Why I Made This Recipe
I don’t know about you, but my favorite dessert is definitely a fudgy chocolate brownie! π«It’s a perfect way to end a day and I have been having this vegan protein brownie everyday after dinner. ππ» To me, a perfect brownie has to have a crinkly crust, a gooey center and an intense chocolate flavor. Over these years of being a vegan, I have tried lots of vegan brownie recipes. However, either they don’t seem to hold together, or the outcome is too cakey.

The Miraculous Chickpea Flour
If you know me well enough, you might notice that I love cooking with chickpea flour! π Chickpea flour is so versatile that it works well with both sweet & savory recipes. This Vegan EGGLESS Omelette, Chickpea Pizza and Chickpea Pancakes are some of my favorite chickpea flour recipes. π

Gluten-free & High Protein
Chickpea flour is naturally gluten-free and high in protein, so it is perfect for vegans and people with gluten intolerance. It also works quite similar with normal wheat flour in terms of water absorption, so you can easily substitute it with normal flour if you are making recipes where gluten is not a huge part of them.
Thickener
Sometimes, I also like using chickpea flours as a thickener (see my Sweet & Sour Tofu recipe).
Egg Replacer
Chickpea flour can also be used as an egg replacer, simply mix 1 part of chickpea flour with 1 part of water. This is also one of the reasons why I didn’t use any flax eggs or chia eggs in this recipe as chickpea flour already served the binding purpose.

Vegan Protein Brownie That Doesn’t Taste Healthy
When asked non-vegan what’s their concern regarding desserts labelled as vegan, one common answer is that it tastes too healthy. π Coz to be honest, sometimes when you have dessert, you are looking for the full experience, not just some resemblance or substitutions. If you feel the same, you are in luck! This recipe is definitely for you! π―ββοΈ
This recipe is indeed sugar-free, but I didn’t state this in the title as I don’t want to scare people away. π€£ Whenever people saw labels such as vegan, gluten-free, sugar-free, they often associate them with healthy, boring and bland. That’s why I want to create recipes of vegan desserts that change people’s perception. And to show them that healthy desserts can taste good too! β

Serving Suggestions
If you are like me and like variations, you will be super excited to read the following paragraph. πββοΈ This vegan protein brownie can be served in so many ways.
Fudgy
You can freeze them, then slightly thaw them for 10-15 minutes before serving. This way, they taste like a vegan chocolate fudge!
Warm & Gooey
This is obviously the most common and my favorite way to serve it. Slightly warm it in the oven for 5 minutes, then serve it with a scoop of vegan vanilla ice cream or my coconut caramel frosting π
Crumbled
I guess most of you have came across this situation. When you make a batch of brownies, they became dry and a bit stale after a few days. So what do you do? In fact, you can crumble them, place them at the bottom of a glass jar, then top with nice cream, tofu mousse or chia pudding. This makes a simple and delicious parfait for dessert or even breakfast! β€

Easy & Quick 1-Bowl Recipe
One thing that deters people from baking is the disastrous clean up afterwards. But let me tell you, in the recipe, you seriously doesn’t even need a single bowl! You can simply measure everything in a food processor if you are as lazy as me, blend the ingredients, then pour the batter into a baking pan. π« And voilΓ , you just made yourself a heavenly ooey gooey vegan chocolate protein brownie! π
Vegan Protein Brownie (Gluten-free)
Course: DessertCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy4
servings30
minutes40
minutesIngredients
- Dry Ingredients
2/3 cup chickpea flour
1/2 cup raw cacao powder
6 dried figs or medjool dates
1/2 tsp vanilla paste
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 tsp baking powder
- Wet Ingredients
1/3 cup applesauce
3/4 cup plant milk (here I used Oatly)
- Topping
1 small apple (thinly sliced)
2 Tbsp plant milk
Directions
- Preheat oven to 175Β°C.
- Place all dry ingredients into a food processor.
- Process until all ingredients are incorporated and you can no longer see large chunks of dried figs.
- Add applesauce and plant milk into the food processor and blend until everything is well combined. If the mixture is too dry, add 1/4 cup additional plant milk.
- Pour the brownie batter onto a lined baking tray or a cake pan.
- Top with apple slices. Gently push the apples down to secure it.
- Brush 1 Tbsp of plant milk on the surface of the brownie. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
- Take the brownie out from the oven. Brush the remaining 1 Tbsp plant milk on the surface. Continue baking it for another 15 minutes or until a toothpick came out clean.
- Transfer the baked brownie to a wire rack and let cool completely in pan before cutting.
