These (5-ingredient & extra-fudgy!) paleo and keto brownies are most definitely one of our favorite desserts here at gnom-gnom.
Cocoa Paleo & Keto Brownies 🍫
Suuuper Fudgey!
Ridiculously decadent, suuuper fudgy and intensely chocolatey, these keto brownies are one indulgent 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.
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.
You will also want to use cold eggs for this one, which might even come in handy if you keep your eggs in the fridge. The colder temperature of the eggs will help the batter emulsify nicely. UPDATE: based on your feedback, we’re now advising you guys 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.
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!
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 🍯
We like Swerve or xylitol best here. No funky aftertaste. Also, both are roughly 1-to-1 in sweetness to sugar (and the volume is important here).
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. Again, it might just be our taste buds here!
If paleo, feel free to use some good-old coconut sugar or maple syrup. They both work just as well, just keep in mind that you may need to bake your brownies a little longer if using maple syrup. Oh, and sub the grass-fed butter for coconut oil. Taste is a little different, but they’re also absolutely killer.
And if using xylitol, make sure to be careful if you have a pup around the house, as it’s highly toxic to the little guys! 🐕
The Recipe Video 📽
Suuuper Fudgy Paleo & Keto Brownies
These paleo and keto brownies are extra fudgy, super easy, just 5 ingredients and 1g net carbs a pop! Now that's what we call ideal!
Oh, and if baking with cups rather than grams is your thing, just click on US Customary at the bottom of the ingredients for an instant conversion.
Ingredients
- 130 g unsalted grass-fed butter or coconut oil if paleo
- 200 g Swerve *or maple syrup/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 or using the microwave. You will want to heat it up until all the butter and sweetener has melted and the mixture is well incorporated. Remove from heat and allow the mixture to cool slightly.
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Add one egg at a time, stirring well after each one until completely incorporated. Add almond flour, stirring vigorously until fully blended (about a minute). Pour into prepared pan.
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Bake for 15-25 minutes (we do 23), or until the center is just set and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out slightly 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.
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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 Notes
*Please see section on sweeteners for deets and possible substitutions. Just keep in mind that stevia doesn't work (at all!) for these!
**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!).
***UPDATE: based on your feedback, we're now advising you guys 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 once you add in the almond flour (doesn't affect the end results, just annoying to spoon rather than pour!).
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No way!! That was my go-to brownie recipe before I started doing keto!! I’m definitely making these thanks!
It was my favorite brownie recipe before I was diagnosed with celiacs! I have made so many versions of it, but it’s really outstanding with almond flour (and lowering the sweetener a tad!) xo hope you enjoy them Dianne!
I just have to let you know I varied this recipe a bit and it is even better. I am trying to get more fiber into my ketogenic diet and changed the almond flour to 1/4 c. inulin with 1/2 c. hazelnut meal. Not only are they actually sweeter (I might cut down on the Swerve next time) they are moister in the center but came out of the muffin tins cleaner for transport! Great recipe. Thank you.–JP
Hi Joanne! Thanks so much for reporting back with your subs! I unfortunately can’t use inulin myself, but it does sound great. And YES on the hazelnut!! The brownies come out very nutella-like, really amazing! xo!
They’re still cooling but OMG the batter tasted incredible!! I also sneaked in a taste and WOW they’re PURE FUDGE!!
NICE!! Glad you loved them and thanks for your note Emily! xo!
I don’t use artificial sweeteners, but am on low carb/Keto. I have organic honey and wholesome molasses. I would probably cut the sweetness in half. Any idea on whether those would work? Maybe it won’t work? Thank you again for your amazing recipes.
Hi Rayan! I have made them with maple syrup before and they worked just as well (albeit a little longer bake time needed). I haven’t made them with honey yet, but I don’t see why not?! These are on the sweet side, so you could definitely cut down the sweetness (I’m not sure if by half, but definitely a bunch). Perhaps taste a bit as you go when you’re melting the butter with the cocoa? Just keep in mind that you’ll be adding in the eggs and almond flour after.
The original recipe by Medrich was designed to be made with whatever variation of ingredients you had in your pantry. And I’ve made them for the past decade with so many variations, so they’re a very forgiving recipe. The results might be different with each, but still super yummy!
Hope this helps! xo!
Thank you! I am looking forward to making this. I really appreciate your input.
Can you use Stevia?
Hi Tracy! Unfortunately no, only 1-1 sweeteners to sugar would work as low carb subs (so swerve, xylitol or lakanto). xo!
I’m leaving a review because these are simply some of the most wonderful brownies I’ve ever made wow!! I used xylitol and valrhona (I saw you knew your stuff when you recommended it!!) and everyone in the house devoured them last night!! Incredibly fudgey, moist and chocolatey! What a fantastic recipe thank you!
Hi there I’m excited to try and make these would erythritol work while baking these.
Hi Chantel! Sure thing! Swerve is erythritol in the end, and that’s our top choice here ;)! xo!
BEST. BROWNIES. EVER!!! OMFG they’re so fudgey and rich!!! I couldn’t believed they were 1g net so i double checked and got 0.95g lol!!! I cannot believe your recipes, I generally do the ‘how is this keto?!’
