The secret to the best vegan gluten-free brownies is in the quality of chocolate used. For this recipe, I use 80% dark chocolate and additional cocoa powder. You also need to grease your baking tin with coconut oil. Or use a parchment paper for easier slicing and handling once the brownies are cooked through.
In addition, non-vegan brownies use eggs to incorporate air, which makes them light and fluffy. In our recipe, we will use an egg substitute. However, this is entirely up to you. You can also use light flour like coconut flour without the vegan egg for similar results. Let’s get started.
Ingredients
- 8 ounces vegan dark chocolate – chopped into smaller chunks
- ¼ cup dark cocoa powder
- 1 cup melted coconut cream (or use vegan butter)
- 1/2 cups dark brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup (or any sweetener you prefer)
- A dash of vanilla extract
- A pinch of sea salt
- 1-cup gluten-free flour
- Egg substitute
Procedure
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Prepare your baking tin by either greasing with coconut oil or line it with a parchment paper.
The Egg Substitute
To make the vegan egg, mix 2 tablespoons of chia seeds with 6 tablespoons water. Let this mixture sit for 5 minutes to thicken. You can also use a flax egg, but I find chia seeds healthier.
The Chocolate Ganache
Mix the dark chocolate chunks with cocoa powder and pour in the hot coconut cream. Mix gently. The heat from the coconut cream should melt the dark chocolate effortlessly.
However, if you are using vegan butter, you have to pre-melt the dark chocolate first.
The Vegan Gluten Free Brownies Batter
In a large bowl, mix in the sugar, salt, vanilla, and egg substitute. Add the chocolate ganache and mix thoroughly. Now sift in the flour and fold gently.
Pour this batter in the baking tin, and bake for 20 minutes.
Remove from the oven and bang the baking tin on a hard surface. This takes care of any uneven baking and gently breaks the top surface.
Return them to the oven to continue baking for another 20 minutes. A well-done brownie should be crunchy on the surface and gooey in the center.
While slicing, keep wiping the knife after each cut to maintain neatly shaped brownie slices.
To serve the vegan gluten-free brownies, drizzle some melted dark chocolate and garnish with chopped nuts and herbs.
Enjoy!
Recipe Variation
The above recipe is simple and healthy, but you can make it even better and more flexible for your kitchen.
Generally, store-bought gluten-free flour might contain tapioca flour, rice flour, potato starch, teff flour, buckwheat flour, sorghum flour, or garbanzo flour among others. Some also contain nut flours. You can easily make yours at home.
For example, you can make almond flour by simply grinding raw almonds in a powerful blender or grinder. But, since almond flour is quite fine and dense, it barely holds shape. Because of this, make sure you mix it with a different type of flour like brown rice flour for fluffy brownies.
You can also add healthy spices and herbs in your brownies. Freshly ground ginger and mint leaves go well with brownies.
And the list is endless. Customize your vegan gluten-free brownies just how you like them.