Gluten-free, flourless healthy Black Bean Brownies packed with nutrients for an equal-parts delicious yet healthful dessert. This easy dairy-free, refined sugar-free dessert recipe only requires a few minutes of prep time and is made conveniently in your blender! You can make these with chickpeas too!
There are two types of people: those who have tried chickpea or black bean brownies and have made them 50 gazillion times as a result, and those who have never tried chickpea or black bean brownies.
If you fall into the latter category, I’m here to help!
I’m willing to bet if you give them a shot, you’ll be compelled to make them time and again.
My guess is you already have every single ingredient you need right there in your pantry in order to make either chickpea or black bean brownies.
For me, this recipe is an oldie but a goody – it has been revised many times over the years, and has been a staple in my home ever since I tried them for the first time 5 years ago.
Our first go at garbanzo bean brownies was back in 2012, when – I daresay – the world was not yet ready for them; however, with the introduction of black bean brownies about a year later, you all took to the bean brownie like white on rice.
Now that we’ve had time to marinate on the idea of a healthy brownie made from the very ingredient we like to use in our chili, I thought I’d revisit the subject.
This classic recipe works for both chickpeas and black beans.
You can easily double it if you’re looking to serve more than 9 people (or if you’re a mega fan of dessert leftovers).
You can also add all sorts of your favorite brownie add-ins, such as chopped walnuts, some peppermint extract and/or orange extract + orange zest if you’re going for a different flavor altogether…you can even add booze, my friends.
Cointreau, for instance, is quite the brownie companion.
So let’s hop to it!
How to Make Black Bean Brownies:
All you need is one 14-ounce can of the bean of your choice.
Drain and rinse the beans in a colander, then add them to your blender along with the rest of the ingredients, save for the chocolate chips.
Blend it up to make your batter, stir in the chocolate chips, then proceed as normal.
Pour into a small baking sheet, bake for only 25-ish minutes, pull them out of the oven, then play the waiting game.
It is imperative you allow these brownies to sit at least 1 hour before cutting into them, or else they’ll fall apart very easily. If you’re doing a spoon brownie slash brownie sundae type of situation, the fall-apartedness shouldn’t matter and you can dig right in.
If you don’t have coconut sugar on-hand, you can replace it with equal-parts cane sugar. I like using coconut sugar because it is considered a natural sweetener, is lower on the glycemic index than cane sugar, and contains minerals. You can also substitute the olive oil in this recipe with melted coconut oil, grapeseed oil, avocado oil, etc.
Options for serving:
- Sprinkle with powdered sugar
- Make homemade chocolate coconut frosting (use the instructions from this recipe).
- Top with homemade paleo salted caramel.
- Serve with a dollop of coconut whipped cream.
- Cut up some fresh seasonal fruit and top the brownies with it.
And that’s it! Pour, blend, bake, repeat!
If you make these black bean brownies, feel free to snap a photo and share it on Instagram, tagging me at @The.Roasted.Root!
Double Chocolate Black Bean Brownies
Ingredients
- 1 (14-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed (see note)*
- 2 large eggs
- 2/3 cup coconut sugar (see note)**
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 3 tablespoons avocado oil***
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon , optional
- 2/3 cup dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly oil an 8" x 8" baking pan, and line the pan with parchment paper.
- Drain and rinse the chickpeas (or black beans). Add them to a blender along with the rest of the ingredients, except for the chocolate chips. Blend well until a thick, smooth batter results.
- Stir the chocolate chips into the batter
- Transfer the batter to the prepared baking dish and spread into an even layer. Bake on the center rack of the preheated oven for 24 to 28 minutes, until the center of the brownies have set up. Note: The center of the brownies will not test clean when poked with a tooth pick - this is normal.
- Remove brownies from the oven and allow them to rest 1 hour before cutting and serving.
Notes
Nutrition
These look so yummy! Do you use cocoa powder in the recipe? Or is the only chocolate the chips? Thanks for sharing! ☺
Hi Kaleigh, my apologies, I somehow left out the cocoa powder. I use 1/3 cup. I added it to the recipe..thanks for the catch!! Hope you enjoy!
Looks great! I wonder if you know what’s the ratio if I use dried chickpeas instead (can’t find canned chickpeas where I live). Thanks and greetings from Brazil!
Hi Daniele! You will need about 2 cups of cooked chickpeas, so I’m not sure how much that is dried. Hope that helps, and enjoy!!
Ohhhh I just LOVE these. I haven’t made chickpea OR black bean brownies in forever, and now I feel like that needs to change considering I always have them on hand.
I’ve heard all the rage of bean brownies but never actually tried them for myself! Whats wrong with me? These brownies look insanely fudgey and delish 🙂
How are these even real??! I have yet to try the bean brownie because the texture always looked off to me but these look PERFECT. I would run and make them right now if I didn’t have 3 batches of cookies on the counter from testing over the weekend. I wish we could trade!!
