These Vegan Fudgy Coconut Butter Brownies are amazing! They are gluten-free and only 8 ingredients. These are HUGE hits and declared “Best” brownies even among non-vegans!
VEGAN FUDGY COCONUT BUTTER BROWNIES
I can’t express how amazing and delicious and perfect these Vegan Fudgy Brownies are that use coconut butter!
It’s kind of a known thing that brownies are really rich because of their traditional butter, refined sugar and white flour, right?
I knew I had to mimic that taste and texture….but without all of those ingredients. Oh, I made them gluten-free and oil-free too….but you’d never know. These fudgy brownies are not low calorie or low fat….they are brownies. I like my brownies rich and sweet. In fact, whenever I see a dessert labeled fat-free or sugar-free, that usually screams artificial chemicals! Using bananas or avocados just isn’t going to cut it here on flavor, either. I wanted them to both taste and look authentic.
VEGAN BROWNIES MADE WITH QUALITY INGREDIENTS
These bad boys are not full of processed junk and they are ingredients I feel good about. Plus, I love that they are oil-free….which you hardly ever see in a brownie recipe. That said, control yourself and don’t eat the whole pan at once. They are so rich though, honestly one is very satisfying.
Look at that crackle top…..
PERFECT VEGAN GLUTEN-FREE BROWNIES
I’ve tasted a few vegan brownies before and they were ok, but never knocked my socks off…typically too mushy and always containing ingredients I didn’t love or needed to sub.
I have been baking for years and am very comfortable with it, but when I started baking gluten-free, I learned there are about a billion different flours and they ALL produce different results. It’s not as easy as just throwing white flour, sugar and eggs together. It is even more challenging when trying to fit everything within 8 ingredients.
But I have learned a lot through trial and error with gluten-free flours and starches. I have perfected recipes with what I have learned. I have high standards with brownies and I finally got what I was after.
My 7 taste testers can account for their authenticity. I had my friend’s family and her children (all not vegan), as well as my hubby and daughter, give their big approval. My friend called them “fudgy, perfect texture, moist, wow, and I can’t think of one criticism”! Do you know how happy and relieved I was to hear this?! I had worked to perfect these gluten-free brownies, that once I nailed it, I was thankful that others loved it too. Each of us have our own opinions though, so you be the judge and try them yourself. 🙂
Well, I tried many different flours, amounts, liquids, dry sweetener, liquid sweetener, etc. Then I stepped back and thought about what I wanted in my brownies, but have them still taste as rich and decadent as any of the best brownies out there.
Here was my criteria:
- vegan, obviously
- gluten-free….without needing 3 or 4 different flours
- oil-free…without the use of vegan butter
- fudgy
- rich
- sweet
- very thick and substantial
- to bake evenly and not dip in the center, like so many recipes
- the famous crackle top
- 8 ingredients….duh
I make my own coconut butter for my recipes too. Super easy. You can do this if you have a food processor, or just use store bought.
DO YOU TASTE COCONUT?
If you don’t like coconut, then these brownies may not be for you. However, the coconut is just a hint, not overpowering. I’m afraid subbing the coconut with all nut butter would be too heavy. Please do not sub with coconut oil! That would make them a brick of greasy oil. I do not recommend subbing though, because I tested this recipe many times and the coconut butter is a major ingredient and what worked so well. For a nut-free version, you can try creamy sunbutter in place of the almond butter. I haven’t tried it yet though.
These vegan brownies contain both almond butter and coconut butter for the ultimate rich, fudginess that we all love in a brownie.
MORE VEGAN BROWNIE RECIPES
- Fudgy Sunflower Brownies
- Vegan Zucchini Brownies
- Hazelnut Brownies
- Fudgy Vegan Low-Fat Brownies
- Raw Brownies with Raspberry Coulis
*This post contains affiliate links. See my full disclosure policy here.
If you make this recipe, be sure to leave feedback below and share your pic on Instagram or Facebook and tag me @thevegan8 #thevegan8!
