Fudgy Vegan Brownies
These are the BEST vegan brownies. They’re easy to make, perfectly fudgy with a rich chocolate flavor and a gorgeous shiny, crackly crust we all love! A totally crowd pleasing and homemade recipe.
10 tries later and we finally have it. The perfect fudgy vegan brownies, completely from scratch! Seriously, these are so good you will never go back to a boxed brownie mix again.
Plus, they’re made without black beans or avocado, just good old fashioned brownie ingredients that you can’t even tell are vegan!
As I’ve been testing this recipe, I’ve done a whole lot of research into what gives a brownie it’s characteristic shiny crust and fudgy center.
There are a lot of theories out there. Some say it’s the sugar, some say chocolate, some say eggs, but I’ve tried so many things and many of them just didn’t work.
Until I tried one unique method: melting the sugar into a bit of water before adding it to the batter. This essentially creates (sort of) an eggless meringue which rises to the top of the brownies as they bake and give a crackly, shiny crust.
It works like a charm to get beautifully fudgy brownies. If you love this recipe and need more of a chocolate fix, try my vegan chocolate cake or vegan chocolate cupcakes.
How to make vegan brownies
In a small bowl, whisk together the 2 tbsp ground flax plus 5 tbsp of water. Set aside to thicken. You can also use 1/4 cup of applesauce in place of the flax if you’re worried about any weird flavor.
I’ve tried both methods and love them equally! Plus, a flax eggs and applesauce are much easier than aquafaba, which we don’t need here.
In a medium pot on the stove, add the sugar and water and whisk together. Heat over medium/low heat. Stir occasionally, but after about 5-10 minutes, the sugar should completely dissolve. You can see the two images below for reference.
Be sure you don’t add any extra water. The water will look somewhat cloudy, but you shouldn’t notice any clumps of sugar. This is key for the shiny crust!
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, stir together all dry ingredients. Once the sugar has completely dissolved, give it a final whisk, then pour it into the dry ingredients.
Add all remaining wet ingredients, including the flax egg, and mix together with a wooden spoon until a batter forms. Careful not to overmix.
Fold in the chocolate chips if using. They’re optional, but they do help the crust get shinier.
Sprinkle with additional chocolate chips if desired. Transfer to an 8×8 baking dish lined with parchment paper to ensure the brownies come out of the pan easily.
If you only have a 9×9, that will work, but I generally recommend an 8×8 for brownies for the best results.
Bake for 35-45 minutes. About 38 was perfect in my oven, but all ovens are different. You’ll know they’re done when a toothpick comes out clean, but bake for longer if you don’t like a fudgy inside and prefer them more cake-like.
Remove from the oven, let cool, then slice into 16 squares & enjoy!
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What kind of cocoa powder should I use?
I’m not loyal to any one brand, but often buy the Whole Foods 365 cocoa powder. Hershey’s and Ghirardelli are all great options.
You can use dutch process or natural cocoa for this recipe. I do not recommend the Trader Joe’s cocoa powder as I do not think it has a rich enough flavor.
Which chocolate chips are best?
I’ve recently been loving the brand Guittard because they are made in a gluten-free facility (I love the semi-sweet chips), but Enjoy Life, Lily’s and Trader Joe’s all have great ones as well.
The chocolate chips are really optional in these vegan brownies, but I will say that the crust does get quite a bit shinier when you include them! Even just a few sprinkled on top makes a difference.
How to keep brownies moist
Honestly, you don’t need to worry with these ones! The method of dissolving the sugar into the water adds a lot of moisture to the brownies and they really should stay moist for several days.
Plus, we have the flax “eggs” and oil which will naturally add moisture to the brownies.
These vegan brownies will keep for 3-5 days in a container at room temperature. I like to warm them up in the microwave for a few seconds so they get gooey and fudgy, then serve with vanilla ice cream!
Pro tip for mixing the batter
Avoid using a whisk to stir the batter. This will force too much air into the batter and can change the final texture. A wooden spoon or rubber spatula is best!