These were delicious! I’ve had hit or miss luck with the keto baking I’ve done so far, but these are going to be my go-to brownies. Deeeelish!
How much of a cooling effect does the Swerve cause at that level? I’ve noticed the cooling effect with Swerve, Honeyville Farms and Now brand Erythritol. Thanks!
Hi Rochelle! TBH I didn’t get the cooling effect here, but it’s also an individual taste bud thing! If you get it quite a bit, have you tried xylitol instead? xo!
I don’t know if you will see this but I add a little stevia to my erythritol and it negates the cooling of the erythritol and the aftertaste of the stevia. My girlfriend hates stevia-won’t even taste anything made with it so she combines erythritol and xylitol and says it takes away the cooling effect as well.
This is VERY true! Thank you Kim! Which is why sweeteners such as Pyure and Lakanto (erythritol bases with added stevia and monk fruit) help with the cooling effect for a lot of peeps. Just keep in mind that I find any sort of stevia to be incredibly bitter when mixed with chocolate (but if I’ve learned anything is that taste buds vary A LOT with sweeteners!).
This is a darn good brownie recipe! They didn’t turn out as fudgy as the pictures but I am satisfied with how they turned out!
HI,
does the coconut sugar still fit into a Keto diet? i can’t find Swerve in any stores near me but i can get hold of coconut sugar!
so excited to try them!!!
Hi Francesca! Unfortunately coconut sugar is for the paleo option. Can you get hold of pure erythritol (the sweetener in Swerve?) xo!
I used Sukrin brown sugar, which I bought on Amazon (also Swerve). This is a great adaptation. Delicious.
So happy you enjoyed Nancy, and thank you for reporting back with your details- super helpful to other readers! xo
Hi Paola, I made the brownies, weighed all the ingredients, but didn’t have the same almond flour or cocoa. The batter turned out super thick. I baked them anyway, loved the flavor! They reminded me of a fudge texture by dryer. I’m not sure what I did wrong. Do you have any recommendations? Thank you!
Hi Linda! Glad you liked the flavor! I’m not sure exactly what happened without being in the kitchen with you, but let’s go through a couple things! When did the batter thicken up for you? For me (and I’m working on editing a video for you guys), when melting the butter with the cocoa and swerve it’s almost paste like and hard to stir. But when I whisk in the eggs the batter loosens up and becomes nice and smooth. Then the almond flour makes it a bit grainy and thicker, but it’s still pourable.
I was talking to another reader on Facebook (she is a cook and a blogger too), and she said the same thing as you (though she fiddled around with the quantities a bit). What we think happened in her case was that she was using coconut oil and her eggs may have been so cold that when she added them into the batter the coconut oil went back to it’s solid state and the batter became too thick to whisk. Does this sound like something that could’ve happened to you as well?
Hope this helps! xo!
Hi Paola,
I couldn’t whisk the butter, swerve and cocoa together, had to stir it was so thick. I did put it in the microwave again to see if it would thin out, which it did. Then added the two cold eggs, the batter did loosen up a bit. When I added the almond flour thats when it got super thick. The batter was never loose enough to pour into the pan, had to be scooped. I mean, I’m still going to eat it, because it is really good! Just miss chewy brownies with crunchy edges. Thank you for all the delicious recipes.
Oh that’s weird about the almond flour! What brand are you using? You weighed the ingredients right?
I used California superfine which is a kirkland (costco brand) I did weigh it. I will try the recipe again and let you know how it turns out.
Thank you Linda! Try with the rooms at room temperature (I’m changing that in the recipe). A reader wrote back saying she made another batch and it was still thick, but not rock solid. It looks like if the eggs are too cold and your batter is not that hot anymore, the butter goes back to it’s solid state. Hopefully the mystery has been solved! xo
Do you think coconut flour would work? I would like to make these for a get together but one person is allergic to almonds!
Hi Sami! Coconut flour makes very dry brownies here (as it soaks up the liquids). But have you guys tried sunflower seed flour? A bunch of readers have reported back that it’s a great sub for almond (similar fat to almond etc). Hope this helps!
Hi I baked a batch , but the batter was super thick. I was wondering if you could give the ingredients in teaspoons or some other way versus the grams.
Hi Shayna, if you click on US Customary below the ingredients you will get it in cups/tablespoons ;).
Absolutely perfect! I used 7tbsp of Truvia and these are the most incredible tasting brownies I’ve had in a year! Yess!
Hi Kay! So glad you loved them YAY! And thank you as always for your feedback! xo good weekend!
i never comment on posts but i had to with this one! i turned mine into cupcakes added sugar free chocolate chips and chopped walnuts. let me tell you that these tasted just like a normal brownie! i am so amazed. you really hit the nail on the head with this one! if you are on the fence about trying this you need to just go for it. YOUR LIFE WILL BE FOREVER CHANGED!
Hi Shaina! That sounds like a wonderful idea and thank you for taking the time to leave a review! And of course, for your lovely comments. Big kiss!
Y’ALL THESE ARE LEGIT! Super fudgy, chocolately and an absolute delight! I even felt like I was cheating!! With these by my side I might as well be keto for life!!
I just skimmed through the comments and my batter was thick but I still poured it into my pan… AND I actually thought mine were quite chewy around the edges, but not the center- that one just melted in your mouth yum!