Fudgy Coconut Butter Brownies
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup (96g) superfine oat flour
- 1/2 cup (48g) unsweetened natural cocoa powder, not dark cocoa (I used Ghirardelli) Add up to 2 tablespoons more for a less sweet brownie
- 3 tablespoons (24g) tapioca starch
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 1/2 cup (120g) semi-sweet dairy-free chocolate chips
- 1 cup (320g) pure maple syrup, room temp
- 3/4 cup (180g) melted coconut butter (it MUST be melted as a liquid, see directions)
- 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (96g) roasted creamy almond butter (roasted is important, as it's oilier/smoother)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (8g) vanilla extract
NOTE
- Make sure to use a scale for the best most accurate results. No need to use cups to compare, just follow the weights listed, as that is how all my recipes are tested. Do not sub with extra almond butter or other nut butters in place of the coconut butter, as that would make it too heavy and oily.
- I use this scale.
Instructions
- Preheat an oven to 350°F and lightly spray an 8x8 aluminum or light metal pan with nonstick spray. I tested these in a dark metal pan and found the edges to burn too quickly, so therefore not recommended.
- To a large bowl, add the oat flour, cocoa powder, tapioca starch and salt. Whisk well. Stir in the chocolate chips.
- You can use homemade coconut butter or store-bought. I like the MaraNatha brand. Regarding the coconut butter...before adding, it needs to be the consistency of oil, as pictured. It should be 100% smooth and runny. Just make sure it is melted and in complete liquid form when measuring 3/4 cup. The jars at the store will be solid, so the best way to work with this is to take off the lid, heat up the jar in the microwave for 15-30 seconds or so, just until it becomes soft enough to scoop it all out into a separate container. I find this is the best way to stir it and mix up the separated coconut meat and oil and totally smooth, as well as storing it this way for future use. After adding it to the container, heat a few more seconds if needed to soften it just until you can stir it a bit until it all comes together, is runny and smooth. See pic in post. Be very careful about overheating coconut butter or it will burn it and make it mealy.
- Add the liquid coconut butter to a separate bowl, then the room temperature syrup, almond butter, vanilla and stir until very smooth and well mixed. It is important that the other liquids are at room temperature, because if they are cold, it can cause the coconut butter to separate.
- Now, pour the liquid into the dry ingredients and stir until well combined. The batter will be thick. Immediately pour into the prepared pan, as the batter thickens up quickly from the oats. Spread out evenly to the edges and dampen your fingertips, if necessary.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes. Mine were perfect at 21 minutes on all 4 batches. However, due to oven variances, yours may cook faster or take a little longer. They are done when a toothpick comes out with a few sticky crumbs on it (not liquid), the edges have slightly pulled from the pan and the top is beginning to crackle. Be VERY careful about over-baking so they don't dry up.
- Let the brownies cool in the pan 45 minutes, untouched. This is crucial so they don't fall apart. Resist the urge to cut them early. Cut them gently after the 45 minutes, cool another 10, then serve! Cover with foil and store at room temperature.
Brandi. those brownies are beautiful, I mean it perfect vegan brownies. I will be making these beauties. I wish I could re blog but don’t know to do it with your blog. They are gorgeous. I am so excited for you. You really did good!!
Thank you so much Suzanne!! It has been a loong labor of love, haha. Oh, I can’t wait to hear what you think!!!
WOW!!!! Congratulations Brandi on making these amazing looking brownies!!! They totally look like a “regular” brownie with that gorgeous crackly top and dense, fudgy-looking crumb. I totally trust that you and all of your cooking trials have perfected the best vegan, gluten-free, oil-free brownie ever–you are killing it in the kitchen! So…can I come over? I’ll bring the ice cream 😉
You are way too sweet Erika!! Thank you so much! Too many trials to count…seriously my recipe notepad has so many versions that just didn’t cut it. Yes, I was thinking of posting a pic with ice cream on top and I forgot darnit!! lol! Come on over!
I am seriously glad to see these. I have had SO many brownie failures! These look perfect-o!
