These (5-ingredient & extra-fudgy!) gluten free, paleo and keto brownies are most definitely one of our favorite (and most popular!) desserts here at gnom-gnom. The recipe was first published on January 8th ’18, and has been updated to provide more info on various sweeteners.
Cocoa Gluten Free Paleo & Keto Brownies 🍫
Suuuper Fudgey!
Ridiculously decadent, suuuper fudgy and intensely chocolatey, these keto brownies are one indulgent low carb chocolate treat. Plus, they’re suuuper easy and with staple (grain-free) pantry ingredients.
And guess what? Just 1g net carb per brownie. (Drumroll please!) 🥁
p.s. these are very chocolatey, as in proper chocolate! So ideal for you dark-chocolate-lovers out there.
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Oh, and if you’re into brownies and cheesecake (who isn’t?!), do check out our keto cheesecake brownies based off these guys.
The Origins 🔍
This recipe happens to be a keto adaptation based off Alice Medrich’s famous cocoa brownies, incidentally one of the most popular brownie recipes on the web. And the keto result varies little from the original, albeit perhaps a little less chewy and more melt-in-your-mouth sorta thing (courtesy of the lack of gluten).
Fun fact: Medrich’s original recipe called for beating vigorously with 40 strokes (exactly!) to incorporate the batter. Now that’s what we call precision.
A Couple (Very Simple!) Rules
We’ll start with the most important one: do not over-bake the brownies! Timing might just be the most important rule when making any type of brownie, so you don’t end up with a dry and crumbly mess. Keep an eye out for them, and take them out once the center is set and a toothpick inserted comes out moist (but not drenching).
We even prefer to slightly undercook them and chill them in the fridge before cutting. That’s the secret for extra fudgy brownies.
I’ve also noticed that when using powdered erythritol rather than xylitol (my favorite), you also need to decrease the baking time by about 5 minutes as they cook faster.
You’ll also want to use eggs at room temp. Reason being that if your cocoa/butter mixture is not hot enough (and your eggs are very cold), they’ll solidify the butter and your batter will be too thick (doesn’t affect the end results, just annoying to spoon rather than pour!).
And if possible, refrigerate the batter overnight. This is an old Medrich rule, but it does work a charm to get a richer texture (as the flavors have had a chance to mingle). Though if not possible, honestly don’t sweat it– we’ve done them either way multiple times. Just keep in mind that your batter will solidify in the fridge (as the butter sets), totally normal and just pop the baking dish in the oven as is.
The Chocolate 🍫
Cocoa brownies are generally regarded as second best to their ‘molten chocolate bar’ counterparts, given that they’re generally more cake-like than fudgy. But that’s most definitely not the case here, as these are some of the fudgiest brownies you’ll ever make.
Albeit ‘healthier‘, as you can control the chocolate and fat input completely, so no added refined sugars, preservatives etc. And of course, cocoa powder is much less expensive than chocolate bars (particularly keto ones!). So think of these keto brownies as wallet-friendly too.
Cocoa or cacao? Both work great, just know that quality really matters here. Our favorite will forever be the Dutch-processed alkaline cocoa Valrhona, known to be one of (if not the) best cocoas in the world. But feel free to use a raw cacao powder (arguably more nutritional perks here), though keep in mind that your brownies will be lighter in color and more reddish in hue. Both are well and good, as long as they’re unsweetened.
p.s. a lightly sprinkle of flakey sea salt works wonders to cut through the chocolate in these guys! And Maldon flakes are the undisputed best, by a mile.
The Flours
This recipe uses almond flour only (💥💃🎆!!). Yup, that’s it! Having said that, you can always sub half of the almond for hazelnut flour (think Nutella), if you wanna spiff things up a notch or give them a little twist.
In terms of brands, for the almond either Anthony’s or WellBees work great. Both are super fine grinds.
The Sweetener 🍯
You’ve got a couple options here. Xylitol has become my top choice (no aftertaste, best and chewier texture), Lakanto (barely any aftertaste, and many of you also love the Golden version), and powdered Swerve (some cooling sensation, but still great). Xylitol takes (much) longer to dry out though so your brownies will be extra delicate (think gooey) right after baking.
If using erythritol in any form, because it needs a little extra help to dissolve than xylitol (and they vary so much from brand to brand because of different fillers and so on!), you’ll want to be sure to use a powdered form. If you only have granular on hand, don’t sweat it, and simply blend it in your (very dry!) bullet or blender until powdered. Easy-peasy!