I’m going to take a wild guess here and say that different brands will give different results. Anyways! THANK YOU! YOU ARE A STAR!
Thank you Diana for your lovely words! It looks like the mystery of the batters may have been very cold eggs bringing the butter back to it’s solid state. So glad you enjoyed them! xo
That must have been it! I was measuring the ingredients when I got a phone call, so the eggs must have warmed up by the time I got back to mixing everything together
I mean the batter was still very thick, but I could still pour it. Had to scrape off the last bits though
I have these in the oven right now, and am just reading the comments here. Can’t wait for them to come out! My batter was also very thick, and could not be poured, so I thought I’d share what I did if it helps figure out the cause.
Ingredients:
– Hershey’s cocoa powder
– Wellbee’s almond flour
– 2 *medium* eggs (~45g each)
– Mix of swerve (80g) and pyure (60g) because I ran out of swerve
The batter was quite thick after i melted the butter, maybe I should have heated it more? I did 30s in my 1000w microwave, there was no solid butter visible when I pulled it out.
After I added the eggs, it became smooth, I think i probably could have poured it at this point. After I added the almond flour it got thick again. I had to spread it into the pan with a spatula.
They’re out of the oven now! I baked them for 25mins. By the time I pulled them out there was a light crust on top and a bubbling liquid coming out, and my cake tester inserted into the middle cake out with just a tiny bit of moisture & batter. The liquid that was boiling out soaked back in over the past couple of mins. I hope I pulled them out at the right time!
They smell amazing. I can update after they cool with texture and flavor. Thank you for all your amazing recipes!
Hi Jessica! Thank you so much for taking the time to write and help figure out the mystery of the solid batter that some of you are getting. The good news is that it seems that another wonderful reader did some thorough testing in her kitchen again and emailed me (pictures and all) that if your eggs are too cold the butter will go back to its solid state (so I’m changing eggs to be at room temp now).
From what I gather it doesn’t affect the results in the slightest (just makes it rather annoying to spoon into the tray), as it would be the same as baking straight from the fridge after an overnight refrigeration. The same thing happened to me when you baked the brownies in terms of a light crust and bubbling (you can see the cracks in the pics). I probably like to under-bake mine a tad, but as long as your toothpick still had some batter you should be fine (remember that they continue to cook when cooling).
xo and hope you love them as much as I do!
Can I make and freeze these?
Hi Kari! Yeah for sure! They freeze very well xo!
Holy fast response, Batman! You rock!!!!!!
I’m answering comments! Got me at the right time 😂
I ordered some of the valrhona cocoa you suggest and if finally arrived yesterday. I’m not sure what they taste without it, but these are truly some of the most decadent and fudgiest brownies I’ve ever made! Triple WOW THANK YOU!
I didn’t see where the macadamia milk was used- I’m assuming in the batter? Can I use almond or cashew milk instead?
Hi Lindsey! It’s just a fun serving suggestion! No need to add it into the brownies 😉
Fantastic brownie recipe! Made these this morning with my meal prep for the week and very please! Still getting use to my new oven, so they were baked about 2 minutes too long but still fantastic!! Tasted the batter before baking and was very tasty. I only had erythritol so that’s what I used and turned out just fine. Even though there is almond flour, I like the bite of a couple pecans or walnuts in my brownie, so I’ll add just a few next round! Topped with a bit of flaked pink salt… great recipe!!!
I guess it knocked out my five star rating in my original comment.
Mine are hard as a rock. They taste ok- like a drier hard fudge? Not sweet enough. I need a fudgey brownie in the worst way!
Hi Kari! Can you give me a bit more guidance so I can help you see what went wrong? By hard do you mean dry? Did you make any subs? Did you weigh or measure by cups? Dry brownies are generally a problem with over baking. They continue to cook while cooling so you want to take them out as soon as the center sets. Could also be too much cocoa? Hope this helps! Xo
I’m writing a review to warn people to ONLY MAKE THESE IF YOU LIKE DARK CHOCOLATE AND VERY RICH BROWNIES!! I personally hate dark chocolate so I could barely get a bite into these. Having said that, my husband and one of my daughters absolutely loved them. So household divided we came to the conclusion that this is an EXCELLENT BROWNIE RECIPE, BUT ONLY IF YOU LIKE DARK CHOCOLATE
I’m still leaving 5 stars because I do believe it’s a good recipe. I may try again cutting the cocoa and upping the sweetener.
Just FYI I used Splenda 1:1 and made sure I converted the weight measurements correctly. It’s what I had on hand so I decided to give it a try. I cooked for 12min and they’re dry, crumbly and awful. So don’t use Splenda!
Hi Felicity! Thank you for your feedback on using Splenda! I’ve never cooked with it so unfortunately I can’t give pointers for this one. Fo the conversions to US cups did you check out our own (US Cups below ingredients?). xo!
Hi there. I am making these now. In the nutrition information the number of servings is not listed. Can you tell me how many are in the recipe so I know how many fat grams I am getting?
Thank you,
Karen
Hi Karen! The recipe plugin we have puts the servings at the top of the recipe, so you get 16 servings per batch. So each brownie has 9g fat (as stated in the nutrition info). xo!