Thank you Annie! Oh gosh, ME TOO, ME TOO! I have tried to make vegan, gluten-free brownies so many times and I just got made everytime. Well, the brownie gods were with me this past weekend, haha! I had to totally rethink my method and then it worked 🙂
These look amazing Brandi! I wish I could make them but we have oat and nut allergies (including coconut allergies). 🙁
I love looking at you photos! They are always beautiful and mouth watering.
Aww thank you Holly! I’m so sorry to hear about so many allergies :(. You could try subbing the oat with a gluten-free all purpose flour, cashew butter for coconut butter and sunbutter for almond…but with all those changes, I don’t know how they’d turn out. Don’t worry though, I’m already beginning to work on another version 🙂
MAKING THESE! OMG there is SO MUCH love that went into these brownies…AMAZING JOB!
Oh, I can’t wait to hear Brittany what you think!! Thank you so much…yes, lots of love, you are so right!!! 🙂
You really did make them for BRITTNAY! She is a CHOCOLATE TORNADO!
I know you had said you have tried numerous versions but have tried flax seed as the egg replacer instead of tapioca starch? If so how did they turn out?
Flaxseed won’t work instead of tapioca, since tapioca is a starch and it balances out the other liquids and also helps to somewhat ruse the brownies and contribute to the browning on top. Using flaxseed would make the batter more liquidy I’m afraid and change the other ratio of ingredients.
Oh yum. Totally want to try these although there is one ingredient I don’t have… but I feel like arrowroot would be an easy sub for the tapioca, no?
Hi Janet! Arrowroot could possibly be subbed, but it doesn’t perform quite the same as tapioca when baked. I like tapioca because it gives a little rise and helps brown the top and keep things moist. That’s why I tend to always use tapioca because it keeps things very moist and works so well as binding. Arrowroot also thickens up the batter much quicker and can be drying. You can try the arrowroot, but not sure how it will affect the final fudgy quality. Let me know! 🙂
What can I say except YUM! These look like perfect brownies. Wondering if you could move in next door and I could be your taste tester?
PS – you might not like the cold Canadian winters though…..
Thank you Cindy so much! Sure, why not….oh, but yes, I’m a Texan and am afraid I’d just die in that cold weather 🙂
Perfect is right. I could eat this for breakfast, lunch and dinner 😀
Cheers
CCU
Sounds good to me!
oh wow. that top and the fudgy middle! these brownies are perfect!
Aww thank you Richa!! 🙂
Oh my word Brandi, you are amazing! Those brownies look absolutely perfect and I love how much healthier they are. You are a genius. YUM!
You are so sweet, thank you Melanie!! Best part is they taste just as rich as unhealthy brownies, no lie!
Bravo, Brandi! Your perseverance totally paid off because these brownies look as dense, rich, fudgy and glorious as the full fat version. I can’t get over how gorgeous they are, especially with that perfect crackly top! Now I have to get my hands on some coconut butter. Good thing you cautioned against using coconut oil because I didn’t even stop to think that they were two different things.
Thank you so much Nancy! It was a lot of time and work coming to these, but well worth the wait. I’m so excited at how they turned out, that I’m already working on some other versions for readers too. 🙂
I love how far the world of vegan baking has come! Even the strongest skeptic couldn’t resist these! They look glorious!
Thank you so much Mary! Yes, all my taste testers (besides my hubby and daughter) were not vegan and absolutely loved them! There is absolutely no detecting that these are missing anything than a “regular” brownie. Honestly, I like them better than any brownies I’ve ever had. 🙂
Your many trials and hard work certainly paid off. These look absolutely perfect 🙂
Thank you so much Whitney!!
This just looks delicious, I love how you take stuff everyone loves and just make it healthier. Keep ’em coming!
Thank you so much Gael! I appreciate that…I love taking an indulgent dessert and making it healthier and gluten-free and oil-free, but still tastes just as indulgent. Can’t beat a brownie recipe that doesn’t need 4 or more different flours either, like most gluten-free ones! Easy and fast! 🙂
These look great! Thanks for sharing! Love your blog!
