These Classic Chocolate Walnut Brownies are deeply chocolaty with flavor notes of coffee and vanilla to satisfy your most intense chocolate cravings!
When I’m in the mood for chocolate, more often than not I reach for a bar (80 to 90% cacao for me, please), but there are times when I’m just in the mood for a really good brownie.
If you’re looking for a great brownie recipe that’s gluten-free and a bit healthier than most, this one is it.
Now, I have a confession to make; I’m a batter-lover from waaaaay back. (Dating all the way to my toddler days when I was too short to reach the counter so I’d sit up there, legs criss-crossed, and watch my mom mix up a batch of chocolate chippers). It goes without saying that these days I still swipe a fingerful of batter when I bake.
(In my defense, when I’m developing a baked good recipe I need to test it before it's baked to make sure the flavor is on-point! It might need a touch more sugar, salt, etc., right? Or yeah, this might be a case of any excuse will do, lol. Really though, if you trust your egg source and buy pastured eggs it’s not as huge an issue as you might think. You can read more about raw egg consumption here.)
But the thing I discovered when I was developing this brownie recipe is that it needed no flour. I had originally planned on adding almond flour or perhaps a mix of almond flour and tapioca flour, but I found it to be absolutely perfect as-is. Cocoa powder is the only flour-like substance in this recipe, and the batter itself is ganache-like and more than a little addictive (if ever there were a recipe that deserved two swipes of batter, this one is it).
And the batter bakes up into some pretty fabulous brownies. Deep, dark chocolate flavor that’s nuanced with hints of coffee and vanilla, plus the crunch of walnuts. Their texture falls somewhere between fudgy and chewy without being cakey, which makes them completely irresistible.
- 4 tablespoons grass-fed butter, at room temperature
- ¾ cup (115 g) coconut sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon instant espresso powder, dissolved in 1 teaspoon hot water
- 2 oz (60 g) good-quality unsweetened chocolate, melted in a double boiler or microwave and cooled slightly
- 4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (60 g) chopped walnuts
- Preheat the oven to 350F; line a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan with 2 pieces of parchment paper so the paper hangs over all 4 sides (and you can lift the brownies out later).
- Cream together the butter and sugar in a large bowl, and then beat in the eggs, vanilla, dissolved espresso, and melted chocolate.
- Sift in the cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt, and stir to combine. Fold in the walnuts.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until the brownies are set along the outside, about 20 to 22 minutes, being careful not to over-bake. Cool completely before cutting.
- These can be left at room temperature overnight; the next day, transfer any leftovers to the fridge where they’ll keep for about 1 week.
[…] I recently finally got around to tackling something that’s been on my “to-do” list for a very long time: giving Healthy Sweet Eats a facelift! I did the logo and site design myself; I was going for colorful, whimsical, and fun, and it was no small task for me because I am definitely not a web designer. I’m pretty happy with how it turned out though! Over there I share my nourishing sweet treats, most of which can legitimately pass as breakfast or dessert. Everything is gluten-free and refined-sugar-free, and most recipes are also paleo-friendly. My current favorite recipes over there are my Easy No-Churn Mango Lassi Frozen Yogurt and my Classic Chocolate Walnut Brownies. […]