Ahhh. I missed that. Thank you!
Love your web site and look forward to your notifications by email. I started out supporting my husband in this keto lifestyle, but now I’m hooked. I am so surprised at how GOOD I feel now that I have adjusted to the changes in our eating style. I never would have believed it! So my recipe question is this: have you heard of a sweetener called Sola? It does have a bit of stevia in it and I’m wondering if it will work in this recipe since you said stevia won’t work in it? I do have some Swerve that I will use, just curious about the Sola. Can’t wait to make these yummy looking brownies.
Hi Andrea! Welcome to the keto lifestyle!! Tbh I haven’t heard of Sola before, and my experience with these brownies is that the stevia leaves a weird after taste (and several readers in social media have commented the same… even with something such as Pyure which is an erythritol mix). Hope this helps! xo
So funny I’m back making this recipe again..I love that video, it’s like I’m there in your kitchen with you…awesome! Also, yes you are pouring your batter… I’m still spreading mine…even with room temp eggs…It’s still coming out perfect! I live in high humidity so maybe that’s why…I can try 1/2 c almond flour and it’ll probably pour…(makes no difference to me) I love this recipe!
I used truvia packets again, and a tip for anyone else using them I also put in 3tbsp of vanilla extract to cut the bitter taste of that and dark chocolate. These brownies are amazing everytime!
Love that you’re enjoying them so much Kay!
Regarding the spreading of the batter, what you can’t see in the video is that I actually dropped the bowl (and the camera came crashing down!) because the batter is VERY thick 🙈! Alas, the mysteries of keto baking!
And thank you for your suggestions, always super welcome!! xo!
I’ve made these twice already, with swerve and xylitol. I personally think they work better with xylitol, as I have issues with the cooling aftertaste of swerve at times. I also didn’t have any issues with the batter, it was thick but still was able to pour it into the pan.
I think the trick to these is to take them out of the oven when JUST set. That way they come out like in the pictures! AND totally delicious
The swerve seems to leave a really bad after taste and tastes like pepperminty alcohol when I’m chewing the brownie. Everything else was perfect, I was dossapointed I had to throw the batch out because of the swerve 🙁
Hi Key! Different people have varying sensitivities to the cooling after taste of Swerve. May I suggest you try xylitol instead? It’s higher GI, but no cooling after taste. xo!
The metric system recipe doesn’t seem to convert when I’m clicking on it. Is it updated?
I’ll double check Key, but it seems to be working fine. Maybe just a loading error?
I added 1/2 tsp instant coffee grounds this always inhances the chocolate more and used swerve sweetener, I had 11 Tbs so I used 3 Tbs swerve confectioners sugar. These are wonderful! I put in freezer when done for 30 minutes, then I took 1 block cream cheese, one cup heavy cream, 1/4 cup swerve and blended in a bowl added to top of brownies. This made brownie cheesecake squares.
These look sooo amazing! Do you think they would work if I doubled the recipe and cooked the batter in a 9×13 pan?
Hi Maya! Yes that should be fine, just keep an eye out on baking time! xo!
I recently bought Lily’s stevia sweetned baking chocolate is there any way I can use that in this recipe?
Hi Briana! Unfortunately this is a cocoa powder brownie recipe, and using baking chocolate wouldn’t work here xo Paola
Okay thank you still making them tonight!
the best brownies. I added 1tsp of instant espresso coffee. Could have eaten just the batter.
I don’t know what happened?! I heard boiling and opened the oven to see a layer of liquid, I think butter, sitting on top boiling. The brownies pulled away from the edge and shrunk in. They’re like a quarter inch think, the would be fudgey if they were thick but they just taste like cardboard now…
Hi Brittany! I’m sorry I missed your comment earlier, from the sound of it the butter didn’t emulsify properly with the eggs (you want to whisk it well), and it separated when baked 🙁
Pinned a week ago, but just made today. Chocolate craving satisfied! I’m in love 💕 Thank you! Going to try that cinnamon toast crunch next!
That’s awesome Araceli! So happy you enjoyed them 🙂
Thanks for the recipe! Just want to say if anyone else is using it I gave it a shot with Lakanto Classic White 1:1 sweetener (a blend of erythritol and monkfruit). I think the fruity aftertaste of the monkfruit is way too strong and it results in a very fruity brownie. I also think it could stand dialing back the sweetener a bit in my case but your mileage may vary. But it’s what I had on hand and wanted to experiment. Hope this saves someone time!
Also they don’t expand/rise much so a smaller baking dish seems like it would have been better in my case. Good luck!
I hardly ever comment on recipes I make, but had to with this. I’ve been eating keto for almost two years, and this is by far the best brownie recipe I’ve tried. My nutrition counts matched yours almost exactly except for the carbs – which was super confusing, but it turns out that Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa I used has about 36 carbs for 80g while the cocoa you used has about 10 carbs for 80g. Next time I will try it with the Valrhona!! I’m sure it will taste even better than the Hershey’s 🙂
I followed the recipe to a T…the batter was delicious and they were just as good freshly baked after cooling for a time. However, I refrigerated them overnight and have just tried a bite after allowing to return to room temp and the texture is totally different! Very grainy/chalk-like. Flavor is still great but the texture makes them almost inedible to me. What could have gone wrong?
