I was ready to take on the challenge this morning when Daevyd woke up and requested that we make brownies. I opened the pantry and was happy to find just enough Carob powder remaining to make a batch. He helped me to measure the ingredients and he couldn’t wait for them to bake.
I used a combination of oat flour and almond flour as the base. For sweetener, I used coconut sugar. I wanted to make a really moist brownie without using any carob chips. I prepared flax eggs with almond milk and then added coconut oil, vanilla, and almond extract. You could substitute it with applesauce.
I allowed to carob to cool slightly while in the pan, then top it with carob frosting. The frosting further made the carob brownies really moist.
The results were amazing and we all enjoyed it. These Gluten-Free Vegan Carob Brownies had the perfect balance of flavor!
You might be wondering what is Carob? To find the answer and more recipes check out Dr. Axe’s article:
Carob Chips: The Caffeine-Free Chocolate Substitute that’s Actually Good for You
Categories
- Categories: Gluten-Free, Vegan
- Course: Dessert
- Cuisine: American
Cooking Time
- Preparation: 20 min
- Cooking: 25 min
- Ready in: 45 min
- For:
- 9 slices
Ingredients
- 1 cup almond milk
- 2 tablespoons ground flax seeds
- 1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 1/2 cups oat flour, (I made my own)
- 1/2 cup almond flour
- 1 cup coconut sugar
- 1/3 cup carob powder
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Frosting
- 1/3 cup almond butter
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons carob powder
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven 350. Prepare an 8x8 inch baking pan and set aside.
- Combine, almond milk, flax seeds, coconut oil, vanilla and almond extract in a medium bowl. Sit for 5 minutes.
- In a large bowl, mix together oat flour, almond flour, coconut sugar, carob powder, baking powder, and salt.
- Stir wet mixture with the dry ingredients and mix well. Scoop batter into prepared pan and bake for 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Meanwhile mix the frosting.
- Remove from oven and allow brownies to cool for about 5 minutes in the pan.
- Spread frosting on top of brownies and allow to completely cool before slicing. Enjoy!
Frosting
- To prepare the frosting, add almond butter, maple syrup, carob powder, vanilla and almond extract to a food processor and process until smooth.
Notes
I have a very restrictive diet so this recipe is life! I didn’t have oat flour so I replaced it with brown rice flour and followed the recipe exactly and it came out soooo amazing. These brownies were fudgey and tasted even better than chocolate brownies. Thank you for sharing such wonderful recipes.
Lisa, I’m so happy the recipe worked out for you, thank you very much for sharing your feedback with us.
Hello, i’ve been searching for a chocolate like recipe for my anti-histamine diet, which means no gluten, no sugar, and no chocolate and many other things. I was wondering if I can use honey instead of sugar? I don’t have any coconut sugar.
Margo, I’m so happy you found my recipe. It should work since it will add even more moisture to your brownies. I hope you enjoy it. Let me know how you do.
OMG…So good! I did make the following modifications for our gluten-free, vegan, quasi-keto; nut-allergy dietary needs: subbed chickpea flour for the oat/almond flour; swapped carob powder for cocoa powder; subbed solid coconut oil (melted) for liquid coconut oil; used 1 tsp baking powder and just 1/2 c coconut sugar; everything else remained the same. Due to the natural sweetness of the carob powder, it was plenty sweet with the reduced sugar. The end result was a slightly dense yet moist, cakey-cookie-like brownie, due to the use of the solid coconut oil and reduced baking powder. I then frosted it with a mix of 1/2 c Wowbutter (roasted soybean butter) and 1/2 c coconut manna, along with 1 tsp vanilla bean powder, which was melted gently on the stovetop, then poured over the cooled brownies and left in the fridge to set. Note: I’ve found the alcohol in vanilla extract to interfere with the solidification of the frosting, which is why I opted for the vanilla bean powder. No additional sugar needed in the frosting, either! For those wondering, the chickpea (garbanzo bean) flour was undetectable in terms of taste. I’m currently trying to avoid going back for a FIFTH brownie… Thanks so much for sharing this recipe! <3
Jennifer, I’m happy you enjoyed it, thank you very much for sharing your detailed adjustments with us.
Delicious!!!!! I made them with regular unbleached flour and I used Energe baking powder and they were so moist and delicious. I also had to sub peanut butter for the almond butter in the frosting; it still turned out great. It’s been years since we had brownies and the whole house loves them. Thanks so much for an amazing recipe!
Lakella, I’m so happy everyone enjoyed them. I love how you were able to adjust them successfully.
BEST vegan brownies I’ve made yet. New dietary guidelines for my husband suggesting removing chocolate. So, I was elated to find that I could still make his favorite dessert! Just made these brownies a second time using applesauce instead of coconut oil and it turned out basically the same! Just had to bake for an extra 5-10 minutes. I Found that it tasted better with the frosting if leaving the oil out. I also put walnuts on top both times. So good! Thanks for the recipe!
Hi Michelle,
Is there anything that can be used in place of almond extract?
Monique,it is fine without it.
Hi Michelle. These look delicious but I’m not a fan of oat flour. Can I use coconut flour instead?
Thanks.
Denise
Hello Denise, I’m not sure because I don’t like coconut flour and I have a 5-pound bag for over 3 years in my pantry. I recommend that you use a gluten-free all-purpose flour blend in place of the almond flour. However, if you try the coconut flour and it turns out great, please let us know.
Hi, can coconut flakes be as good as coconut sugar?
Mirta, I’m not sure if I understand you correctly. Are you asking if you can substitute coconut flakes for coconut sugar? No, you cannot. You can substitute regular sugar for coconut sugar though.
This was amazing! I made it last Friday and my family devoured it! I made a double batch, one was plain as muffins and the other with carob chips in a square pan. We preferred the plain muffin cups over the pan but they were both good. Thanks for such great recipes! I need to try it with the frosting next time!
Moalyne, I’m so happy that you and your family enjoyed my recipe. It goes pretty fast in my home as well. I would love to add carob chips but my local store only carries unsweetened carob chips and I have requested the sweetened kind. The frosting makes it super moist and decadent!
This look amazing! I’m working on making them … what size pan do I use?
what size pan???
Jo anne, I used an 8×8 inch square pan.