Flourless chocolate chip brownies

Hiiii 😀 How are you? Hope you’re having a great night <3

I’m going to go ahead and skip the “here’s what I’ve been up to” spiel and get right down to biznazz.

Brownies.

brownies (3)

Flourless (= gluten-free!) chocolate chip brownies to be exact.

It’s weird because my sweet tooth has been MIA for a couple of weeks –I haven’t even had chocolate in the house!- but I’ve been Googling gluten-free brownie recipes because it’s been a while since a recipe made it onto the ol’ bloggy. There were a lot of standard ideas (but none that could beat my brother’s legendary recipe) and quite a few with interesting ingredients, like beans.

I’m sorry. I like beans and everything but keep them far, far away from my baked goods.

And then I found one that uses a 16-oz jar of almond butter as the “base”, and we instantly became best friends.

batter

I don’t post other people’s recipes, so please check out the original version *here* if you’d like to join in the chocolaty foodgasmic fun 😀

The only changes I made:

-Add 1 teaspoon espresso powder – makes chocolate taste so much more rich

-Add a little cinnamon

-Maple syrup instead of agave

Best-looking batter I’ve ever laid eyes on.

This:

brownies

went to this:

brownies (2)

And ended just like this.

plate

Somehow my sweet tooth made a spontaneous appearance 😉

Please make these. You will LOVE them.

I’m taking the rest to my work friends tomorrow 🙂

Have a fabulous night and I’ll see ya in the morning with a discussion post <3

xoxo

Gina

Something to read: Habits of Highly Effective Exercisers

Post Navigation:

47 Comments

  1. mi-an on May 15, 2011 at 10:33 pm

    wow almond butter in brownies??!!! can’t wait to make these! i’m the same way..not sure about beans in baked goods!

  2. Allison @ Food For Healing on May 15, 2011 at 10:35 pm

    those look to.die.for. i know my boyfriend would absolutely love them, he loves brownies.

  3. Amanda (Eating Up) on May 15, 2011 at 10:36 pm

    I made these on my blog a few months ago! People loved them. I thought they did taste a little almond butter-y though.

  4. BIOCHEMISTA on May 15, 2011 at 10:37 pm

    Ummm…..that is the best idea EVER!!!! Flourless cake + brownies + choc chips + almond butter are pretty much my fav things in the world. Thaaaaank youuu, Gina 🙂

  5. Lindsay on May 15, 2011 at 10:37 pm

    Ahhh!!! I’ve missed brownies so much….and I LOVE almond butter…. I can’t wait to make these 🙂

  6. Courtney @ Sweet Tooth, Sweet Life on May 15, 2011 at 10:37 pm

    YUMMM!!! Thanks for linking to that recipe…sounds fantastic!
    I once tried to make a batch of black bean brownies…I think my husband was ready to disown me that day. 😉

  7. Whitney on May 15, 2011 at 10:40 pm

    Yum! I’ll have to give those a try!

  8. Holly @ The Runny Egg on May 15, 2011 at 10:49 pm

    Those look so good! You can’t go wrong with brownies with a full jar of nut butter in them!

    • Fitnessista on May 15, 2011 at 11:04 pm

      amen to that!

  9. Allie on May 15, 2011 at 11:03 pm

    I’m new to reading your blog and I’m always up for a good *different* recipe! I’ll have to try these brownies. Do you have celiac or a wheat/gluten sensitivity and that’s why you cook/eat gluten-free? Just curious, I see a lot of your recipes and food you eat are gluten-free. Excited to continue following your blog! 🙂 (PS. EVERYTHING is better with AB!! EVERY.THING!)

    • Fitnessista on May 15, 2011 at 11:04 pm

      welcome to the little blog!
      i’m not allergic to gluten, but it does make me feel pretty icky, so i generally avoid it.

  10. babs on May 15, 2011 at 11:20 pm

    I tried the bean brownies . . . so gross! But these little guys seem much better. Nut butter beats beans in dessert any day of the week!

  11. Jenny (Fit Girl Foodie) on May 15, 2011 at 11:26 pm

    Holy yum those look amazing! 😀

  12. megan @ the oatmeal diaries on May 15, 2011 at 11:29 pm

    Bahahaha I love what you said about the beans! These brownies look insaaanely good.

  13. RunEatRepeat on May 15, 2011 at 11:45 pm

    Sounds so good!!!

  14. Averie (LoveVeggiesandYoga) on May 15, 2011 at 11:45 pm

    I have wanted/contemplated making that Elena recipe for some time! I was looking for brownie recipes and a reader told me she makes them all the time and loves them and I almost have made them. Now, I am pushed over into the must make them realm!

    Question…I am not the hugest fan of AB, i know, crazy..It’s fine, but I much prefer PB or Sunflower seed butter. Based on the neutral-ness of AB, that may be better in this recipe. Do you think I should just stick w/ AB or would PB or SFSB be ok (after I adjust the batter for texture/thickness if using PB b/c it’s so much thicker than AB is)?

    And this
    “I’m sorry. I like beans and everything but keep them far, far away from my baked goods.”–
    Omg EVERY TIME i see someone make something from blondies to brownies with beans or chickpeas, I say that to myself 🙂

  15. sally on May 15, 2011 at 11:50 pm

    Those look so good, definitely have to give those a try. I bet the AB will bring them to a whole new level of fudginess that is so characteristic of the best brownies.

    I love the added espresso powder. Reminds me of my homegirl Ina Garten because I saw her add coffee to a cake once and thought “how interesting!” Of course, it has to be just about half a cup “good” brewed coffee….oh, Ina.

