Gluten-Free Coconut Flour Brownies are rich, creamy and have the perfect thin crust. They're packed with delicious, melting chocolate chunks, and if you didn't know they were gluten-free, you'd never suspect it!
Gluten-free or not, I promise that you will love these and -- most importantly -- you won't feel that you're missing anything. Specifically the all-purpose flour. This gluten-free brownie recipe is truly delicious!
The coconut flour is not necessarily a substitution for all-purpose flour, it just happens to work really well in this recipe, creating very decadent brownies.
Since my son was diagnosed with Celiac Disease when he was little, I've experimented with many, many different gluten-free flours. Rice, garbanzo, fava, buckwheat, quinoa, corn, tapioca, etc.
The list goes on and on. Some are better for certain recipes than others, and coconut flour is perfect here.
left: whipped eggs with sugar, vanilla, espresso and salt / right: after the melted chocolate and butter is added
Why I Love Coconut Flour in Baking Recipes
- Coconut flour has a lovely subtle coconut flavor that doesn't overpower, or necessarily make things taste like coconut. It's delicious with chocolate!
- Coconut flour does a great job thickening batters without drying out the final product.
- It absorbs a lot of moisture, so typically only a small amount is used.
- It's also high in fiber and protein, which is a bonus.
What do Coconut Flour Brownies Taste Like?
- These brownies are more fudge-like than cake-like.
- They're quite rich. The chocolate flavor is intense -- the espresso powder in the recipe intensifies the chocolate, rather than giving it a coffee flavor. (I like to cut them into small squares. I could eat a dozen, but I think most people prefer smaller sizes for such a rich dessert.)
- Like most traditional brownies, a very thin crust forms on the top surface, giving each bite the perfect amount of delicate crunch.
A few more gluten-free brownie recipes:
- Gluten-Free Mint Brownies
- Gluten-Free Brownie Cake
- Gluten-Free Nutella Brownies
- Gluten-Free Caramel Brownies with Espresso
I hope you enjoy every last crumb of my scrumptious Gluten-Free Coconut Flour Brownies!
I'm partial to Scharffen Berger chocolate for baking, but you can use your favorite brand in the recipe, of course.
(This is not a sponsored post -- I only talk about brands I love!)
Gluten-Free Coconut Flour Brownies
Ingredients
- 8 ounces unsweetened chocolate, roughly chopped
- 8 ounces unsalted butter, cut into chunks
- 5 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons instant espresso powder
- 3 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup coconut flour
- 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips or chunks
Instructions
- Set the oven and prepare the pan. Preheat the oven to 375°F, and adjust a rack to the center. Line a 9 x 13 x 2-inch baking pan with parchment paper. You may need a little bit of butter underneath to make it stick and keep it from moving.
- Melt the chocolate and butter. Melt the chocolate and butter together in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over low heat, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat, and set aside to cool to room temperature.
- Finish the batter. In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the eggs with the vanilla, salt, espresso, and sugar at high speed for 10 minutes. Then on low speed add the cooled chocolate mixture and beat only until mixed. Finally, add the coconut flour and beat only until mixed. Now use a spoon or rubber spatula to fold in the chocolate chips or chunks.
- Bake. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Use a small flat-bottomed spatula to smooth the top, and place in the preheated 375°F oven. Bake until the batter is set, and a thin crust has formed on the top surface, about 35 minutes. You can stick a wooden skewer in the center to see if it's done -- when it is, it should come out fairly clean.
- Cool, slice and serve. Remove the brownies from the oven and let them cool for at least 3 hours. Ideally they should be refrigerated overnight for easier slicing. Cut the brownies into 48 evenly-sized pieces. Serve!
Notes
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Satellite L300d Battery
Trying to find people with connections to people that own gluten free stores, restaurants, and bakeries in nyc! Contact me if you do!
Sophie
MMMMMMMMMM,...what tasty, lovely & appetizing brownies these are & were!
My friends & husband loved them so much! 🙂
Many greetings from a foodie from Brussels, Belgium!
valentina
Thank you Sophie!
