gluten free either. I also really appreciate the recipe calls for maple syrup instead of sugar. This brownie recipe is a keeper!
Made these brownies for a group of about 60 people. I was chef for a retreat, and wanted to give them nutrition to add to their health rather than something that would detract from their bodies. So, I made these for them, but I changed things a bit, I used carob powder and a bit of Dandy Blend instead of chocolate – I don’t do chocolate or I cannot sleep, and since this retreat was health-minded, I figured I’d make something for everyone that I could also enjoy. Many, many compliments! Many asking for the recipe (I provided the link here to them.) Thank you, Thank you, THANK YOU! So nice to have a treat that I don’t have to feel guilty about eating. So nice to have something I don’t have to feel guilty about serving to others. Sorry, I don’t have photos, there was no chance to take them but Blessings on your work!