Unbelievably Fudgy Easy Vegan Brownies – Better Than Box Mix!
These fudgy vegan brownies are better than any box mix brownie you’ll find. They’re decadently rich and chewy with an ultra chocolate flavor and perfect crinkly tops made by dissolving the sugar. Yet at the same time, unbelievably dairy free, eggless, and vegan with the simplest ingredients. Slice into these easy vegan brownies in just 30 minutes and devour!
Forget the box mix brownies- you’re going to LOVE these easy vegan brownies from scratch!
I’m serious. You’ll never be tempted to make another box mix brownie again after giving these ultra fudgy vegan brownies a go.
These brownies are one of our favorite vegan dessert recipes for a good reason (and the base recipe for several of our other vegan brownie recipes, including my vegan gluten free Oreo brownies (and my inspiration for several of the brownie recipes in my cookbook!) .
These eggless brownies are just so easy, and we achieved the classic iconic crinkle top!! But how?! There are two EASY reasons why these vegan brownies are different than others:
- Sugar content: We’ve slightly increased the moisture in this vegan brownie recipes by using part brown sugar and part granulated sugar. The brown sugar will add a slightly more molasses flavor, while also adding more moisture and richness.
- Sugar dissolution: This means that the sugar granules are dissolved in the liquid by vigorous mixing- either with a hand mixer or by hand. Dissolving the sugar helps to create a super crinkly and shiny top!
The best part about this brownie recipe in particular is that it tastes like a fudgy Ghiradelli brownie. And all with the simplest ingredients and method.
In fact, this recipe is so solid, that I used it to create my easy vegan brownie cookies!
I’m serious, you’re going to be hard pressed to believe that these brownies are vegan (because we’re finally baking them right!).
You are just going to LOVE these super rich and fudgy brownies! Seriously, you won’t even miss the eggs and the dairy 😉
The Simplest Ingredients to make Vegan Brownies:
The vegan pantry staple ingredients that we need to make these brownies actually come with some cool benefits:
- Ground flaxseed: We’re going to be using ground flaxseed to make a flax egg. I’ve also tested these brownies with unsweetened applesauce and dairy free yogurt, and either works as well! Here’s more on vegan egg replacements to check out why we’re using flaxseed for eggs!
- Aquafaba: Otherwise known as “chickpea brine,” aquafaba is the liquid found in your chickpea can. It acts as a great vegan egg substitute for egg whites found in traditional brownies. If you don’t have aquafaba though, this recipe will work with replacing it for soy milk!
- Vegan butter: for this recipe, you can use either vegan butter or coconut oil. There are many nut free vegan butters on the markets these days, including Violife (my favorite for nut-free!). I personally use Miyoko’s. If you don’t want to use vegan butter, you can use coconut oil- in fact, using coconut oil may help in protecting both our brains and our hearts! The only note I have for vegan butter is that if you’re using earth balance, use the baking sticks rather than the tub of butter. You’ll get much better results!
- Granulated sugar: The high amount of sugar is what gives our brownies the crinkly top, so please don’t reduce it! Make sure that it’s organic in order to be vegan. I always use Florida Crystals sugar, which is certified vegan.
- Cocoa powder: if you’re wondering what cocoa powder to use for this recipe, I actually go over this down below. But I recommend using all Dutch-processed for the fudgier texture it will give.
- All purpose flour: Many are so quick to knock flour, but it does contain nutrients, like selenium, riboflavin, and niacin. If you have an allergy to gluten, however, you can use gluten free 1:1 baking flour here if needed. I recommend using King Arthur Measure for Measure gluten free flour. I have not tried these vegan brownies with whole wheat flour, which definitely requires different ratios.
- High quality dark vegan chocolate: my favorite brand to use for this recipe is Endangered Species or Valrhona!
Overview: How to make vegan brownies step-by-step
For the full written instructions and ingredient measurements, see the bottom of this post in the recipe card. You can also hit the “jump to recipe” button at the top of this post! Here, we’ll go over a brief overview of the steps, along with providing visuals for a better understanding of the recipe.