Merissa Sefton
Thanks a lot, I'll definitely get the hubby to have a mosey at this xxx
Jeanine - the Baking Beauties
Hi there, a reader of mine is wondering, is the sugar amount correct? 3 cups? Thanks! 🙂
valentina
Hi Jeanine -- Yes, it's correct. I know it's a lot, but it works out well. Just don't eat 10 brownies at once! 😉 Cheers!
angiesrecipes
o my 3 cups of sugar? Really? They do look very tempting with that fudgy texture!
valentina
Yes, I know. It's a lot, but they're SO delicious! 🙂
John / Kitchen Riffs
These look good -- being more fudge-like is a good thing. 🙂 And we often cut things into really small pieces -- that way when we have three pieces, it's really like one large piece. But we had three (kinda like going to eleven). Mind tricks! They CAN help. 🙂
valentina
Love those mind tricks, John. These are perfect small bites. And I certainly have many of them. 🙂
Noelle
I learned a lot about coconut flour from this recipe, it was great thank you 🙂
valentina
Great! Thanks.:-)
Sabrina
I've never met a brownie I didn't like! I know these will disappear quickly!
valentina
The certainly do disappear over here. 🙂 Thanks!
Jessica Formicola
These brownies were amazing! My family didn't even know they were gluten free!
valentina
So awesome! Thanks! 🙂
Nancy
Who needs ap flour when you can have THESE??? I have a weakness for brownies (and coffee!!) and these little morsels hit all the right flavor notes - bookmarking!!
Always looking for GF treats since so many of my students are GF!!!
valentina
Thanks, Nancy! I hope you love them! Here's a little tip . . . they're also fantastic frozen! 🙂
Tristin Rieken
The perfect lightly crispy thin crust!! And I do love the slight coconut flavor. Delicious!
valentina
Thanks so much Tristen! 🙂
Carmella
Wooooow these look insanely fudgey! There definitely is a lot of sugar but when the brownies are decadent and rich you don't need to eat a lot of them. And that cracky top, yum
valentina
Thanks so much, Carmella. I do love the thin crust on top. 🙂
Kathryn
Hi Valentina, I love the sound of these. I have a dear friend who also is a Celiac, his wife is amazing in making him yummy healthy food. I have a brownie recipe which includes cooked beetroot - I'm going to see what comes of using your base recipe and adding the beetroot. I make them for work colleagues and they go down a treat! As usual - lovely photos too.
valentina
Thanks, Kathryn! The beet root sound like it would be so interesting. I would love to try it. LMK how it turns out. 🙂
David @ Spiced
So I get to return your comment right back at ya, Valentina! I just had a bowl of cereal, but now I'm ready for dessert after seeing these brownies. Is there such a thing as breakfast dessert? 🙂 (Wait, I think there is. It's called a muffin.) Either way, these brownies look fantastic! And I appreciate the primer on coconut flour here, too. I've had good luck with the 1-to-1 baking blends whenever I need to bake gluten-free, but I'd love to experiment more directly with different flours. Perhaps I'll start with a batch of these brownies!
valentina
David, coconut flour is fun to work with. And there's totally dessert for breakfast in my book! Do it! Thank you as always, for the comment. 🙂
mimi rippee
I'm not vegan or GF or anything, but boy do these look wonderful! So glad you have so many options these days for non-gluten products. I remember 40 years ago and even 20 years ago hardly being able to find whole-grain products. Great brownies.
valentina
Yes, being GF was much more difficult before. My son seemed to be diagnosed just as it was becoming trendy. Worked out well for us. 🙂 Thank you for visiting!
Karen (Back Road Journal)
From your photos, you can certainly see how moist your brownies are...they look great.
valentina
Thanks so much Karen! Hope you try them. 🙂
Alexis
Hi, I wanted to try out this recipe - it looks great! I was wondering though if I could substitute the butter for one of those healthier butter spreads? Since it’s being melted anyway I wasn’t sure if it would make a difference. Thanks!
valentina
Hi Alexis, I wish I could give you a guarantee but I haven't tried this recipe with any butter substitutes. I think if the consistency is similar, it will more be a matter of taste. The fat in the butter is part of what makes the texture of these brownies so moist and fudge-like. This might sound odd, but I'm thinking a ripe avocado, mashed so it's smooth, might work. Just a thought. Whatever you use, let us know how the results are. I think they'll be delicious even if the texture isn't the same. Enjoy! 🙂 ~Valentina
Kerry Q
I've made these twice in both times I have to leave them in the oven for an extra 3 to 5 minutes because it must run cooler than normal. They are absolutely delicious and not too sweet at all. Perfect for my GF friends!
valentina
Kerry, thank you. You made my day. 🙂 These are my gluten-free son's absolute favorite! So happy you are liking them so much. ~Valentina
Allison
Have you tested this recipe halved in an 8x8 pan?
valentina
Hi Allison. Thanks for writing in. While I haven't tested 1/2 the recipe in an 8x8 pan, I think it should work well. For the eggs, since it's not an even number, just blend one of them with a fork first, and use half it (about 2 tablespoons of it). I'd love to hear how it goes. Enjoy! 🙂 ~Valentina