I hear ya! The texture definitely isn’t the same as a regular brownie…it’s softer and moister, but so long as you’re okay with that, the brownies are a definite win!! 😀
I have been wanting to try black bean brownies for sooo long and just tend to forget about them! And with chickpeas! Yes please! These look perfect!
Ohhhhhh girl, you will LOVE them! You’ll never go back, je promise!
YUM!!! YES!!! So perfect I am so making this for my Mom and I tomorrow! Do you think I could sub Maple Syrup for the sugar??? Can’t wait to try!
Hi Caitlin! YAAS I’m so glad you like the brownies! I betcha you can substitute maple syrup for the coconut sugar, although the consistency of the brownies may be a bit different and you may need to bake them longer. I’d test the batter with 1/3 cup of pure maple syrup and see if that’s sweet enough. If not, add a little more. Let me know how it turns out!!
Hi there I just tried your recipe today. I substituted the 2 eggs with 6 tablespoons of aquafaba, baked it for 35 minutes and it turned out way too fudgy (super fudgy) and there was a weird aftertaste, probably it was the chickpeas. Could the fudginess came from the aquafaba substitution? Or is there any way to make it less fudgy?
Hi Chrisy,
Oh no, I’m sorry the brownies didn’t work out for you! I’ve never tried using aquafaba in my recipes, so I quite honestly don’t know how it should work in this one. I’ve made this recipe dozens of times using eggs and it’s never turned out overly fudgy, so my guess is the aquafaba was the culprit 🙁 If you’re looking to keep the recipe vegan, my guess is you’d have better results replacing the eggs with applesauce or a banana. Let me know if you give the brownies another go!!
I’m diabetic and would like to know if the brownies can be made with truvia instead of the coconut sugar?
Hi Elise,
Although I’ve never tested this particular batch of brownies with truvia, I have used 0 sugar sweeteners in brownies before, and they turn out great! I would start with 1/2 cup of truvia and taste the batter to see if you need to add more. I hope you enjoy! xo
Delicious! Since I also avoid coconut sugar, I substituted 2/3 cup of date paste mixed with 2/3 cups of water. Makes the squares even more gooey. My whole family love it. Thanks!
Can you make these with a combination of garbanzo and black beans??
Hi Larissa,
Absolutely! They’re interchangeable, or you can combine them.
I’m more of a fan of chewy brownies rather than fudgy, but these are still so good! I omitted the chocolate chips (expensive where I am) and they were still good. The chips probably would have added moisture, so I could have done better with adding extra oil. And I also found them a little too sweet, even without chocolate chips, but that depends on taste as well. So good though!
These turned out great! I’m going to do a double batch this time!! I used black beans, not the chick peas.
Hello,
How can I make this brownie chewy? And does this brownie have a bean taste.
Hello!
Do these brownies need to be refrigerated or can they be left on the counter?
Thanks!
Hi Aynslee!
I always refrigerate them because they have eggs…I’m sure they would be fine for a day or two on the counter, but I play it safe 😀 Hope you love them! xoxo
Hi. I’ve made this twice now, my kids go crazy for it ( my wife and I too) The first time I made it exactly as written and the second time I doubled it and added toasted walnuts. I was thinking to myself I could make it even healthier by sprouting the garbanzo beans first. Do you have any thoughts about if I should cook the beans after sprouting or just use them raw? I’m thinking it’s just a texture thing, being softer if I cook them.
Any thoughts?
and thanks again for a great recipe
Hi Perry! I’m so happy you and your family enjoy the recipe! If it were me, I would cook the sprouted beans first just to get that softer texture. I’m sure it would work either way, but I think just to be safe, it may be worth cooking them 😀 Hope it turns out great!! xoxoxo
Definitely not the texture of normal brownies. Much more cake like, which was disappointing because brownie > cake, but they did taste good. They just weren’t quite what I was expecting or hoping for. So if you go in thinking you’re getting chocolate cake I think you’ll be very pleased.
I do not have chocolate chips ! Will they still be yummy ? Or should I wait until I can go to the store to get them?? Thank you!!
Hi Michele! The brownies will still be great without chocolate chips 🙂 They’re just there to make them super chocolatey and extra fudgy. xoxo
What ingredient do you recommend I might add if I do not want the brownies to be fudgy?
Hi Peg! I would add 3 to 4 tablespoons of flour. Regular all-purpose flour or gluten-free flour will work 🙂
Why is there an ad over ingredients ! Hard to understand What each one is!im hoping I got the flourless choc cake correct ! Think it might get made tomorrow!
Hi Rayelee, My apologies for the inconvenience! When you click the Print Recipe button in the recipe card, you should be able to see the ingredients very clearly. You don’t need to actually print the recipe if you don’t want to but it should change the format of the card in such a way that it’s easier to see. Let me know if this helps 🙂
The bake time says 24-18 minutes. Can you clarify? 😄
Hi Amanda! Thanks so much for catching that! It should be 24-28 minutes. Hope you enjoy!