Since my vegan brownies are my recipe which is most linked to from Pinterest, most “liked” on Facebook, and most tweeted about, there was no way that I couldn’t include them here.
As a bonus, I’ve included the rocky road variation.
Gluten-free pals: check out Kittee’s “XGFX Brownies Even Mom Wants.” They look pretty damn perfect to me!
All-Time Very Best Vegan Brownies
makes 16 brownies
1 3/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup dark chocolate chips or chocolate chunks
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup boiling very strong coffee/espresso shots or 1/4 cup boiling water mixed with 1 teaspoon instant espresso powder or 1/4 cup boiling water
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons flaxmeal
1 1/2 cups sugar
6 tablespoons solid coconut oil, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-2 tablespoons canola oil
Preheat oven to 350. Line an 8″x8″ or 9″x13″ pan (depending on whether you prefer thick or thin brownies) with two sheets of aluminum foil, shiny side up, one going each direction, so that you can lift the brownies out of the pan easily once they cool.
In large mixing bowl, stir together flour and baking soda.
In a medium mixing bowl, mix cocoa powder, chocolate chips, salt, and boiling coffee until the coffee has softened the chocolate chips and made a paste.
In a small bowl or cup, combine 1/4 cup water and ground flaxseed and stir well with fork.
Add sugar, melted coconut oil, vanilla, and flaxseed mixture to the chocolate mixture and mix very well, either with a spatula or an electric mixer.
Add chocolate mixture to flour mixture and mix together by hand, being careful not to overmix and overdevelop the glutens. Mix only until flour mixture is entirely incorporated.
At this point, you decide whether or not you need to add more oil. The texture of the batter should be dense, not at all liquidy, and it should be slightly glossy in appearance. If it’s not glossy, add the canola oil one tablespoon at a time and incorporate, being careful not to overmix. Do not exceed two tablespoons.
Transfer brownie batter to lined baking pan and then use a spatula to press the batter evenly into the pan.
Bake for 35-40 minutes. Remove pan from oven and place the pan on a cooling rack, leaving it there until the brownies have cooled almost all the way. These are best served a little warm still, but really, they’re good at any temp.
Rocky Road Brownies: After adding the extra oil, stir in 1/2 cup chopped nuts (I like walnuts best for brownies) and 1 cup vegan marshmallow bits. If there are any marshmallow bits which end up on top, poke them under the surface with your finger so that they don’t burn.
I love brownies, I’ve been meaning to make Kittee’s xgfx ones for a while now.
Do you normally do them in an 8×8 or 9×13? Just wondering what your preference is!
hi becky! i usually do 8×8 and cut them smaller, but i like them both ways!
Made it in an 8×8…yuuuummmmyyy! Would it work to use all canola instead of coconut oil? One of my kids said it was too coconut-y (after he ate his whole brownie!).