Hi Jessica! I’m sorry I missed your comment earlier, but it sounds like they were over-baked. Remember that they continue to cook while cooling. xo!
O.M.G
Massive sweet-toother here! Keto4Life! These will make sure of that!
I did use Monkfruit as my sweetener and added vanilla extract. Will double batch from here on out to share with my family!
Thank you bunches! 💛💚😘😘
Lol that’s awesome Krystal so happy you enjoyed! If you happen to read this would you mind specifying what type of monk fruit sweetener you used? Lakanto (mixed with erythritol) or pure monk fruit? Would help a bunch! xo!
OMG BEST CHOCOLATE RECIPE YET. Been Keto for two months and every week I make something sweet for the hubby and I. The chocolate recipes… Let’s just say their version and my version have not lined up, UNTIL NOW. Fudgy, CHECK. Chocolatey, CHECK. Sweet, Check. DELICIOUS, CHECK CHECK!
That’s awesome Ellen! So happy you enjoyed them so much! Thanks for reporting back xo!
Hi! I used 200g of the granulated Swerve you have linked, but according to my calculations that’s 168 carbs total, which – if this recipe yields 12 brownies – leaves each brownie with 16.8 carbs! You only show 1 Net Carb for this recipe. What’s my error?
Hi Paige! Swerve is not a regular carb, it’s a sugar alcohol which passes undigested through most peeps’ tracks so it’s left out of the carb count (unless you add a section for ‘sugar alcohol’ as you see in many sugar free labels) xo!
Okay, thanks!
I’m going to try this weekends. Regarding to your second instruction: “Add butter, sweetener, cocoa powder and salt to a medium heatproof bowl. Melt over a water bath or using the microwave”. By using microwave, how much temperature and how long to melt them ?
I planned to used Xylitol. Do I need 200g of Xylitol to replace 200 g Swerve *or maple syrup/coconut sugar if paleo?
Hi Abel! Yes, xylitol is 1-1 to swerve and sugar. xo!
In all honesty I don’t own a microwave so I can’t tell you how long sorry!
Can someone publish the US measurements for this recipe?
Hi Damara! They’re already published, please click on US Cups below the ingredients for an instant conversion
I only have almond meal flour available will this work for the almond flour part?
Hi Sue! You may end up with a slightly coarser texture, but it’s not a deal breaker. xo!
Do you use powdered or regular swerve?
Either works (I make it with regular swerve or xylitol most often though). Just keep in mind that a cup of powdered weighs more than one of regular. xo
I just thought to let you and your followers know – My partner has been on a keto diet with astounding, positive results on his rehab, since he had an acute stroke in Nov 2017. He has been very strict with his diet and he was a sugar junkie before keto. I made him these brownies yesterday and when he took that first bite of that still warm brownie, I could actually see his aura start glowing!! I can’t write what his actual reaction is – it’s NSFW haha! But, they are THAT good, and then some.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for making your recipes accessible! You are a super human 🙂
I just thought to let you and your followers know – My partner has been on a keto diet with astounding, positive results on his rehab, since he had an acute stroke in Nov 2017. He has been very strict with his diet and he was a sugar junkie before keto. I made him these brownies yesterday and when he took that first bite of that still warm brownie, I could actually see his aura start glowing!! I can’t write what his actual reaction was – it’s NSFW haha! But, they are THAT good and then some! Better than any keto treat we can currently buy that is ready-made.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for making your recipes accessible! You are a super human 🙂
Hello:) this recipe looks delicious and I was just about to make it, however, I had a quick question-if I use maple syrup as the sweetener how much should I use? Thank you!!
Hi Haley! You’ll want to sub 1-1 to the sugar weight-wise. xo!
I made these and they didn’t come out “fudgey” at all. Where did I go wrong? Could I have possibly overcooked them? It really doesn’t seem like I did.
also, I should mention that my grocery store only had the confectioner’s version of Swerve. Could that be the issue?
Hi Wavey! Did you measure the confectioners swerve by weight or cups? If you measured by cups and substituted 1-to-1 that could have been the issue. Remember that when the sweetener is powdered 1 cup is A LOT more. Otherwise the second reason for dry brownies would have been an over-bake. Hope this helps xo
ahhhh yes, I did measure it by cups at a 1:1 ratio… So I guess I should buy a scale? or is there another way I could find the proper ratio?
Hi Wavey! I’m sorry to have missed your comment…! In all honesty keto baking by weight will always lead to better results (precision is key and you never get that with cups). I don’t know the ratio otherwise sorry! xo
Does it have to be grass-fed butter?
You can use any butter you desire xo
Wow!!! These were so good.Thank you for this recipe.
My pleasure Michelle! Glad you enjoyed xo!
Wondering why you indicated “grass fed” butter? I only have the regular supermarket variety available. Will that still work?
Hi there L! Regular unsalted butter will work fine too. Grass fed butter is recommended for the keto diet as it has a completely different nutritional profile to regular butter (antioxidants etc). xo!
These look incredible. I’m sure you posted it somewhere, but if you were to make them with an egg replacer, what could you use? Typically I use “neat egg” or apple sauce. We cannot do eggs because of a severe allergy and these look too good not to try.