Once you see how simple and easy these vegan brownies are to make, you might just be making them every week!
Pro Tip:
Allow the brownies to fully cool before slicing! This will help achieve that really clean nice slice!
How to know when brownies are done
This really depends if you’re looking more for fudgy vegan brownies or more cakey vegan brownies. I personally air on the fudgy side, so I would check the brownies after 20 minutes.
Use a toothpick to test: if the toothpick comes out slightly clean (there might be a few crumbs on it) they’re good to go! If there’s more batter than actual brownie on the toothpick, I would give them another 3-5 minutes.
When you remove the brownies from the oven, the tops of the brownies will be soft– that means they’re definitely fudgy inside! As they cool, the brownies will become firmer, yet still remain fudgy when you take that first bite.
What’s the best way to cut brownies?
The key to cleanly sliced brownies? The most important part is allowing the brownies to fully cool before slicing. This means waiting for about 25-30 minutes after they’ve been removed from the oven.
Next tip is slicing them with a large kitchen knife, using one fell swoop. DO NOT drag the knife through the brownies, as that’s what causes the crumbling to occur. Make sure to also gently clean the knife with a kitchen towel between each slice.
Another trick is to run the knife under really hot water. Make one slice, then use a clean kitchen towel to clean the knife after each slice.
This method will ensure that you don’t get any ruined edges! Your vegan fudge brownies will be the perfect squares of chocolatey bliss.
Remember: the brownies should be cool before slicing!! If they’re not, no matter how hot or clean the knife is, the brownies might crumble around the edges!
Pro Tip: Which cocoa powder is best?
Many people in the healthy eating realm, and even in the vegan recipes world, always recommend cacao powder. I used to too, as I know that cacao powder is full of antioxidants.
However, using cacao powder will not result in the best vegan brownies.
I recommend using Dutch-Processed cocoa powder. It will leave your brownies more fudgy (read: less dry! Check out this comparison of cocoa powders here), and since we’re not using any leavening agents in the recipe, you don’t need to worry about acidity for rising!
Brownie mix-ins
If you ever want to jazz up this recipe for something different, here are some of my favorite brownie mix-ins:
- More chocolate chips (of course!)
- Pecans, walnuts, cashews, peanuts (if you’re nut free!)
- Peanut butter or cashew butter (or try these amazing vegan peanut butter swirl brownies!)
- Vegan chocolate gems
- Crushed oreos (use these vegan gluten free Oreos if you need to!)
- Vegan white chocolate chips
Final Brownie Baking Tips:
- Don’t slice your brownies too soon: These are SUPER fudgy brownies. Therefore, we need them to set and slightly cool before going in with our kitchen knives. Give the brownies about 20-30 minutes cooling in the pan before you remove and slice. They’ll be perfect!
- Be careful not to over mix: This is a very thick brownie batter, so I know it will be tempting to REALLY mix hard. But over-mixing the batter will lead to super dry brownies- not what we want!
- The better the ingredients, the better the flavor! I love using a really high quality vegan chocolate. Valrhona has a few options, as well as their vegan milk chocolate!
- Use a hand mixer to save time: If it’s easier, you can just use a hand mixer instead of a whisk! You do need to fully dissolve the sugar into the liquid in order to get those shiny tops, which will take some work!
- Make sure the sugar granules are really dissolved: This is super important for those crinkly tops. To test this, pinch the liquid between your fingers. If you feel granules, you’ll still need to mix. If it feels super smooth, then you’re good to go!
How to store brownies
I recommend slicing the brownies, then storing them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. This will help them remain fudgy and soft!
Alternatively, you can absolutely store them in the fridge (also in an airtight container) for up to 5 days.
You can also freeze these vegan brownies for up to 3 months.
You are just going to LOVE these super easy vegan brownies! Truly, this will be your go-to brownie recipe, I’m sure of it!
