Healthy Small Batch Brownies [Vegan, Gluten Free]

If you don’t have a crowd to feed, these small batch brownies are perfect to satisfy your cravings and still have leftovers to enjoy tomorrow. They’re super chewy, fudgy, and rich, while still healthy, vegan, and gluten free!

This may just be my new favorite brownie recipe...which is saying a lot because I am freaking obsessed with these hummus brownies. Those ones are extremely fudgy and rich, but I love how these ones are more balanced and chewy.

It's a small batch recipe, making 6 servings, so you don't have to worry about leftovers (although I lowkey wish I made more). But they're super easy to make so you can quickly whip up another batch when you feel like it!

These brownies are vegan, gluten free, and healthy and yet they taste better than almost any other brownie I've tried. Just look at that crackly top and rich texture. 🙂

If you don't have time to read or make this now, be sure to click here to save the recipe on Pinterest!📌that way, you can always come back to it🥰

ingredients in gluten free vegan brownies

• flaxseed meal: this ingredient is crucial for the texture. Since this recipe has no eggs, the cookie holds together with a flax egg. A flax egg is comprised of just flaxseed meal and water, set to gel for 5-10 minutes--it's super simple, and prevents the brownies from crumbling apart.
• nut butter: this is key for achieving the gooey, fudgy texture, since it's creamy and high and healthy fats. I used almond butter, but cashew butter would also be a great alternative!
• unsweetened applesauce: adds moisture to the brownies without making it too heavy!
• oil: you only need a tablespoon, but it is very important for richness. Pretty much any oil will work here, but I recommend avocado oil or light-tasting olive oil.
• cane sugar: the main source of sweetness, but it's also crucial for the texture! This works much better than liquid sweeteners like maple syrup, but you can use any kind of granulated sweetener, such as coconut sugar.
• nondairy milk: the batter is very thick so this just thins it out a tad. I used oat milk, but really anything will work here!
• oat flour: oat flour is just blended oats, but it's a great flour replacement in this case! It holds the brownies together and gives them such a nice chew.
• almond flour: another gluten free flour that is essential in this recipe. Like oat flour, it acts as a binder, but it also adds moisture from the healthy fats of almonds. Make sure it is finely ground and blanched!
• cocoa powder: puts the brown in brownie. This one is self-explanatory, but I do want to point out that this recipe uses regular unsweetened cocoa powder, not dutch-processed.

how to make healthy small batch brownies

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and grease a loaf pan. Line the pan with parchment paper and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, combine the flaxseed meal and water. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes to thicken. Mix together all the wet ingredients (applesauce, nut butter, oil, sugar, milk, and vanilla), then fold in the dry (oat flour, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder). Fold in the chocolate chips.
3. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and bake for about 25 minutes. Let it cool for about 10 minutes, then remove from the pan and cool for an hour (you can technically eat it right away if you can't wait, but it will be looser and can easily fall apart). Slice and enjoy! Keep refrigerated.

the perfect brownies without dairy, eggs, or gluten

It's actually pretty easy, or at least easier than making muffins gluten free and vegan. With muffins, cakes, or anything fluffy, you typically rely on eggs for fluffiness, and wheat flour for lightness. Gluten free flours tend to be denser, and it's really hard to get that leverage without eggs (I said hard, not impossible)! 😉

Anyway, we're here to talk about brownies, not muffins. What makes a brownie good is the fudge, chew, and rich chocolate, which thankfully do not need a lot of fluff. I am not on team cakey brownie, but I do believe that brownies should not be dense. And it is perfectly doable to have the brownie of your dreams without dairy, eggs, or gluten!

flour replacements

To replace the flour: oat flour and almond flour! Despite the names, neither are actually flour, but a ground up version of oats and almonds. You can make oat flour simply by grinding up oats, but almond flour you will have to buy as a flour. Grinding too much will result in almond butter, and too little will result in large chunks that don't work well for baking. It's much safer to go with fine, blanched almond flour from the store.

Every time I post a gluten free recipe that uses oats or oat flour, I get comments saying that oats contain gluten--which is both true and false! Many brands of oats are not gluten free because they, at some point, cross-contaminate with wheat or other gluten products. However, oats in their pure form are gluten free, and there are brands out there that are certified gluten free.

The combination of almond and oat flour create a brownie that holds together, and has a chewy and moist texture!

dairy replacements

Dairy is usually the easiest replacement. Instead of milk, use nondairy milk--oat, coconut, almond, soy, etc. I use oat milk, but any of these will work as well.

Many brownie recipes use butter, but we use nut butter for even more moisture, and more nutrients. It creates most of the fudge in this recipe!

egg replacements

Flaxseed meal is always the answer! This is one of the ingredients I use most, and I could not recommend it more. It works great to add more nutritional value to any recipe when dry, and when wet, it creates a great vegan egg replacement.

Creating a flax egg is simple: mix 1 tablespoon of flaxseed meal with 2 tablespoons of water, then rest for 5-10 minutes until it thickens. Flax eggs don't work in all recipes that call for eggs--you definitely can't whip it into a meringue or scramble it for breakfast--but it works great as a binding agent.

>>> click here to save the recipe on Pinterest so you can always come back to it!

I really hope you like this recipe! If you decide to make it, be sure to post a picture/story and tag me @nutritiousdelights on Instagram–I’d love to see!💕

Also, don’t forget to leave a comment if you make this so everyone knows how it goes 🙂 You can also feel free to leave a comment if you have any questions about the recipe!🥰

More recipes you might love:

Fudgy Hummus Brownies (Vegan, Gluten Free, Healthy)

Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookie Skillet (Vegan, Gluten Free)

Healthy Chocolate Chip Muffins