Vegan Small Batch ‘Brown Butter’ Brownies

Name: Vegan Small Batch 'Brown Butter' Brownies
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 8
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1/3 cup (80 g) vegan butter or coconut oil, melted; 1/4 cup (25 g) high quality Dutch-processed cocoa powder*; 3 ounces vegan chocolate; 1/8 cup (40 mL) dairy free milk, room temperature*; 1/3 cup (75 g) granulated sugar; 1/4 cup (50 g) brown sugar; 1/4 cup (50 g) dairy free yogurt; 1/2 tsp vanilla extract; 1/4 tsp sea salt; 3/4 cup (100 g) all-purpose flour or gluten free 1:1 baking flour; 1/4 cup (40 g) vegan chocolate chips, additional

posted by Britt Berlin on Jan 5, 2024 48 comments »

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5 from 9 reviews

These super fudgy small batch brownies yield just 8 perfectly decadent thick brownies with that iconic paper thin crinkle top. The dairy free brown butter makes these quick and easy brownies extra special without any extra work- you don’t even need any eggs so they’re naturally vegan!

Why you NEED these small batch brown butter brownies:

Of course, we all love the classic fudgy brownies with those iconic crinkle tops. But sometimes, we just don’t need a full batch of brownies.

Enter in my extremely easy and simple small batch brownies.

I’ve recently developed an obsession with small batch recipes, finding them as the perfect gateway into baking. Especially for when you don’t have that many ingredients on hand or don’t want nor need a full batch of something.

That’s why I love these recipes like my small batch brown butter chocolate chip cookies, mini vegan biscoff cheesecakes, mini vegan vanilla cake, small batch cinnamon rolls, and small batch cookie dough cupcakes.

Now for these small batch brownies, you don’t need any eggs nor dairy to make them (so they’re naturally and unbelievably vegan- just like everything on this blog!).

And we’re using a rich dairy free “brown butter” to make these quick batch brownies even more gourmet.

Trust me, these unbelievably vegan brown butter brownies are going to disappear in a blink of an eye!

sliced vegan brownies on parchment paper

The key to crinkly top brownies:

While many people say it’s the eggs, here at the Banana Diaries, we prove that you can accomplish any traditional method with vegan baking.

And that includes the crinkle top.

The key to the crinkle top that you see on brownies is actually the sugar content.

Brownies with a higher amount of sugar that has been properly dissolved into the liquid content (that just means using a hand mixer or a whisk and making sure it dissolves!) will yield that crinkle top.

You don’t need aquafaba (though I love it for a vegan egg replacement!), nor any other special vegan ingredient. You just need sugar!

What size pan should I use for these brownies?

For small batch brownies, I recommend using a 9×5 loaf pan, specifically this Caraway pan. I love it so much, and it’s great for loaves as well (like my vegan banana bread or marble loaf cake!).

You can also use a 9×4 pan or an 8×5 pan, but keep in mind your brownies might need longer to bake in the oven.

Overview: Step by Step how to make small batch brownies:

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.

making the fudge sauce — First we’ll start by browning the vegan butter. Once it’s light brown in color, pour it over the chocolate and let it sit to melt the chocolate.

vegan fudge sauce in a bowl — First we’ll start by browning the vegan butter. Once it’s light brown in color, pour it over the chocolate and let it sit to melt the chocolate.

whisking the wet ingredients — Next, we’ll work on the batter. Use a hand mixer for speed to mix together the sugar, dairy free milk, dairy free yogurt, vanilla, and sea salt until the sugar dissolves.

making the brownie batter — Next, we’ll work on the batter. Use a hand mixer for speed to mix together the sugar, dairy free milk, dairy free yogurt, vanilla, and sea salt until the sugar dissolves.

finishing the brown butter — Add in the flour and mix JUST until the flour is combined. You can use gluten free flour (one with xanthan gum) or all purpose here.

finished brownie batter — Add in the flour and mix JUST until the flour is combined. You can use gluten free flour (one with xanthan gum) or all purpose here.

brownies before baking — Pour the brownie batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake!

baked small batch brownies — Pour the brownie batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake!

sliced vegan brownies — Slice the brownies!

How to tell when these small batch brownies are done:

Knowing when brownies are done can be really tricky because you don’t want to over-bake them, but at the same time you don’t want to underbake them too.

I go over this more in depth about this in my vegan brownies post. You should really only need about 33 to 35 minutes, but for small batch brownies, I recommend using a toothpick. Toothpick should have barely have any batter on it.

stacked vegan brownies on parchment paper

You’re just going to LOVE these brown butter small batch brownies 🙂 They’re so quick and easy to make, and full of rich nuttiness from the vegan brown butter- just absolutely irresistible!

Want to save this recipe for later? Add it to your favorite recipe board on Pinterest!

🌟MADE THIS RECIPE & LOVED IT?🌟I’d love it if you’d like a comment and a rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ below! This helps others to find the recipes! As always, I absolutely love to see your beautiful creations on Instagram and Pinterest, so be sure to tag me there as well!

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