Happy brownie baking!
Watch how to make vegan brownies:
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Fudgy Crinkle Top Vegan Brownies – Better Than Box Mix!
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 28
- Total Time: 38 minutes
- Yield: 16 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
These fudgy vegan brownies are better than any box mix brownie you’ll find. They’re decadently rich and chewy with an ultra chocolate flavor and perfect crinkly tops, yet are unbelievably dairy free, eggless, and vegan with the simplest ingredients. Slice into these easy vegan brownies in just 30 minutes and devour!
Ingredients
- 1 2/3 cup (200 g) all-purpose flour or gluten free 1:1 baking flour
- 1/2 cup (50 g) high quality Dutch-processed cocoa powder*
- 1/2 cup (113 g) vegan butter or coconut oil, melted
- 6 ounces vegan chocolate chips
- 1/3 cup (80 mL) aquafaba or soy milk, room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (100 g) brown sugar
- 2 tbsp ground flaxseed mixed with 1/2 cup coffee (you can sub water) or 1/2 cup (100 g) unsweetened applesauce, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- Additional 1/2 cup (80 g) vegan chocolate chips
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 350F and line an 8×8″ or 9×9″ pan with parchment paper. Whisk together the ground flaxseed and coffee in a small bowl, and set aside to thicken.
- Dissolve the sugar: In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, brown sugar, aquafaba, vanilla extract, sea salt, and flaxseed mixture. You can use a hand mixer to make it faster, but whisk vigorously until the sugar granules are completely dissolved. This is crucial, as this gives the vegan brownies their crinkle top. Set aside.
- Heat the chocolate: Heat the vegan butter until melted and hot in a heat-safe bowl (I do about 45 seconds). Then add in the chocolate chips. Allow the chocolate to sit for a few seconds to start melting. Then add in the cocoa powder as well, and whisk until the chocolate chips have completely melted and the cocoa powder is integrated into the mixture.
- Make the brownie batter: Use a rubber spatula to spoon the chocolate fudge mixture into the dissolved sugar mixture. Whisk until combined. Then add in the flour and gently whisk JUST until the flour is completely incorporated. The brownie batter will feel really thick. That’s okay! Continue whisking just until the flour is incorporated. Add in the chocolate chips, and fold into the brownie batter to evenly distribute.
- Bake: Spread the batter into the pan to the edges. Place the pan into the oven and bake for 28-30 minutes if using a 9×9″ pan, or until the toothpick comes out NEARLY clean. It’s okay if the middle is still a bit wiggly. It will solidify more as it rests. If you bake these brownies longer, they will be more cake-y than fudgy.
- Rest: Remove from the oven and let sit for 30 minutes in the pan to cool.
- Slice and serve! Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days or in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Notes
Gluten free: You can use gluten-free 1:1 baking flour or oat flour to make these vegan brownies. If using oat flour, please be sure to use the gram measurements (weighted measurements) rather than cups. I use King Arthur Measure for Measure gluten free flour for a general gluten free flour blend. Same baking temperature and time applies!
Dutch-Processed Cocoa Powder: Please try not to use cacao powder over Dutch-processed cocoa powder here! The fudgy texture comes from the way the cocoa powder is processed in what is known as “Dutch-process.” For brands, I love either Valrhona or Ghirardelli 100% cocoa Dutch Process cocoa powder!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 brownie
- Calories: 295
- Sugar: 26.5 g
- Sodium: 4 mg
- Fat: 14.6 g
- Saturated Fat: 8.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 41.1 g
- Fiber: 3.1 g
- Protein: 3.6 g
- Cholesterol: 15.3 mg
Can I replace flaxseed with 4 eggs?
Hi Rachael! I haven’t tested this personally, typically the ratio is 1:1 but 4 eggs sounds like a lot in brownies- so I really can’t say! I’m so sorry!
Can i replace the applesauce with flax egg or aquafaba?
