Want to save this?
I'll email this to you, so you can come back to it later. Booyah!
Like my flourless chocolate cloud cake, these gluten-free brownies are fudgy, flourless, easy, gluten-free, paleo, and, quite simply, flat out spectacular, if not the best gluten-free brownies I’ve ever experienced. Go on. I dare you. Bake a batch and see if anyone notices a difference between these and your usual brownies.–David Leite
Gluten-Free Brownies
Ingredients
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 cup tapioca starch or tapioca flour
- 1/4 cup cassava flour, (or substitute tapioca starch or flour)
- 1 pound chocolate*, chopped (semisweet or dark up to 85%, depending on desired sweetness)
- 6 tablespoons (3 oz) unsalted butter, plus more for the pan
- 4 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup coconut sugar
- Cocoa powder or confectioners sugar, for dusting (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C).
- Line a 13-by-9 inch (33-by-22 cm) baking pan with parchment paper or foil, leaving a couple inches overhang on all sides and butter the parchment or foil.
- In a small bowl mix together the baking soda, salt, tapioca starch, and cassava flour (or tapioca starch or flour).
- Place a medium heatproof bowl on top of a pot of simmering water, making sure the bottom of the bowl does not touch the simmering water. Add the chocolate and butter to the bowl and wait patiently while they melt, stirring often, until it’s completely smooth. Carefully remove the bowl from atop the simmering pot of water and let the mixture cool slightly.
- In a large bowl with a stand or hand mixer on medium speed, beat the eggs, vanilla, and sugar until the mixture thickens and begins to turn a pale shade of tan, 4 to 6 minutes.
- Add the flour mixture, switch to a spoon, and stir just until incorporated. Stir in the melted chocolate and butter, mixing until everything is smooth and completely incorporated.
- Scrape the batter into the prepared baking pan and bake for about 25 minutes, until the top looks dry, shiny, and cracked.
- Let the brownies cool completely in the pan on a wire rack before cutting them into 2-inch (5-cm) squares. If desired, dust with cocoa powder or gluten-free confectioners' sugar.
Notes
*How To Choose The Right Chocolate For These Gluten Free Brownies
You can opt for any type of chocolate in these gluten-free brownies. For sweeter brownies, use semisweet chocolate. For a more intense experience, opt for dark chocolate in the 70 to 85% range, depending on just how dark you fancy things. Or if you’re indecisive, opt for what author Josh Weissman refers to as “a nice balance” and do half dark chocolate and half semisweet chocolate. Those of you embracing a paleo lifestyle (with a slight cheat here and there), you’ll want to pay close attention to the chocolate’s sugar content.Explore More with AI
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe Testers’ Reviews
Did you know only 68% of the recipes we test make it onto the site? This recipe survived our rigorous blind testing process by multiple home cooks. It earned the Leite’s Culinaria stamp of approval—and the testers’ reviews below prove it.
If you’re searching for a moist, rich, decadent non-wheat, non-refined white sugar, fudgy brownie recipe, this is the one! This gluten-free brownie recipe rivals my decade-old go-to brownie recipe—you can’t tell the difference. Easy to whip up and delicious. A definite keeper. I used semi-sweet chocolate.
These gluten-free brownies were moist and rich with chocolate flavor. I don’t believe anyone would know they’re gluten-free.
The baking time was spot on and lining the pan with parchment made them easy to remove and then cut. It took about 5 minutes to beat the eggs and coconut sugar until it was thick and pale. I chose to use half semisweet chocolate and half dark chocolate. If making them again, I would use 75% semisweet and 25% dark. Although the recipe has 1 cup coconut sugar, the brownies aren’t that sweet.
Can these be made mini-muffin size in tins, for a tea?
Hey, mgerarden. Small caveat: None of us here have made these into brownie bites in a mini-muffin pan. Now that that’s out of the way(!)… I did some digging into my reference books to figure out how this specific batter adapts. And, yup, you absolutely can turn these into little brownie bites for your tea.
These gluten-free brownies rely on tapioca starch and cassava flour, so the batter behaves a bit differently than plain wheat flour. You’ll have to knock back the baking time from 25 minutes to around 12 to 15 minutes at 350°F (177°C). Keep an eagle’s eye on them. You’re looking for the tops to be set and shiny while the insides stay wonderfully fudgy.
One tip: This batter can be wcked sticky when it’s warm. Grease that muffin tin within an inch of its life, or just save yourself the headache and use paper liners. And whatever you do, let them cool completely in the pan before you try popping them out, or they’ll collapse before the guests even arrive. Let me know how they turn out!
Can you leave the coconut sugar out? And can you use coconut oil instead of butter?
I wouldn’t recommend it for this specific recipe, Antonia. Because the recipe calls for tapioca and cassava, the coconut sugar is doing heavy lifting for the structure and moisture—without it, they’ll likely turn out dry or crumbly. Coconut oil can work as a butter swap, but it makes these particular brownies a lot more fragile. If you’re looking to go sugar-free or vegan, I’d suggest a recipe designed with those swaps in mind so you aren’t disappointed with the results.