Hi Hardin! I’m sorry to have missed your comment…! Unfortunately I don’t have much experience with grain free recipes without eggs, so I can’t help you much. I’m not sure what ‘neat egg’ is :-S! But maybe apple sauce would work here alright (can’t guarantee though) xo
Outstanding! This will be my go-to recipe when I need a chocolate fix. It is the perfect combination of simplicity and decadence. I cut the Swerve to 150 g (I’ve lost my taste for super-sweet) and it’s perfect to me. I also added 1 Tbsp of beef gelatin to try to ensure a chewy texture (learned that trick here https://www.ketoconnect.net/recipe/keto-chocolate-chip-cookies/) but I’m not sure it was necessary. Thanks for this amazing recipe!
Hi Thea! So happy you loved them and thank you for getting back! In all honesty I’m not sure beef gelatin adds considerable chewiness here. What I found lately though is that xylitol (even if you use it with a Swerve combo) does tend to add more chewiness. xo!
Thanks for the tip!
My pleasure!
Can you tell me how you calculated this? I put the recipe into myfitnesspal and it came back at 41 calories, 3g fate and 16g carbs, 2g fiber and 2g protein.
Hi Kristen! Keep in mind that both Swerve and xylitol are sugar alcohols and not regular carbs (which go undigested through most peeps’ tracks). So it’s common practice to leave them out of the carb count, unless you have a special fancy section for ‘sugar alcohols’ as many store-bought products do. Also, check which cocoa you’re using as carb counts can vary A LOT here! The one I prefer, Valrhona, has one of the lowest carb counts I’ve seen. xo!
Thanks. I will look at the cocoa. I do appreciate the response.
Can you explain more re: why stevia shouldn’t be used? Also is it possible to convert this recipe into regular measurements of tsp/tbsp/cups? I have nothing to measure grams with and I really want very badly to make this recipe! Many thanks
Hi Christeen! Just click on US Cups below the ingredients for an instant conversion (available in all the recipes!). Regarding the stevia, I just find that it gives chocolate (particularly when baked/hot) a horrid bitter after taste. Several readers who chose to go against the advice also reported the same in social media. The aftertaste, however, is lessened if placed in the fridge overnight (but still not ideal). Xylitol or swerve work best, though some people do also get a cooling effect from Swerve. Hope this helps! xo
I just made these yesterday and they are fabulous!! fudge like on the inside with a slight crisp on the outside! Just as I remember brownies to be. I would like to make them again soon but since I have a family of 4 on low carb I would like to double them. So can I just double all of the ingredients? What size pan would you recommend? I was thinking a 11×7.
Hi Allison! I’m sorry to have missed your comment…! I’m not sure if this is helpful anymore, but you can def just go ahead and double the ingredients and an 11×7 pan would work just fine. You will need to adjust the baking time though, so just keep an eye out for them. xo and so happy you enjoyed!
Ok this looks like a great recipe but I couldn’t get it to turn out right. Unfortunately you leave out in your video exactly how you melt the butter with the Swerve and Coco. And you’re very vague about it in the instructions too. You don’t tell long to melt it or show exactly how to go about it. I’m pretty sure that’s where my recipe got messed up I think I heated it up too long. But I couldn’t seem to get the swerve to melt. Including a video or more specific instructions of you doing that part of the recipe would be very useful!!!!!!!!! Also I noticed significant call down with the swerve. Is there anyway to negate that.?
Hi Sandra! Can you please let me know why you think your brownies didn’t turn out? That’s usually more useful to help me see what may have gone wrong. Melting it is super easy, so I’m not sure what can go wrong there. The point here is to melt the butter to incorporate the cocoa and sweetener, and you can see what the texture looks like after.
In terms of the video, blogging is not my full time job and I do it as I can because I love sharing the recipes. And in all honesty, some basic cooking/baking skills are generally assumed as I cannot possibly cover absolutely everything in each post. But there are nowadays full video tutorials on youtube to learn beginner skills such as melting butter in a water bath. I also unfortunately cannot tell you how long to melt for, it as that would more likely lead to an incorrect outcome. This would depend on the pot your melting it in and too many other variables. The butter, cocoa and sweetener simply become incorporated into one big blog once the butter melts. Then when you whisk in the eggs (at room temp, thats very important) the batter loosens up as you see in the video.
Regarding the cooling aftertaste of Swerve, there’s not much I can do about that as some people get it and others doesn’t. Maybe you can try xylitol? I get a bit of cooling from Swerve but none from xylitol. Just keep in mind that it’s a higher GI. Hope this helps xo!
I put this recipe into 2 trackers and I get 2-7 carbs and 60-162 calories. I only have 20 carbs to use each day and 7 carbs is some some days to many
Hi Sherry! You need to leave out the sugar alcohols (i.e. Swerve or xylitol) out of your carb count as they aren’t normal carbs xo
I just made these and they are amazing! I used monk fruit/erythritol sugar mix that I bought at bulk barn and it worked really well. Baked for the 23 minutes and perfection. I sprinkled the sea salt you suggested and then sprinkled half a tablespoon of unsweetened coconut flakes on top (only 50 additional calories and less then 1 net carb spread on top of the brownie). Soooo good! Will post on Instagram and tag you!