Ingredients and swaps
FLOUR. I of course use gluten free all purpose flour for this recipe, but regular all purpose flour will work just as well if you are not gluten free.
Whatever you use, be sure you spoon and level the flour into your dry measuring cups, don’t scoop from the bag!
SUGAR. You can use another sugar like coconut sugar to make these refined sugar free, but the crust will not get as shiny as what is pictured.
A liquid sweetener like maple syrup will not work here. For best results, I recommend a finely ground white sugar.
FLAX EGGS. You can use flax eggs or apple sauce here, but I prefer the texture of the flax eggs. A flax egg is simple a mixture of ground flax seeds and water.
You may also like…
- Vegan Caramel Sauce
- Vegan Chocolate Chip Blondies
- Vegan Funfetti Blondies
- Vegan S’mores Bars
- Chocolate Mug Cake
- Flourless Brownies
Leave a comment and rating below if you try this recipe and let us know how it turns out! Be sure to follow on instagram for more recipes.
Best Fudgy Vegan Brownies
by: claire cary
Ingredients
Wet:
- 1 ½ cups very finely ground granulated sugar the brand Domino is best
- ½ cup water
- 2 tablespoons ground flax seed OR 5 tbsp apple sauce
- 5 tablespoons water for the flax, separate from the sugar water
- ½ cup oil
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Dry:
- ¾ cup cocoa powder sifted if clumpy
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour I used gluten free, but regular works too
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the 2 tbsp ground flax with 5 tbsp water. Set aside to thicken. Skip this step if using the apple sauce.
- Some people notice a flavor when using the flax (I never have this issue) so if that worries you, stick to the applesauce. The texture will be slightly different, but still delicious.
- In a medium pot on the stove, add the sugar and water and whisk together. Heat over medium/low heat. Stir occasionally, but after about 5-10 minutes, the sugar should completely dissolve.
- Be sure you don’t add any extra water. The water will look somewhat cloudy, but you shouldn’t notice any clumps of sugar. This is key for the shiny crust!
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl, stir together all dry ingredients except for the chocolate chips if using (we’ll add these later).
- Some people notice a flavor when using the flax (I never have this issue) so if that worries you, stick to the applesauce. The texture will be slightly different, but still delicious.
- Once the sugar has completely dissolved, give it a final whisk, then pour it into the dry ingredients.
- Add all remaining wet ingredients, including the flax eggs once thickened or the applesauce and mix together with a wooden spoon r rubber spatula until a batter forms. Careful not to over mix, stir just until combined.
- Fold in the chocolate chips if using. They’re optional, but they do help the top get shinier and add a richer chocolate flavor.
- Transfer to an 8×8 baking pan lined with parchment paper.
- Sprinkle with additional chocolate chips if desired.
- Bake for 35-42 minutes. about 38 was perfect in my oven, but check with a toothpick. Bake for longer if you don’t like a fudgy inside and shorter if you want them really fudgy.
- Remove from the oven, let cool completely, then slice around the edges of the pan and lift out the brownies using the parchment paper. Slice into 16 squares & enjoy! The longer you let cool, the easier/cleaner the cut will be.
Notes
Comments
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These brownies are SO GOOD. I made them tonight for my family and topped them with walnuts, chocolate chips, and sea salt and they were to die for. I used only 1/4 cup coconut oil and found that to be more than enough.
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oh yum!! Need to try with walnuts! So glad they turned out well with that variation!
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Hi Lex,
Did you replace the other 1/4 cup of oil with applesauce or just leave it as is.
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Finally! A recipe that works! And simple ingredients! I especially love that u don’t use any milk in it. So far the best I’ve tried. I posted photo on my ig @nadihangry. 😉
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Thank you Nadiah! So happy you enjoyed them and for sharing 🙂
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This is the brownie recipe I’ve been searching all my life for. I love to bake and brownies are my favorite dessert, but for some reason I find that homemade brownies never turn out quite right. These, however, are perfect. I also love that they are vegan and use super simple swaps that happened to all be in my kitchen already. I only had cinnamon apple sauce so I used that and WOW. It’s subtle but I think it took them to the next level. This is officially my go-to brownie recipe.