Hi Andrea! You can use 2 tbsp ground flaxseed with 1/3 cup water 🙂
Great! thank you for answering so quickly ☺️
Absolutely!! enjoy!
For the vegan butter or coconut oil, could I use tahini or sunflower seed butter?
Thanks! Martie
Hi Martie! I actually haven’t tried this recipe yet with either of those- I’m so sorry! Typically, you can sub them, but I can’t guarantee anything here, as I haven’t tried it myself.
If I wanted to try this with oat or almond flour instead, what ratio would you suggest?
I haven’t personally tried these with either of those flours- my guess is that the oat flour might be too crumbly (and I honestly don’t work with almond flour if at all, so I couldn’t even predict how that might come out!). You’re always more than welcome to try it with the oat flour, but I can’t guarantee it would work so I don’t want you to waste ingredients! If it were me, I would do 120 grams oat flour with 1 tbsp arrowroot starch as a test. But again, I can’t guarantee it would work!
Hi Courtney! So sorry to hear they didn’t bind together! The most likely culprit is over-baking and then not allowing them to set after baking!
Hi! What can I replace the aqua faba with ? It isn’t easily available here
Hi Monica! Unfortunately, there isn’t a good replacement for the aquafaba- I’m so sorry! You CAN use 2 ground flax seed “eggs” but the texture won’t be quite the same. I hope that helps!
OBSESSED with these brownies!!! They came out so perfectly fudgy and rich!! My go to vegan brownie recipe from now on, even my non-vegan family loved them too!! Couldn’t even tell they’re vegan!
So happy to hear it!! Enjoy and thanks for the review 🙂
Hi! Can I do almond milk instead of soy milk?
Yes definitely!
Made these for a dinner party served warm with vegan ice cream. They went down a treat. Thank you for the recipe.
Oh I’m just so happy to hear it!! Thank you so much for sharing!! Sounds like such a delicious evening 🙂 Enjoy!
Can I skip the aqua fab and add more applesauce?
Hi Lyly! Unfortunately, the aquafaba definitely can’t be substituted out- I’m so sorry!
How much vanilla?
1 tsp!
Hi maam, is there any other substitute for aquafaba?
Hi Krisha! Unfortunately, to achieve that crinkle top, you really need the aquafaba. However, if your’e fine without the crinkle top on the brownies, you can sub in dairy free milk! You just won’t have brownies that LOOK like classic brownies on top but they’ll still taste delicious!
Yum! These were great, I used the 200g of oat flour with 1 T of arrowroot as you suggested. I also used the coconut oil listed as an option. We loved them! Thank you!
This is fantastic!! So happy to hear it, and thanks for listing what you used too!! That’s so helpful 🙂 Enjoy, and thanks for the review!
These are amazing. Honestly best brownies I’ve ever had, you would never know they’re dairy free. My go to recipe now!!
SO happy to hear it 🙂 Thank you!!
I cannot wait to make these. Can you share the brand of Cocoa powder that you use?
I can’t wait for you to try these!! I just updated the post with these recs to reflect that because it’s a great question 🙂 But for brands, I love either Valrhona or Ghirardelli 100% cocoa Dutch Process cocoa powder!
You mention baking soda and baking powder in the video but it’s not listed. Can you please tell me how much? Thank you.
Hi Dom! So sorry for any confusion- are you referencing from the YouTube video? The recipe was just recently adapted to be even better, so you don’t need either!
Really great! I’ve been looking for a truly fudgey brownie and this is the best i’ve ever made.
I made it gluten free because I have celiac disease so I used 150grams of schar all purpose flour and 50grams of almond flower. IT WAS AMAZING. i also did a swirl on top with a little bit of peanut butter and it was just chefs kiss.
This is AWESOME!!! Thank you so much for sharing 🙂 So glad those swaps worked for you too!!
For the applesauce option do you omit the ground flax seed? Or is it 2tbsp flax seed + 1/2c applesauce? My son has an allergy to flax. Thanks!
