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Easy Vegan Brownies with Walnuts. All whole grain brownies with walnuts. Makes 1 8 by 8 inch brownie pan, 16 pieces. Vegan Brownie. Palm oil free Recipe. Can be made nut-free.
One cannot have enough brownie recipes right. So here is another one that is simple and customizable! Add walnuts, other nuts or seeds. Add some fresh cranberries or a nut butter swirl on top before baking. Add crushed peppermint candy cane + peppermint extract instead of vanilla, or add candied ginger + gingerbread spices for holiday brownies and more.
Fudgy and fabulous. Make these this Sunday! These brownies get fudgier as they sit. The key to great brownies is knowing the bake time, which is dependent on your oven, pan used etc. Underbake whenever in doubt, as the brownies will set even if liquidy in the center, out of the oven as they cool. For gluten-free options, see the list of brownies below.
We’ve been having sleepless nights all week because Chewie, our pom is miserable with cough every hour. Fuzzy brain = not all clear recipe. 🙂
More brownies from the blog
- Vegan Pumpkin Brownies
- Gluten-free Brownies and Brownie Mix. GF
- Vegan Almond Butter Blondies with Chocolate Chips
- Vegan Brownie Mix in a Jar. Single Serve Brownie too. Vegan…
- Coconut Flour Brownies GF
Make the brownie batter and press it into a lined brownie pan. Bake, cool and see it vanish.
Add other nuts, cranberries, crushed peppermint candy cane, candied ginger+ gingerbread spices for variation.
Easy Vegan Brownies Recipe
Ingredients
Dry:
- 1 cup + 1 tbsp whole wheat pastry flour or whole wheat flour or Spelt flour
- 1 tbsp starch like arrowroot or cornstarch
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup powdered/fine sugar, 1-2 tbsp less for less sweet, I use ground raw sugar that I blend in a blender
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar
Wet:
- 3.5 tbsp maple syrup
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/3 cup vegan semi sweet chocolate, chips or chunks or bar, more the merrier/fudgier
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp instant espresso/coffee
- 3 tbsp oil
Additions:
- 3 Tbsp vegan mini chocolate chips
- 3 tbsp chopped walnuts or pecans
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F / 180ºc.
- In a bowl, add all the dry ingredients and whisk really well. *Pulse the sugar and coconut sugar a few times in a blender to make a powder if needed and then mix in. Large granules in sugar might add a texture to the brownie.
- Heat the maple syrup and water in a pan or microwave until hot. Add the semi sweet chocolate and mix until all the chocolate melts and is smooth. Add the vanilla, coffee and oil and mix in.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix to just about combined. It will be a stiff batter, stiffer as it gets cold. Fold in the chocolate chips and walnuts or other additions.
- Drop the mixture onto a parchment lined or greased or well floured brownie pan. Spread the mixture evenly using a spatula if needed. I used greased hands to move and press for an even thickness. Sprinkle any toppings if you like like chopped walnuts, chocolate chips, crushed candy cane and press in.
- Bake for 22 to 24 minutes. Check with a toothpick about an inch from the edge. The toothpick should not come out liquid. The center might come out liquid, which is ok. Do not over bake. Check every 2 minutes if adding more baking time.
- Cool for atleast 15 minutes if you can before moving them out of the dish. Slice and serve. To store, slice and store in a container with a lid on the counter for upto 2 days.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I made these yesterday and they came out really well… super delicious. My non-vegan friends were surprised that it did not have eggs or milk! thank you!
One quick question: I want to make these for a friend who can’t eat any processed foods due to health reasons; what can I replace the maple syrup with?
Use a syrup made with jaggery or sugar.
Hi Richa. Your recipes look simple and doable.
wish to try these for a lactose intolerant kid. Could you help me out a few queries plz?
1. the jaggery syrup you mentioned, how do I make that? He’s also allergic to coconut so I’ll have to skip coconut sugar.
2. Can I use honey instead of maple syrup?
3. Vegan chocolate not easily available where I live, can I add more cocoa pwd sugar instead to make them chocolatey?
you can make the jaggery syrup like you do sugar syrup. Boil till just about single thread consistency. 1 cup jaggery with 1 cup water, mix and simmer.
I dont use honey, so I am not sure if it will work.
For vegan chocolate sub, use 1/4 cup cocoa and 1/4 cup more oil.
Use any sugar.
Thank you Richa for a prompt response! ????
Came out amazing!! Super chocolatey and moist 🙂 easy to make too
Any substitute for Maple syrup? Can I leave it out?
use any sweet syrup like sugar syrup, date syrup, agave.
This brownies were extremely yummy & fudgy…
Everybody loved it.
I’m going to make some batches again!????
Thats awesome! so glad they turned out so good!
Hey, I want to make them for a non-vegan friend of mine therefore I wonder if I can use all-purpose flour instead oft the whole wheat flour. And can I substitute the coconut sugar with white sugar since I habe no coconut sugar at home?
yes and yes
I followed the recipe exactly, baked for 22 minutes and they came out dry dry dry, like a dry cookie that just turned into a powdery mess. Barely edible with milk
I am not sure what happened Lisa. Maybe your oven was running too hot and they got overbaked? Ovens can vary by 50+ degrees. I know that the brownies when overbaked esp with coarse whole grain flours like spelt can get crumbly on the edges. I have never had completely crumbly problems with these brownies. Maybe the chocolate type or something else. I don’t know. How was the mixture before going in?
You can use those crumbs in chocolate or vanilla ice cream.
OMG did you forget the sugar? I’ve made this recipe 5 times already and it’s always come out amazingly perfect. However, in one instance, I forgot the sugar, and it came out as your described… It still tasted good, thanks to the maple syrup, but the texture was totally off! Sort of reminds me of https://www.unicornlove.com/blog/2015/12/6/what-happens-when-you-forget-to-add-sugar-to-your-cookie-recipe —- Sugar keeps baked goods soft and moist. The bond between sugar and water allows sugar to lock in moisture so that items such as cakes, muffins, brownies, and frostings don’t dry out too quickly. — Additionally, because sugar holds onto moisture, it keeps baked goods tender for a longer period of time. Sugar has hygroscopic properties, meaning that it grabs and holds onto moisture. Because sugar holds onto moisture, baked goods made with sugar do not stale as quickly as baked goods made without sugar. Brown sugar is granulated sugar that has molasses added into it. Molasses is even more hygroscopic in nature than plain granulated sugar so it keeps baked goods even more moist and adds chewiness.
Sugar also serves to help reduce gluten development and tenderize baked goods. Because sugar grabs and holds onto moisture it leaves less moisture readily available, delaying gluten development.
These look amazing, I’m gonna be making them soon.
But I was wondering, if I use regular sugar instead of coconut sugar (we don’t have that in my country), should I pulse it into a powder too? I also plan on substituting the maple syrup with a cane sugar syrup since it’s the only available liquid sweetener where I live.
Thanks for the recipe! ????
Hi Melina,
If your regular sugar is granulated i.e. you can feel each sugar granule in your fingers when you pick some up, then pulse it a few times in the blender and use. Yes cane syrup should work. Happy Baking!
What great vegan desserts you have! We love all your recipes, but were not the healthiest vegans! You’ve inspired us to try more healthy recipes, but given our dessert recipes great inspiration!
Thankyou,
Ashley x
theveganapprentice.com
Hi thanks for the great recipe! Can’t wait to try!
But can I ask a few questions?
Is this brownie sweet?
Can I substitute oat flour with almond flour?
Thanks
Yes this brownie is sweet like a regular brownie. Where is the oat flour you want to substitute?