I am so going to make them, dear Brandi! They look fraking delicious too! I can’t wait to make them!
Yummmmmmm! You nailed them perfectly indeed! 🙂 x
Oh, please let me know how they turn out Sophie! They really are incredibly delicious! 🙂
Ooh, these do look perfect chica! Celeste 🙂
Thank you so much Celeste!!
They look perfect..as usual. Hope you are going to write a vegan desserts book soon:)
Aww that’s a wonderful compliment, thanks Pavithra!! xx
These are yummy looking brownies! I’m glad I found this recipe. Will try it next time!
Thank you so much Apsara!! 🙂
These look fab!!! Just found your website recently and I must say you are a very talented lady! I am really enjoying following your blog and trying new recipes 🙂 Just a question re. the tapioca starch – where did you find it? I have a Whole Foods in my city and I’m hoping it will be in there – in the baking section maybe? Thanks
You are so sweet Jules! So glad you found me! Yay! Yes, you can totally get tapioca at whole foods. I am even able to get it at both of my local grocery stores in the specialty flour section. Tapioca starch and tapioca flour are the same thing, fyi. I use it in practically every baked recipe on my blog, so you will definitely get your money’s worth! I can’t wait to hear feedback on the recipes you make. Thanks so much!
My left hand is covered in brownie batter as I type this message. I’ve doubled the recipe, and I’m trying it out in a mini muffin pan. If the finished product tastes half as good as the batter on my fingers, then I am a believer. I’ll reply with my success (or failure) given the changes I made. So excited! Thanks for devising such a wonderful recipe 🙂
Awesome Ariel! I love to be covered in brownie batter, haha! I can’t wait to hear how they turned out for you! They’ve been so popular! Did you sub anything or just put them in mini muffin pans? Thanks for your feedback 🙂
Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe! I have tried many vegan brownie recipes and none turned out quite right until this one. Your perserverance really paid off! I made them for my office and they were a huge hit with vegans and nonvegans alike. They are my new go-to brownie recipe and my new gluten-free friendly go to.
Yay Melinda!! Thank you so much for the awesome feedback and I’m so glad to hear that you and your coworkers loved them so much, even non vegans! That’s always music to my ears! Thanks so much for the feedback!
Oh and thank you for tagging me on Instagram as well, with your pics of the brownies!!
I found my way here by some googleplay, the ingredients really caught my attention, especially the coco n almondbutters. Never before have I tried any other but the sugary brownies, so,
I’d like to thank you for the recipe, these were amazing!
Ahhh I love that you found me through google Telic! Thank you so muc for the awesome feedback…so glad you loved the brownies, I love getting feedback, thanks so much!
Hi there, Thanks for the recipe, this fits most of my “criteria” for healthy desserts for my family too! I just made these and they are cooling now so I haven’t tasted them, but the batter tasted delightful. I was just wondering though, I didn’t get the beautiful shiny crackly top that yours did, and I followed the recipe to the letter. What do you think causes that, and how can I make that happened next time? Thanks so much!
Hi Rebecca! Thank you so much for making them! Hmm, I’m not sure, I make them all the time and they always have the crackle topping and so have everybody who has made them….so, the only thing I can think is perhaps since every oven varies, maybe they needed to be cooked longer. The crackle comes towards the end from the oils of the coconut butter and almond butter cooking and baking to form the crackle crust on top. Maybe perhaps they just needed another couple minutes of baking. Each oven can vary so much. Also, did you make sure to measure the coconut butter at a complete pourable liquid, not just softened, but liquid? That way to ensure you are getting enough coconut butter in the recipe to help with the top as well.
As long as they taste fabulous, that is the main thing, but try cooking them a little longer is my only guess without being there to see. Let me know how they turned out! Thanks 🙂
They look delicious but looks like you baked them in an aluminum pan?? Glass is always a better choice.