Hi Katelyn! yes, you can omit the ground flaxseed and coffee mixture, and swap in with 1/2 cup applesauce- it will lose some richness from the lack of coffee, but still taste really good!
Firstly, I freaking adore this chef. Every single recipe I’ve tried, has been amazing. I’ve tried other peoples brownie recipes, but not only is hers the best, it doesn’t make me feel like garbage when I eat the whole pan. I am prediabetic, and fairly new to vegan baking so I decided to take a chance and I substituted the sugar for agave nectar and honey, and the brown sugar with coconut brown sugar. Because me and my boyfriend have no self control with sweets in the house 😂 Also, I mixed the flaxseed with espresso powder and hot water cause I didn’t feel like making coffee. 🤷♀️ Not gonna lie, I was afraid to try them so I made him try them first. They taste like homemade cosmic brownies! Im running to Amazon to buy your cookbook now! 💗
This is so wonderful!!! Oh I want to give you the biggest hug, thank you so much for such a wonderful review!! Enjoy 🙂 And thank you for buying the book!!! Let me know what you try from it! <3
Amazing
This is the best brownies recipes ever! I’ve been trying for years to find a great recipe for vegan brownies and this is the one! I didn’t use aquafaba but soy milk and instead of flax eggs I used 3tbs of Apple cider vinegar with baking soda!
No one could believe they were vegan brownies!
Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
Firstly amazing recipe – cant wait to try.
When mixing together coffee and flaxseed mix, is the coffee hot, cold or room temp?
Hi Jamahl! Thank you so much!! For the coffee, great question! It can be room temperature- that will be perfect! But if it’s still a little warm, no worries- it will cool while you assemble the other components!
Can I sub almond milk instead of soy milk or will it not be the same?
Hi Mary! You can! The top won’t be as crinkly, but they’ll still taste really fudgy and delicious 🙂
Hi! Are they supposed to be dark vegan chocolate chips or just semi-sweet? You mention your favorite brand for dark vegan chocolate but the ingredients just say vegan chocolate chips, so wanted to check! Thank you!
Hi Bhumi! You can use either! Semi-sweet is technically a form of dark chocolate and has no more than 50% sugar, but it’s okay if you use either!
Looks amazing, everything you make does! Can I make the batter, refrigerate and bake the next day??
Aw thank you so much!! And I’ve actually never tried this before!! I imagine you would be able to, honestly, since there’s no leavening agents- you might need a bit longer to bake though, as it’s going from cold to hot!
Hello Britt, thanks so much for a brilliant recipe vegan as always! Really enjoyed the result but the only thing I missed was knowing how much coffee (instant powder) is necessary, bc I know you need half a cup but it didn’t specify the water:coffee ratio and I think I added too much of the instant coffee bc my brownies turned out a bit bitter but not unpleasant, I’ll just add less coffee powder but I’d love to know how much you added when you made the coffee to mix with the flaxseed. Thank you so much from Portugal!
Hi!
I was wondering if I could use coconut sugar in place of the granulated sugar?
Thanks!
Hi Katelynn! Yes, you can- it’ll affect the flavor a bit but will still work!
So good and fudgy! I really love these brownies – my only concern is I didn’t see a measurement for sea salt so I did a 1/4 tsp and hoped for the best lol.
Oh I’m so sorry about that! Yes, that’s totally fine! Glad you enjoyed, and thanks for the review 🙂
I made these with Bobs gluten free 1:1 baking flour and they came out incredible. They did not taste gluten free plus the use of Dutch process cocoa powder made them extremely fudgy and chocolatey. Super delicious 10/10 🙂
This is wonderful!! So happy to hear this, that’s my goal!! Enjoy, and thanks for the review 🙂
i’ve baked these 4 times i believe & they always come out wonderful! sometimes i replaced the granulated sugar for about 75g of a stevia granulated sweetener, & each time i’ve used aquafaba & unsweetened apple sauce. when using stevia it didn’t get that signature crinkle top but once using real cane sugar it did! both are scrumptious though!
also i never included the 6oz of chocolate that’s used to melt into the butter.. i’m just lazy lmao but i promise it’s still so delicious! thank you so much , my loved ones n i adore these brownies <3
Oh my goodness I’m so happy to hear it works with the stevia!! That’s awesome!! Thank you so much for this wonderful review 🙂 This is so wonderful! Enjoy!!