And one more thing to keep in mind, is that a few of you who have used erythritol (Swerve in particular) report back periodically that your batter ends up thick. This seems to be improved by microwaving rather than using a water bath, and using powdered rather than regular. Though there seems to be no hard rule here. Doesn’t seem to affect much the taste in the end, so just spread the batter rather than pour it in. But if you’re finding your brownies feel too thick, simply add in an extra egg (just don’t over-whisk or they could become more cakey).
Fun fact: it might also be our taste buds here, but we’ve noticed that stevia-based sweeteners (such as Pyure) don’t work so great when chocolate is involved as the aftertaste is accentuated. So we cannot recommend enough that you don’t use stevia-based sweeteners here.
Oh, and if just paleo or gluten free (or not restricted by sugars), simply sub 1-to-1 with coconut or regular sugar.
And if using xylitol, make sure to be careful if you have a pup (or kitty!) around the house, as it’s highly toxic to the little guys! 🐕
Suuuper Fudgy Gluten Free Paleo & Keto Brownies
These paleo and keto brownies are extra fudgy, super easy, just 5 ingredients and 1g net carb a pop! Now that's what we call an ideal low carb chocolate dessert!
Oh, and if baking with cups rather than grams is your thing, just click on US Cups for an instant conversion.
Ingredients
- 130 g unsalted grass-fed butter or 8 TBS coconut oil + 1 TBS coconut cream if paleo
- 140-200 g xylitol powdered erythritol or coconut sugar if paleo*
- 80 g cocoa powder **
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 eggs at room temperature***
- 70 g almond flour
To garnish
- flakey sea salt optional (but highly suggested!)
Serving suggestions
- unsweetened macadamia milk nice 'n cold!
Instructions
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See recipe video for guidance!
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Position a rack in the lower third of your oven and preheat to 350°F/180°C. Line with parchment paper the bottom and sides of a 8x8-inch baking pan. Set aside.
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Add butter, sweetener, cocoa powder and salt to a medium heatproof bowl. Melt over a water bath whisking constantly (or use the microwave, in small increments). You'll want to heat it up until most of the sweetener has melted and the mixture is well incorporated (note that erythritol, unlike xylitol, won't dissolve much at this point). Remove from heat and allow the mixture to cool slightly.
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Add one egg at a time, whisking well after each one until completely incorporated. The texture should appear smooth, with all the sweetener dissolving into the mixture. And if using erythritol, and your batter ends up too thick, you may want to add an extra egg. Just be sure not to over-whisk, or your brownies could end up more cakey rather than fudgy.
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Add the almond flour, whisking vigorously until fully blended (about a minute).
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Bake for 15-25 minutes (we do about 23 with xylitol and 17 with erythritol), or until the center is just set and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out moist. This really does vary (a lot!!) from oven to oven (think convection etc), so give them a check from minute 15 the first time around, and remember that you'll brownies will continue to cook while they cool.
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Sprinkle with flakey sea salt (optional) and allow to cool completely on a rack. Lift brownies using the edges of the parchment paper and cut into desired size (we do 16!). To get extra clean edges, place in the freezer for 10 minutes prior to cutting.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
*Please see section on sweeteners for deets and possible substitutions (very important, as various sweeteners behave very differently here!). Just keep in mind that stevia doesn't work (at all!) for these!
And if using powdered erythritol, and your batter ends up too thick, you may want to add an extra egg. Just be sure not to over-whisk, or your brownies could end up more cakey rather than fudgy.
**If measuring the cocoa with tablespoons rather than grams, be mindful of how you scoop as you can end up with a lot more cocoa powder than needed. Drop the cocoa powder into the tablespoon and level it, rather than scooping it out of the bag with the tablespoon (which can lead to overpacked tablespoons!).
**Use eggs at room temp. Reason being that if your cocoa/butter mixture is not hot enough (and your eggs are very cold), they'll solidify the butter and your batter will be too thick once you add in the almond flour (doesn't affect the end results, just annoying to spoon rather than pour!).
So good! My only change was using salted butter. I filled 12 paper liners in a regular muffin tin, and 10 min to absolute perfection! Thank you!
Hi Paola
Is there a tweak u know of to make them less of a fudgey brownie but more cakey or chewy?
Thanks!!
You could simply cooking them a bit longer first, or add 10-20g more almond flour xo!
thank you! i made one batch exactly like your recipe and they were absolutely delish! im going to try make a second one now with toasted pecans, a little cinnamon and vanilla extract and add a little baking powder to make them more cake-like and 10g more almond flour as well! lots of tweaks, i hope it works out! i ran out of xylitol at the 130g mark so i had to sub in 30g of swerve 🙁 the mixture was way less velvety and thicker. its sitting in the fridge overnight now and i hope its gonna work out.
sooo good and fudgey this is a real
winner!!