Hi! I know for sure i did something wrong…lol. TOTAL USER ERROR. My brownies came out sandy, a little dry and a kinda bitter…i used sugarfree Maple Syrup and followed the recipe to a T. I’m still eating them because i’m a chocolate fiend but honestly, they are kinda gross. WHAT DID I DO? It taste like I’m eating chocolate dirt. What is the texture supposed to be like? Is it supposed to be like fudge? I used Hershey’s cocoa powder, Sugar Free Syrup, Unsalted butter, eggs, salt, and superfine Almond flour. Help me!! lol. Thanks in advance and sorry for screwing up your recipe!
Hi Kai! I’m sorry to have missed your comment…! And I’m sorry these didn’t turn out for you! I’m not sure if this was a case of baking them too long (need to take them out when the center is just set as they’ll continue to cook while cooling), or the sugar free syrup. Which brand did you use? What are the ingredients? Sugar free sweeteners all behave slightly different, so that could’ve also been the problem. I hoped this helped! xo
Hi! Hoping I made these right using google conversion – are you able to post US conversions? Fingers crossed they turn out.
Hi Stephanie! Just click on US Cups below the ingredients!! I need to find a way to make it more prominent so you guys don’t miss it…! Fingers crossed!
Can you use ghee in place of butter?
Hi Erica! Tbh I’ve never tried and really have no idea what the outcome would be… but I’m assuming the taste might be a little bit off?
Has anyone tried subbing the eggs with something like avocado? Currently sensitive to egg yolks and thought about giving that a try!
Hi Dana, unfortunately I don’t think avocado would be a good sub for the eggs. I haven’t tried it myself with chia eggs, but a reader reported back on isntagram saying it worked. You may need to thin out the batter a little though. Hope this helps xo!
Hi! Do you use the granular swerve or the confectioner version in this recipe? Thanks!! Can’t wait to try it 🙂
Hi kristen! I used granular, but confectioner would also work as a straight sub if measured by weight xo
Medrich’s best ever cocoa brownie was my go-to brownie recipe pre-keto too! Stoked to find this adaptation. I experience awful chemical-y aftertaste from just about all sweeteners except (recent discovery) xylitol. So that’s what i used. And i only used 70g of it and they are plenty sweet enough for me (if i recall i also used to slash the amount of sugar in the original version too). Dark chocolate deliciousness!
My batter was also very thick, not unworkable but def pressed it into the tin not poured. Lots of brownie recipes have water in them, that could be an option with extended cooking time i guess, but thickness doesn’t bother me. I could only get 10 squares from a batch, 16 would have been teeny tiny. They are soft and dense and fudgy, and my house smells amazing. Thanks Paola!
Hi Anne! Lol that’s awesome! Also thanks so much for reporting back in detail. Do you remember that Medrich’s original recipe calls for something like 250g of sugar?! Crazy how much taste buds vary when doing keto 😉 xo!
I followed the recipe exactly except for the pan(used a round pie pan) and I added pecans…when I took it out of the oven there was a pool of oil up top. I’m not a baker by any means and definitely not without a mic so I’m not sure what I did wrong but I used coconut oil instead of butter and confectioners swerve for the sweetener. What should I do to correct?
Hi Nicole! It’s a bit hard for me to tell you exactly what went wrong as I’m not in the kitchen with you, but if the oil (or butter) separate it’s usually because it wasn’t emulsified well enough with the eggs (which is why you need to whisk thoroughly after adding each egg). Hope this helps!
Do you happen to know if Sweet Leaf would work instead of Swerve? Can’t wait to try this recipe!!
Hi Lindsay! I actually tried with SweetLeaf (the powdered version) first and I got a horrid bitter aftertaste from the stevia. It was lesser after being refrigerated, but unfortunately I wouldn’t recommend it 🙁
Okay. I’ll get the swerve then just to play it safe. 🙂 Thanks so much for getting back to me!
Always happy to help! Swerve or xylitol work great here. Some peeps who get a cooling sensation from swerve prefer xylitol (though it’s slightly higher GI). I think for these sugar alcohols you just need to try around a few and find your favorite. xo!
I’ve seen other recipes that add ground chia seed to raise the fats and help brownies bind even better. Have you tried that? I’m doing keto burn always struggle to take in enough good fats.
*but always
Hi Amy! In all honesty you don’t want chia seeds here. Also keep in mind that theres almond flour in these, so you’re already getting a good amount of fats on account of that. Having said that, check out the bulletproof hot chocolate! It’s thickened with chia seeds so it ends up super nice and creamy 😉 xo!
When I entered all these ingredients into MyFitness pal with 16 servings, it calculated for 1 serving: 143 calories, 9.3 g fat, 2.4 g protein and 14.6 GRAMS CARBS. This really doesn’t fit a lot peoples need for low-carb or keto, when 1 small square pretty much obliterates the daily allowable carb intake. They are however very good, but I would hate for some to indulge on more than one of these and knock themselves out of ketosis.
Hi there! I suggest you do more reading on sugar alcohols as they’re not ‘regular carbs’ and are most definitely not counted as such by most keto peeps. I do under 20g net carbs/day and these will surely not kick you out of ketosis. xo!