    Thanks again for the recipe link and as always the great blog. 🙂

  16. Run.Learn.Repeat on May 16, 2011 at 12:08 am

    Hey I’m new to your blog! I can’t wait to make these!!! Especially since I just recently found out the cause to all my stomach problems is gluten. Thanks for posting this! My sweet tooth is rarely missing. How’d you get yours to go away?

    • Fitnessista on May 16, 2011 at 9:31 am

      my appetite has been funky lately. usually it’s in full force 🙂

  17. Melissa on May 16, 2011 at 12:27 am

    the title of this post is sooo true! mmmmm 🙂

  18. alicia on May 16, 2011 at 12:57 am

    There is no way I would have any left over to share…please do a readers request on how to build up your will power!!!

  19. M on May 16, 2011 at 1:02 am

    Yum Gina, these sound ahhhhmazing:)
    I don’t get it though, if your bro’s brownies were legendary, why were you searching for another brownie recipe? And which do you like better? Now I don’t know which one to make!?
    And when I’m stuck in a food funk, I never get tired of waffles or pancakes made with brown rice flour and topped with banana and AB 🙂 Never gets old! Healthy and filling!

    • Fitnessista on May 16, 2011 at 9:31 am

      i really wanted to try a flourless one! his are better though

  20. Marie-Sophie on May 16, 2011 at 5:26 am

    I’ve been wanting to make this recipe for ages but couldn’t bring myself to buy almond butter and put it all into a single batch of brownies (my wallet would weep) .. But I guess you’ve got to make some sacrifices for a good ol’ brownie 😉
    I am also not gluten-intolerant but my tummy feels lots better with less!

    Gina, I love how you made the brownies in a muffin tin – did you have to change baking times for this ??? (Because a dry brownie is a sad brownie ..just making sure ;-))

  21. lindsay on May 16, 2011 at 7:16 am

    best idea ever…..AMEN TO THAT! great recipe Gina. I wonder how cashew butter would do?

    • Fitnessista on May 16, 2011 at 9:30 am

      totally!

  22. Cait @ Beyond Bananas on May 16, 2011 at 7:54 am

    Mmmh.. a nice chocolate recipe to start off my Monday. Perfection, Gina!!

  23. katie on May 16, 2011 at 7:59 am

    hello, these look delish cant wait to try them. i saw that you substituted the agavae for maple syrup and was wonderining if its just taste preference or is there a nutritional reason you switched them. thanks !

    • Fitnessista on May 16, 2011 at 9:30 am

      there is mixed research on the effects of agave, so to err on the safe side, i stay away

  24. Chelsea @ One Healthy Munchkin on May 16, 2011 at 8:23 am

    Brownies that use a whole jar of AB? There is no way these could be anything less than epic! Definitely bookmarking this recipe! 😀

  25. Tina @ Faith Fitness Fun on May 16, 2011 at 8:43 am

    My sweet tooth never goes missing. And it really wouldn’t disappear after trying some of those. Almond butter as the BASE?! Heck to the yea!

  26. Gina @Running to the Kitchen on May 16, 2011 at 9:22 am

    these look great although it might pain me to dump my whole jar of beloved almond butter into brownies!

  27. adriane on May 16, 2011 at 10:44 am

    Elana’s recipe is my favorite brownie recipe also! I made them this weekend and was actually going to email it to you to see if you had ever heard of it 🙂

  28. Laura @ prettylittlewords on May 16, 2011 at 11:42 am

    Oh my gosh, these look awesome! What a fun idea!! Thanks Gina! 🙂

  29. Rachel on May 16, 2011 at 11:43 am

    I know it sounds crazy to use beans as an ingredient, but the bakery next door sells gluten free brownies that are made with black beans and they are actually the best brownie I have ever eaten, GF or not. The only reason I know this is because I had to ask the chef/owner what her secret was!

    I hear you, it’s weird, but don’t let it dissuade you in the future if you can help it. So good!

  30. Claire @ Live and Love to Eat on May 16, 2011 at 12:12 pm

    Those look deadly and delicious!

  31. Jaclyn on May 16, 2011 at 3:31 pm

    When you say “espresso powder” do you mean like instant coffee?

    • Fitnessista on May 16, 2011 at 3:55 pm

      yep, but they make espresso powder, which is a little stronger

  32. Jaclyn on May 16, 2011 at 3:32 pm

    PS those look amazing and I would definitely muster up a sweet tooth to help you out with one, LOL!

  33. Katie on May 16, 2011 at 7:59 pm

    I’ve made the peanut butter blondies before! Elana’s the best… I discovered her about 3 years ago when I was looking up recipes for vegan candy. Her chocolate recipes are AMAZING and almost always use almond butter as a base!

    • Fitnessista on May 16, 2011 at 8:01 pm

      for that, she is a genius 🙂

  34. sarah on May 16, 2011 at 8:48 pm

    I made these bad boys tonight, and they are fantastic. I used the Fitnessista’s tweaks, and added some chopped hazelnut. Thank you, Fitnessista, for educating me on the wonders of the espresso powder! I shall henceforth use espresso powder anytime I use chocolate in a recipe. I have also added Elana’s blog to my Reader.

    • Fitnessista on May 17, 2011 at 12:26 am

      awesome and double awesome 🙂

  35. Peggy on May 25, 2011 at 11:58 pm

    Reached my first stepping in stone weight loss post-baby. 135! Here I come 130! These were my reward tonight after some HIIT on the eliptical (oxymoron?). And I only ate one and a half (my ultimate in self-control!).

  36. Amy (purewellnessamy) on June 23, 2011 at 7:18 pm

    I just baked these and they are ridiculous! I cannot stop eating them!

    • Fitnessista on June 23, 2011 at 8:32 pm

      i’m so glad you like them!

Leave a Comment





This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.