Hi Susan, thanks! They are delicious regardless of the pan you use, so feel free to use any pan/dish you like. The aluminum is what I have and it worked for me, but if you want to use glass, then that works too. I use glass and stainless steel and parchment paper for probably 90% of my cooking/baking, so this is one of the few recipes that doesn’t use glass or stainless steel.
Has any one tried peanut butter instead of almond butter? I love peanut butter. Also it’s less costly. It seems so similar to almond butter in thickness and oil content. Thanks.
Hi Allan! You could definitely use peanut butter in place of almond butter, I don’t see why not. If you don’t mind the peanut butter taste, then go for it and please, please come back and let me know how they turned out! Thanks!
These will be in my belly this weekend. Kudos to you for not giving up on the recipe development process! From one stubborn gal to another. 🙂
Awesome! Thank you so much…please come back and leave me feedback here, can’t wait to hear what you think!!
Wow, these look amazing!!! Is tapoica starch healthy and shouldn’t we use cacao powder instead of cocoa powder? Sorry, just curious!! I could scarf these down in seconds 🙂
Hi Malini! I don’t know if tapioca is technically “healthy” or not, all I know is it is from the cassava plant and it is vegan and gluten-free and it works amazing as an egg substitue and I use it for a lot of my baking needs. These are brownies, so I’m not concerned at it being perfectly “healthy” and the recipe doesn’t use a large amount of tapioca anyways. I look at desserts as treats and trust me, you are only going to need one brownie to satisfy at a time, they are rich, so enjoy! Oh, and feel free to use cacao instead of cocoa. I use raw cacao in my raw desserts but list cocoa powder in baking just because I know the majority of people out there are going to choose the easy, less expensive route. Thanks and please let me know if you make these! 🙂
Any thoughts on subbing carob for the cocoa? I am allergic to cocoa! Thanks in advance.
Hi Jolly! I wish I could help on that but I have never used carob before and have NO idea what the taste would be. I have heard it tastes nothing like chocolate and is an acquired taste. If you like it, you can try it but I have never tried it, so I just don’t know unfortunately.
Thank you. I’ll have to give it a try with the carob. It is a different taste from chocolate, but you can come to like it!
I made them this afternoon and I’m so happy with the result !! That’s the first ever my mum and dad really like a vegan baking ! They always say that my baking things taste different and they never really like it but my dad said today “I didn’t even noticed that was vegan !” I’m soooo happy !!! Thank you !
Omg! Made these and they are to die for. I am not gluten, dairy, oil, or sugar free and they are every bit as good if not better than conventional brownies!!!
Sarah, you are awesome! Thank you so much for the amazing feedback! It really is amazing but people just don’t realize you don’t need all that junk to have an amazing dessert that TASTES like it is full of junk! That is always my huge goal for testing and testing, so I’m thrilled when people feel the same way. My friends are not vegan or gluten-free and absolutely die over them too. Thank you so much for letting me know and for making them 🙂 🙂
I made these this afternoon. They came out delicious!
Thanks so much for the feedback Laura! I’m so happy to hear that, I really appreciate you letting me know 🙂
I cooked these for an extra seven minutes this time and they were chewy but firm and held together very well – perfect for the party I took them to. Everyone was shocked they were vegan and gluten free!
Wonderful! I’m so glad to hear that everybody loved them! Always exciting when people are shocked they are vegan and gluten-free! Thank you for the feedback!
Hi, I just stumbled upon your blog and this brownie recipe. It looks amazing! I’ve yet to make a vegan brownie recipe that actually has a crackle top! However, I’m not gluten free and was wondering if I could sub whole wheat flour? Thanks!
Hi Karen! I think using whole wheat pastry flour should work fine in place of the oat flour, but I haven’t tried it, so I’m hoping it would still work out fine. Or, you don’t technically have to be gluten-free to use the oat flour if you like, I just love how oat flour helps them fluff up. 🙂 But let me know if you use wheat flour. I don’t think it would alter the taste too much. Let me know how it turns out! Also, some ovens vary, so make sure to cook it long enough to where the top has begun to crack. Thank you!