I’m so confused, mine turned out really bitter. Could it be my sweetener? I use something called steviosa. It’s stevia and erythritol.
Hi Mai! DEF! There are warnings throughout the post and recipe notes not to use stevia-based sweeteners 🙁
I used the Total Sweet xylitol and the carb count for everything was 11g net carbs EACH?! Cut into 16 as per your recipe…. how did you calculate 1g net carbs please?
They are delicious though!
Thanks xo
Hi Ellie! Keep in mind that sugar alcohols are not regular carbs (they go undigested through your tract), so it’s common practice to subtract them (there are several resources to read about it online) xo!
Looks incredible, could you convert the grams to tablespoons and cups?
Thanks!
Just click on US Cups below the ingredients Susan! xo
Hi, I made these and they are very tasty. However, the texture was a bit weird, almost like gelatin. It was fudgey but very dense, and I only cooked for 15 minutes. Perhaps it got too hot at the melting stage? I did use confectioners swerve. Thank you for this recipe!
It actually sounds like they probably needed a bit longer in the oven to get more bite in them xo!
Have you had any experience baking with Lupin flour. I picked up a bag in Germany.
You’re the second person to ask me today! I JUST bought some yesterday, so I’ll begin to experiment (I’m excited because I heard it’s a lot like garbanzo, and that’s an awesome one to work with) xo Ellen!
Looooooooooooooooooooooooooooovvvvvvvvvvvvvvvveeeeeeeee these brownies!!!!! They are so yummy! I end up using salted grass-fed butter since I couldn’t find it unsalted at my store and they still turned out puuuuuurrrrrfect!
Not sure where I went wrong. Had it in the oven for 15 min, but it was already to much. It became more like a dry chocolate cake, still good but not fudgy. Weighed all ingrediens and used Xylitol.
So strange Sonja! Could your oven be running at a higher temp? Did you use a different mold? Can’t think of a reason for this tbh!
How are you calculating only 3g total carbs? I’m doing the math and getting 9 per brownie.. I used swerve erythritol that is 3g per tsp (32 in 2/3c), almond flour that is 6g per 1/4c (18g for 3/4c) and then my cocoa powder is 3g total per tbsp so for 11 is 33. So 96+18+33=147 147/16=9.2 approx… so what am i doing wrong? Even -fiber it’s still like 7g 😥
Hi Chelsea! It’s just common practice to leave out the sugar alcohols as they’re not ‘regular carbs’ (unless you have a fancy section for sugar alcohols, which our plugin doesn’t have). xo!
Okay I will have to check that out, thank you!!!
This is the best keto brownie recipe I’ve ever made! I used a brownie pan and ended up with 12 brownies. While that makes them slightly higher in carbs, I think they’re the perfect size.
Wow, these came out perfect! Look and taste like the real thing! Forgot to put salt in mine but it didn’t matter. I’ve had trouble with keto baking before and expected some sort of after taste, chalky or otherwise, but nothing of the sort. Will make again!
I’m new to your website and want to bake the Super Fudge Keto Brownies. I confused on the measurement for the sweetener. It’s printed as “2/3-1 cup xylitol”.
Does that mean it’s 2/3 to a cup of sugar or is it 1 & 2/3 cup of sugar?
Thank you
Hi Evelina, welcome! It’s a guide for sweetness (explained in the section on sweeteners). You’ll want to use 2/3 cup if your taste buds are keto adapted to less sweetness, or 1 cup for regular sweetness xo!
I made these this afternoon and they are delicious. I added 1/2 tsp. of vanilla and the taste is right on.
I really want to make these for our trip to the lake tomorrow. Quick question….is the butter supposed to be cold or room temp? I’m assuming cold, since it doesn’t say, but I wanted to be sure!
You’re going to melt it yeah so it doesn’t matter 😉 xo!
Hi!
I was wondering if you can use unsweetened cocoa powder instead? I’m out of regular cocoa powder and want to make these right now!
Hi Kylie, I’m not sure what you mean? Regular cocoa is unsweetened in my book, and these use regular unsweetened variety 😉 xo!
I made these as is and they turned out perfectly!
Since then I’ve had to change to an AIP diet. I was wondering if cassava flour would work in place of almond?
Thank you!
Awesome Kristian! I cannot guarantee the outcome as I haven’t tried it myself, but I have made them in the past with Teff, gluten free flour mixes, garbanzo and they turn out well too. You may want to increase the amount by 10 grams xo