WHOA. This recipe is delicious. I feel like I’m eating a fancy brownie! Even my non-keto husband thought they were really good!! I did have a couple of substitutions and glad I read the comments for what I needed! I didn’t have nearly enough Swerve BUT I did have some sugar free/keto maple syrup that I made just a few days ago for bbq sauce recipe and used that on my scale to weigh it out along with some of the Swerve and in the end, some erythritol because I ran out of maple syrup, lol!! I baked it for 23 minutes and I did put some salt flakes on top. WHOA. Since I made some subs I’ll have to calculate the difference in carbs but since the maple syrup is coconut oil, swerve, and maple extract, I don’t know if there is even much of a difference. Thanks for a great recipe!!!!
So happy you loved them Jenny! And thanks so much for reporting back in detail, super helpful!! xo!
Hi there! Thanks for the awesome recipe! I am wondering if i were to use pure powdered stevia instead, could i maybe add in something else to make up for the lack of volume such a grounded chia seeds etc? Any suggestions on what i could use and the amount to make up for the volume?
Best
Hi Zaynab! Unfortunately, as stated throughout the recipe, stevia simply doesn’t work here. Chia seeds would only make it slimy, and the taste would honestly be horrible (readers who went against the advice have agreed that they were horrible with stevia). xo!
I’m trying to figure out if they’re SUPPOSED to be crunchy. Is this the kosher salt, or maybe the Xylitol not dissolving into the butter as needed. Have you had this issue, or are they meant to be crunchy/grainy?
Awesome recipe!!!
Hi Taylor! They’re not supposed to be crunchy oops, not sure why your xylitol didn’t dissolve well. Maybe try and dissolve the xylitol into the butter a little better and then add the cocoa? That should do the trick! xo and happy you enjoyed regardless 😉
I made your Cinnamon Toast Crunch recipe and it was so good! I was wondering if I could use swerve confection sugar instead because I bought the wrong one 😭
Hi Laura! So awesome you enjoyed the CTC! You can definitely use Swerve confectioners here, but do you have a way of weighing it? As it’s powdered you would end up adding more if you measure by cups. xo!
My carb count with powdered swerve comes to 13g each confused as to how yours is so low ?
Hi Danielle! Keep in mind that Swerve is a sugar alcohol and not a regular carb. I suggest you read up more on it, but its common practice to substract it from net carbs as you would fiber xo!
In one comment you said that Stevia couldn’t be used, but I subbed the Swerve for my Stevia Baking Mix (just store brand) and it worked fine. I just halved the amount. They taste soooo good!
Hi Kate! It would be interesting to know what’s in your stevia baking mix, as pure stevia really doesn’t work (and even things like Pyure etc leave a bitter aftertaste here, also according to readers who tried regardless). BUT, what’s important is that you enjoyed 😉 xo!
Hi Paola! 🙂
I was just curious about the recipe, I’m pretty new to all of this and tracking the carbs while eating Keto (I know I have to have 20g or less a day). I had substituted the butter for coconut oil and used coconut sugar instead of swerve. If I followed the rest of the recipe will my carbs still be low? I’ve had a few already because they were absolutely delicious! I just want to make sure I’m not doing anything wrong.
Hi Lawren, apologies for my late reply (tendinitis in both wrists and struggling a bit to keep up!). If you’re doing full keto and not just grain free, you’ll want to ditch the coconut sugar and use erythritol or xylitol instead (sugar alcohols which have much less impact on your GI). Hope this helped and so happy you enjoyed them though! xo
Hi Paola ! I tried this and followed it as instructed. The batter is not thin but pourable. I just spread it out with a spatula to even it. I mixed Lilly’s dark chocolate cut into chunks for extra chocolatey goodness. The top was not as shiny, but fudgy it really is. Might have stopped too early on the 3rd step. Otherwise, it tasted so chocolatey and good! This will go perfectly well with keto ice cream on top —- choco brownie ala mode 🤩😍.
If you want fudgy chocolatey brownies, this is it! And it is low carb! 😱😍
Thank you from the other side of the world, the Philippines!
Hi Suzette! Yes, your texture sounds spot on (the batter is thicker than regular brownies). Otherwise you get a shiny top with xylitol and more opaque using erythritol. Hope this helps and thank you for your lovely comment (ps. check out the no-churn vanilla ice cream!!) 😉 xo
These look amazing! Can the swerve be substituted for Lakanto (golden) and if so, would I use the same amount?
Hi Kancic! If you’re taking about the Lakanto that’s 1-1 to sugar then yes! xo!
I have already made these but I am struggling to get the macros to match up (I was trying to enter it into my app). The Swerve seems to be the problem. I bought the granular Swerve exactly like the link in the recipe. The Swerve nutrition facts say 1 serving (4g) =4g carb so 1:1 ratio and the recipe calls for 200g so a total of 200g carbs per batch so when divided into 16 squares each square has 12.5g carbs just from the Swerve. With the additional carbs from the other ingredients, this has about 15 carbs per serving rather than 3. What am I missing?
Hi Kathrine! Keep in mind that erythritol (i.e. swerve) isn’t a regular carb, but a sugar alcohol and it’s common practice to subtract it from total carbs. I suggest you read up a bit more about it 😉 xo!