I just made these for a potluck tomorrow, but I already cheated and ate one and they really are super amazing! I even subbed things even though I wasn’t supposed to!! Subs were just cornstarch instead of tapioca (didn’t have time today to go to the store that had tapioca) and I used 1/2 cup oat flour but then 1/4 cup teff flour (ran out of oat flour, didn’t realize til I started mixing). I was nervous because there was no baking powder, but they turned out so good! SO good! Now maple syrup just needs to get cheaper in Germany so I can eat them all the time. Thanks for this!
Awesome Nicole!! I’m so happy to hear that it worked out even with your subs, that makes me happy! Yes, that is actually my little secret to fudgy brownies, is no leavening agent, or very little at that. Using leavening makes them more cake-like, in most cases, so leave it out and it’s fudgy! Thanks so much for leaving feedback, so glad you like them and I hope you’ll let me know how they are received at the potluck tomorrow! 🙂
What a brilliant recipe! I made these yesterday and this will now be my go to brownie recipe. I doubled the recipe and of course it took a little longer to bake. Mine did not come out as crinkly on the top, but close :). I love to bake and when I switched to a whole food plant based diet trying to avoid sugar, oil, and salt all my favorite baking recipes when aside. I have not made the time to be creative with them yet. I am so pleased to have these as part of my Christmas cookie trays this year! I cut them into mini bites so a double batch goes a long way. Thank you again!!
Thank you so much Kathleen for such wonderful feedback and your kind words, they really made me smile! I am so happy to hear that this is now your “go-to brownie recipe”! I never make another either, they are just too good! Thank you again for letting me know, I really appreciate it!
Bingo! Looks like I have found my perfect healthy brownie recipe.what do u think about substituting honey instead of maple syrup. Also, what do u think about subbing white whole wheat flour instead of oat?waiting 2 hear from u soon.I will bake these 2nite! Thank u so much!
Hi Carmen! Subbing white whole wheat instead of oat flour will yield a different texture result and might make them a bit drier or tougher. I haven’t tried it so I can’t say for sure the result or exact amount to use, but since wheat flour is so much more finely ground than oat flour, then you will need less than called for. What I would try is to eliminate the tapioca starch in this recipe and just use 3/4 cup of white whole wheat flour. The batter should be thick, but still spreadable, not overly thick like cookie dough. I really hope it doesn’t dry them out. Also, as far as honey I never use it. It is much sweeter and a lot thicker than maple syrup, so again a different result and flavor. You would probably need a bit less because of how sweet it is and thick…but to avoid the batter being too dry, maybe just add enough plant milk or something. These are just guesses since I haven’t tested it…I can only vouch for the above recipe.
Please let me know if you try these changes and let me know how it turns out! Or, if you can try it as above, it is really amazing and worth it!!
Hey there – my name is Nancy – newbie vegan here!
(well part time vegetarian all along-lol)
Anywho I found this lil ditty of a recipe on Pinterest!
( I knowwwww pintrest!!! Heehee the mindless hours of pinning)
Soooooo I had to comment an tell you first off we are friends in my head now after this recipe. Anyone who could put there foot in a brownie the you did I need to know this person an learn the vegan Jedi ways. I love this blog thank you for making the switch so tasty and easy I wanna be vegan but like a “dirty” vegan with all the good ole food! Thanks again so much please keep up the awesome work.
Awww Nancy, you are a sweetheart!! I’m so happy you found me and that you love these brownies so much!! Thank you for following and let me know if you ever need anything and leave me feedback on any future recipes, I’d love to hear! 🙂
Brandi as I mentioned on Instagram, these Brownies turned out perfectly. I was so glad to finally prove my omnivore family wrong, since they claimed that you simply cannot bake without eggs. I don’t even blame them because my attempts in vegan baking usually didn’t go well. But this recipe worked and convinced them that it IS possible not to use eggs or butter. Thanks again! 😀
I’m so glad to hear that you proved them wrong, haha! Thank you so much Mila for making them and I’m so glad you loved them so much!! Thank you for the feedback, I love hearing it!