You’d never guess these super fudgy Salted Almond Brownies are gluten-free, paleo and vegan because they taste just as good as a traditional brownie! They’re incredibly fudgy and chocolatey and the toasted almonds and sea salt make them even better. This post is sponsored by Alter Eco.
I can barely contain my excitement about this post because these brownies have been a longggg time coming. Of course, I have some other favorite brownie recipes, like these Ultimate Gluten-Free Fudge Brownies, but I’ve been working on a vegan brownie recipe (that’s also paleo) for a while…and you guys, I finally nailed it.
In previous attempts, the brownies were always too dry, or didn’t look right, or weren’t fudgy enough (and fudgy is KEY). But THESE. These taste like a traditional brownie. I was impressed with myself when I took a bite of one for the first time and would be surprised to hear they were paleo and vegan if I hadn’t made them myself.
They’re easy to make too – not too much fussing around with weird or random ingredients, and you can have them in the oven pretty dang quickly, too because they don’t take too much time to put together.
The ingredients are simple and sweet and you’ve probably already got them all in your kitchen already! They’ve got:
- A triple dose of chocolate
- An ULTRA fudgy texture
- Crunchy roasted almonds
- A perfect level of sweetness
- NO dairy/gluten/grains/refined sugar
Let’s chat about how to make these Salted Almond Brownies happen. We’re starting with some SUPER dark chocolate. I used Alter Eco’s Super Blackout Chocolate. It’s 90% cacao, and I’d recommend using something similarly dark or even unsweetened entirely.
We melt it down with some coconut oil. Then, we mix the melted chocolate with maple syrup, coconut sugar, and a hefty dose of almond butter. The almond butter helps keep these incredibly rich, fudgy, and decadent. You can sub out your favorite nut butter here if you’d like – just make sure to use one that’s SIMPLE, no sugars or weird ingredients added.
These Salted Almond Brownies use a flax egg to help bind everything and a splash of vanilla extract for flavor. We add almond flour, baking soda, and salt to the mix…and cacao powder to bump up the chocolate flavor even MORE!
Once the batters all mixed up, we’ve got that THIRD dose of chocolate in the form of a chopped up Salted Almond Dark Chocolate Bar from Alter Eco…hellooooo lover. It’s so good – I could (and do 😂) eat this bar on the daily. Along with that, we add crunchy roasted almonds which add the most irresistible toasty flavor.
Once these Salted Almond Brownies are out of the oven, a shower of flaky sea salt is rained down on top. Oh, boy. It’s hard not to eat these warm, but after a few hours in the fridge, they’re fudgy brownie perfection. It’s taking all my willpower to not go grab the last one in the fridge to eat for breakfast ;)
I hope you’ll give these a try and love them as much as I do! I’m nothing short of obsessed. Enjoy, my loves!
Salted Almond Brownies
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 16 brownies 1x
Description
You’d never guess these super fudgy Salted Almond Brownies are gluten-free, paleo and vegan, because they taste just as good as a traditional brownie! They’re incredibly fudgy and chocolatey and the toasted almonds and sea salt make them even better.
Ingredients
- 2 oz. Alter Eco Blackout Chocolate (90% cacao – you can use unsweetened chocolate here too, if you prefer)
- 3 tablespoons (38g) coconut oil
- ⅓ cup maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons coconut sugar
- ½ cup (128g) creamy natural almond butter
- 1.5 flax eggs (1.5 tablespoons flax meal + 4 tablespoons water, whisk and let set for 10 minutes)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup (32g) blanched almond flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup (30g) cacao powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup Alter Eco Salted Almond Dark Chocolate (chopped (I used one bar))
- ¼ cup toasted almonds (chopped)
- 1 teaspoon flaky sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line with parchment and lightly grease an 8×8” baking pan.
- Put the Blackout Chocolate and coconut oil in a large glass bowl and microwave for 30 seconds. Stir, and repeat until the chocolate and coconut oil are completely melted and smooth. Add the maple syrup, coconut sugar, and almond butter. Whisk until completely combined.
- Add flax egg and vanilla extract to the chocolate mixture and whisk until combined.
- Add the almond flour, salt, baking soda, and cocoa powder to the chocolate mixture and once it’s stirred in, fold in the Salted Almond chocolate chunks and toasted almonds.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 20-22 minutes, or until a few crumbs are attached when a toothpick is inserted into the center, but it’s not too wet. If desired, press more chocolate onto the top after baking! Sprinkle with flaky sea salt.
- Let cool completely before cutting and serving. I like to place them in the fridge overnight before cutting! Store in an airtight container at room temperature for a few days, or in the fridge for up to a week.
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: American
Jane says
Hey these sound amazing!! If I wanted to use an egg instead of the flax (which doesn’t agree with me) how many would I use? Thanks in advance. jane x
Rachel says
Hi Jane, I would use one egg and one yolk for these. Enjoy!
Laura | Tutti Dolci says
Gorgeous photos and these brownies look beyond delicious!
Rachel says
Thank you so much Laura, I appreciate it!
Ashley says
These look like the perfect brownie! I can’t believe they are Paleo, Vegan, and so simple!!!
Rachel says
Thanks so much Ashley!
Karl says
Coconut oil. Unusual. Can you use any type of oil or should I just buy some to use in other recipes to
Rachel says
I haven’t tested these with any other oil so not sure if they would work. Most of my recipes use coconut oil so I don’t find it unusual and if you buy some coconut oil for these, I have many other recipes you can use it up with :)
Kylee says
I’ve never heard of flax seed as an egg substitute before, does the flax seed swell?
Is that how it helps to bind the brownie? They look delicious, can’t wait to make these! ❤
★★★★★
Rachel says
Hi Kylee, a flax egg, which is ground flax meal mixed with water, is a very common egg substitute! It gels up and creates a binding consistency, and when mixing it into a batter, like here, you’ll see the mixture pull together a bit the way you would with an egg. Hope this helps explain!
Kayle (The Cooking Actress) says
absolute, utter, perfection!!
★★★★★
Kayla says
I love her recipes!! this one did not dissapoint!! very good and turned out exactly as decribed!
★★★★★
Rachel says
Amazing!! So glad you loved them Kayla. Thanks so much for your feedback!
Cinthya says
I Loved! Can i use only maple syrup or you have another option please?
Rachel says
So glad to hear it, Cinthya! You could use honey instead if you prefer.
Irina says
These are delicious! Am I blind or is the baking powder nowhere in the instructions?
★★★★★
Rachel says
Hi Irina. The baking powder was missed – it’s fixed now! It’s added with the rest of the dry ingredients.
Twinkle says
Loved it! Great option to avoid all the white flour and sugar but still so delicious and satisfying the chocolate craving. It’s not overly sweet and I had to bake additional 15 mins since the center wasn’t cooked. I added walnuts instead of almonds, and LOVED it !!!
★★★★★
Bakerita | Rachel Conners says
So glad you enjoyed the brownies!!
Nicole says
Amazing! Subbed peanut butter because I didn’t have almond butter on hand. Love your recipes! So easy to make and consistently delicious!
Thank you,
Nicole
★★★★★
Bakerita | Rachel Conners says
Yay thank you so much for the feedback, so glad your loving this recipe!! :)