These Avocado Brownies are dairy free, gluten free and will fool all of your friends! They’re so rich and fudgy, you won’t believe they’re kind of healthy.
How to Make Fudgy, Dairy Free, Gluten Free Brownies
I tried out some of the top hits on google for Avocado Brownies when I was testing out this recipe. For my own personal preferences, two of the recipes I tried were way too fluffy and cake like, and one was actually a little too fudgy. Plus, you could really taste the avocado in the fudgy one, which wasn’t working for me.
To make these fudgy, avocado brownies, you start off by melting chocolate over a double boiler. The combination of lots of melted chocolate, along with cocoa powder and chocolate chips make these brownies super chocolately, and fudgy in texture. The spoonful of instant coffee makes the chocolate flavor come out even more.
After a few different tests, I realized natural cocoa was the way to go over Dutch cocoa. The acidity of the natural cocoa really worked well with the avocado and other flavors in this recipe.
I also prefer mini chocolate chips over regular chips here. It might not make a huge difference, but the mini chips melt into the brownies a bit and just make everything better in my opinion.
Instead of using butter, it’s all about the avocado. Make sure your avocado is nice and ripe. It needs to be soft to blend in with the other ingredients, and a riper avocado is obviously much tastier as well.
Did I mention I also avoided adding refined sugar to this recipe? Coconut sugar works so well. I definitely recommend it over maple syrup, which doesn’t give enough structure to the brownies.
For a gluten free flour, I opted for almond flour. I’m sure regular all-purpose flour or perhaps oat flour may work too if you’re allergic to nuts.
I use eggs to bind all of these ingredients together, so this recipe is not vegan. I would be interested, however, to see if someone tried a flax egg as a substitute.
If You Like These Avocado Brownies, try these recipes too:
- Healthy Homemade Granola Bars
- Breakfast Oatmeal Smoothies
- Baked Pumpkin Donuts
- Crispy Baked Falafel
- Gluten Free Lemon Bars
More Brownie Recipes
- Extra Dark Chocolate Chunk Brownies with Tamarind Caramel
- Red Wine Brownies with Ganache
- Brownies with Salted Brandy Ganache
- Milk Chocolate Brownies with Peanut Butter Ganache
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Avocado Brownies (no dairy or gluten)
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 16 brownies 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
These Avocado Brownies are dairy free, gluten free, and will fool all of your friends! They’re so rich and fudgy, you won’t believe they’re kind of healthy.
Ingredients
- 4oz semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
- 1 ripe avocado, mashed (about ½ cup)
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¾ cup coconut sugar*
- ½ cup cocoa powder (preferably natural, not Dutch processed)
- ¼ cup almond flour*
- 1 tsp instant coffee powder
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp kosher salt (about ¼ or so of fine salt)
- ½ cup semisweet mini chocolate chips
Instructions
- Prep pan and oven: Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and line an 8×8 inch square pan with parchment, allowing paper to overhang on edges.
- Melt chocolate: Fill a small pot with one inch of water and bring a simmer. Add chopped chocolate to a metal or glass bowl which is large enough to fit on the pot without falling in. Place bowl of chocolate over the pot, creating a double boiler. Stir chocolate frequently as it melts. Remove from heat, as needed, to prevent chocolate from scorching. Set aside to cool slightly.
- Mix wet ingredients: In a large bowl, combine mashed avocado and eggs. Whisk until homogenous. Whisk in vanilla and sugar until smooth. Stir in melted chocolate.
- Add dry ingredients: Sift cocoa, flour, coffee, baking powder and salt over the batter. Stir until well combined. Stir in chocolate chips.
- Bake: Add batter to prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake in the center of the oven for approximately 20-26 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out mostly clean with a few crumbs attached. Make sure you’re not inserting the tester directly into a chocolate chip, or batter will look under baked.
- Cool and cut: Allow to cool for 10 minutes in the pan over a wire rack. Then remove brownies from pan by lifting by overhanging parchment. Cool directly over wire rack until room temperature, or serve warm. Cut into 16 squares and enjoy!
Notes
Feel free to try regular granulated sugar or brown sugar instead of coconut sugar.
If you’re allergic to nuts, I suggest trying all-purpose flour or oat flour instead.
To store, place in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the fridge for up to a week.
You can also freeze the brownies for up to 3 months.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 brownie
- Calories: 150
- Sugar: 16g
- Sodium: 55mg
- Fat: 7g
- Saturated Fat: 3g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 20g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 3g
- Cholesterol: 25mg
Can I use brewed coffee instead of instant coffee powder?
Hi Margie. You could add 1 or 2 teaspoons of strong brewed coffee instead if you’d like, but I wouldn’t add anymore than that because the extra liquid will affect the texture of the brownies. 1 teaspoon of instant coffee with have a much stronger coffee flavor, but it’s not one of the most important ingredients. You can leave it out altogether and the brownies will still be good!
Great advice, thank you!
What size avacado?
Good question! I used an average sized hass avocado. This recipe is pretty forgiving, so slight variations in size shouldn’t be a deal-breaker. Just avoid the tiny avocados (like the really small variety from Trader Joe’s) or the extra large green-skinned avocados. Hope you enjoy the recipe!
What can you substitute if you don’t want to use egg?
I would try 1 tablespoon of ground flax seed mixed with 2 1/2 tablespoons of water per egg (or 2 tablespoons ground flax mixed with 5 tablespoons of water for the 2 eggs in the recipe). Stir together the ground flax and water in a separate bowl, let it sit for about 5 minutes until it thickens and gels up, and then stir it into the recipe. That’s a good substitute I’ve used a bunch in vegan baking. Hope it turns out well!
Since this recipe uses eggs. How was it dairy-free?
Hi! I actually get this question a lot as a dietitian, Diane! Dairy refers to anything made from cow’s milk, such as cream, cheese or butter. Chicken eggs are not considered dairy. Common mistake!
At which point do you add the 4oz of melted chocolate?
Hi Michelle! In step 2 entitled “Melt Chocolate” I explain how I melt the chocolate over a double-boiler. You can also use a microwave in 20-30 second intervals, stirring in between until melted.
These brownies look so fudgy good, Sabrina! Definitely a must try!
Thanks, Marissa!
This is a such a good idea for those who want gluten free and dairy free, and delicious enough for everyone😍
Thank you!!