They came out better than any other brownie recipe Ive tried before. I used oat milk instead of the aquafaba and coconut oil instead of butter. I also used about a 1/4tsp of salt. The oil needed much more time to heat up for me than listed in order to melt the chocolate, I had to put it on a double boiler after. This was the first recipe to tell me the tip about fully mixing in the sugar and I think that may be the reason none of my brownies have turned out well before. All that being said they took a solid 50 minutes to bake until it wasn’t fully wet batter in the middle. They also came out much thicker, my dish is about 9×9 so I’m not sure what was different.
I made this and it was delicious. I had everything but flax seeds so I skipped it, also skipped the aqua something, and it still came out super fudgy and yummy!!!
The only thing is its a bit too much sugar. maybe next time I’ll add half coconut sugar instead, do you think that’ll work? ty:)
These were really delicious brownies! I doubled the recipe as I wanted to take them into work and no one could tell they’re vegan.
Because I doubled the recipe and baked them in a bigger pan I think it took more like 40 mins for them to be ready.
I also noted that there is salt mentioned in the instructions but no salt in the ingredients and no measurements. For double the recipe I added 1tsp of salt (so 1/2 tsp if you’re making 1 batch). I used soy milk rather than aquafaba and applesauce rather than flaxseed/coffee Definitely found it much easier and quicker to use an electric mixer for every step. I used grams to measure everything (recommend using grams rather than cups for more accurate measurements).
Thanks for the recipe!
I’m not vegan, but I am gluten free and allergic to eggs which makes it REALLY hard to find recipes. I tried this recipe with butter and oat flour I made myself with my blender (I sifted it before using). They came out great! No crinkly top but that might be my fault for not mixing enough. They took a little longer than 30 minutes. Finally, I brownie I can eat!
Would love to try these. Can you sub dates for the sugar?
Oh so I’ve actually tried these with date sugar and it was a bit wonky- the date sugar made the batter really thick and not spreadable, and so the crinkly top didn’t really appear once baked. However, I’ve made these with coconut sugar and maple sugar (NOT maple syrup, but granulated maple sugar) and both maple sugar and coconut sugar work wonderfully!
Excited to try this recipe! Will this work in a muffin tin to make them bite sized?
Hi Sarah! They absolutely will! They’ll definitely bake more quickly, so keep an eye on them- I’d say 10-12 minutes, but watch how they do in the oven with an oven light. Enjoy!
I tried this recipe using the gluten-free option, and it was delicious! You can’t even tell the difference from a classic brownie. 5/5 stars! 🍫
This is so wonderful!! Ah so happy to hear it!! Enjoy and thank you for the review 🙂
I’m looking forward to making your brownies, but I am trying to find vegan chocolate chips with sugar that are is processed with animal bones—in other words, truly vegan. Do you have any suggestions? Thanks in advance.
Hi Marsha! Yes!! Enjoy Life is all vegan 🙂 Pascha is as well!
These brownies were good! I didn’t like the texture of them fresh very much, I could almost taste the flour like it was raw but it wasnt, the tooth pick came out clean. The texture and taste was fine frozen though! How could I make these a little more cakey but still fudgy at the same time?! I used bobs red mill 1 to 1 flour but I did buy measure for measure and haven’t tried that yet.
Thanks!
Hi Payton! Oh I’m so glad you liked them! I think the issue might have been the bob’s- I don’t recommend it with any of my recipes really (which is why I usually call out to use King Arthur measure for measure- it works WONDERFULLY!). If you ever try them again, I recommend using KA if you can!