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OMG yes I need to try with that cinnamon apple sauce, that sounds amazing! So happy you enjoyed these!
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I tried these for the first time yesterday (went with the applesauce version) and they turned out amazing. This will be my go-to brownie recipe from now on.
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Love to hear that! Thanks Sarah!
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Hello, what type of GF flour did you find works best? We have a few in our home and found each work a little differently based on recipes. Thanks!
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I am very loyal to the Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Baking Flour (in the blue bag), so that’s what I usually stick with! Brownies are a bit more forgiving than other recipes (like cake), so you should have good results with any blend. let me know what you end up using!
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Thank you for this! I have been wanting something chocolaty and have just been diagnosed in the past couple of weeks with allergies to eggs, dairy, and apples. I made this without the chocolate chip and used the flax egg. I am so excited to find something sweet that I can eat.
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Aww I’m so happy you found something you’re able to enjoy! I totally get the struggle with food allergies, but I have tons of egg and dairy free recipes so hopefully there’s lots more for you to try!
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Made this recipe last night, and was very impressed. Followed the recipe exactly and they turned out perfect. I used the flax and could not detect it at all after baking.
I layered them on-top of a peanut butter cookie base, and made an awesome brookie. Thanks a lot! This will be my new go to!-
ohmygosh such a good idea! I’ll have to try that too. So glad you enjoyed these!
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I’ve been looking for vegan brownies with the shiny top so I’m excited to try these! When you incorporate the dissolved water is it still boiling hot from the stove or should I let it cool a bit?
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It won’t ever come to a boil since the sugar will dissolve before that point, so you can just add it in right away!
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Does sugar and water have to end in a caramel consistency in the pan? (before mixing with dry ingredients)
i used brown sugar and it hardened a bit fast awith the rest of ingredientsAlso, what’s the weight of flour used in this recipe¿?
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No! You don’t want it to turn into caramel and you actually don’t want to use brown sugar. You just want the sugar to dissolve into the water which will help the crust of the brownies get a nice shiny and crackly top.
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This recipe is amazing, I wouldn’t change anything, it’s really easy to make and sooo delicious, best brownies ever!🤯❤
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Hey, why not Dutch cocoa powder?
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You can use dutch cocoa if that’s all you have, I just generally don’t recommend it since it has a different flavor and I haven’t tested the recipe with it.
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I tried the recipe, the look and the texture were exactly like a nice fudgy brownie but the taste…I could only taste the flax seed. Is there anything I can do to omit it.
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You really shouldn’t taste the flax at all if you’re using a mild ground flax seed, but you can try use another egg replacer like Bob’s red mill or using 4 tbsp of apple sauce instead or the two flax eggs. Let me know how they turn out if you try that!
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Do you think It’ll affect the brownie if I use Caster instead of Granulated sugar? 🙂
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Nope! That’ll work well and even dissolve more easily. Just make sure it’s caster sugar and not powdered sugar.
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I just made these and they turned out amazing! Although I halved the amount of ingredients ‘cause I was running low on coco powder. Still worked. Thank you for this recipe 🙂
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Perfect! So glad they still worked out!
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I have to confess that I didn’t make these (PMT, folks!) but my lovely boyfriend made them – and wow! They are amazing. Crunchy on the top, soft in the middle. He’s a great cook, but not usually a great baker, but he had these perfectly… Probably because the recipe is fantastic and easy to follow. He used chia seeds instead of flax. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
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Thanks Joyce! So happy you enjoyed them!
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WOW it looks sooo goood!! Do you have any idea if I substitute the ALL purpose flour into GF oat flour ? AND replace the white sugar into coconut sugar is it gonna work?
Thank you for sharing your lovely tips with us.-
Thanks Sara! I don’t recommend any substitutions for this recipe, except the ones listed. I used GF all purpose flour which works really well. If you prefer using coconut sugar, I’d try my almond flour brownies instead!
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