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If you fancy some chocolate brownies and cookie dough at the same time, these Vegan Brookies are a perfect choice! They are made with delicious, naturally sweetened brownies made with black beans and a chocolate-chip-packed cookie dough cake that are delicious and (unexpectedly) nutritious at the same time!
Okay, sounds cliché, but I’ve been thinking about making these vegan brookies for AGES. So when I made some Black Bean Chocolate Brownies last week, I was thinking: Let’s make some brookies as well!
So here we are.
Basically, brookies mean chocolate brownies plus cookie dough, and technically, it’s more like brownies and cookie dough cake, which is packed with delicious dark chocolate chips.
This recipe is inspired and adapted from one of my favourite bloggers, Natalie. I made some adjustments according to my own liking and what I had at hand.
The special things about these Vegan Brookies:
- Combining two of my favourite desserts: chocolate brownies and cookie dough
- Vegan, no dairy, no eggs, no animal products
- Gluten-free, made without wheat flour or wheat-related grains
- Naturally sweetened, no artificial sweetener or added refined sugar in these brookies
Ingredients You Need
We need 12 ingredients in total to make these delicious, wholesome brookies!
- Cooked black beans: Yes, we’re going to use some cooked black beans. And the easiest way is to use tinned black beans. Just drain out the liquid and give them a gentle rinse.
- Dates: We will bend the dates into the brownies as our main sweetener, so it’s best to soak them for at least 15 minutes before we start making the brownies.
- Cacao powder/cocoa powder: I like to use pure cacao powder because the taste is more delicate and premium. But if you can also just use your favourite cocoa powder as well.
- Salt: Just a pinch, not much.
- Baking powder: It will give our brownies a small lift, so they won’t be too dense.
- Extra-virgin coconut oil: I really adore the taste and the texture, extra-virgin coconut oil has to offer.
- Soy milk: Soy milk is one of my staples, so I kind of always use it. You can use other plant-based milk as well instead.
- Oat flour: We will use oat flour in both the brownies and the cookie dough cake.
- Date paste: I use the date paste in the cookie dough cake layer to make it taste smoother. Homemade Date Paste is one of my staples as well.
- Almond butter: Here I use almond butter in the cookie dough layer to give a neutral nutty taste. But technically you can use any kind of nut butter such as cashew butter or peanut butter. (How to Make Nut Butter)
- Vanilla extract: I think we all agree that vanilla makes almost everything taste better.
- Dark chocolate chips: They are mainly for the cookie dough cake because it’s not cookie dough without chocolate chips, right? Oh, and I personally like to use 70% dark chocolate chips. I’d recommend using the ones with 50~70% cacao content.
How to Make Vegan Brookies
First, we need to make the brownies batter:
- Gently rinse the cooked black beans and add them to a food processor.
- Add the pitted dates, cacao powder, salt, and baking powder to the same food processor. Blend to mix all ingredients evenly.
- Then add the melted coconut oil, soy milk, and oat flour. Blend again to combine all ingredients into a paste-like mixture.
- Transfer the mixture into the prepared loaf tin. Spread it out evenly. Set it aside while we prepare the cookie dough cake layer.
Then make the cookie dough cake layer:
- In a bowl, add the oat flour, baking powder, and salt. Use a fork to mix them together.
- Then to the flour mixture, add the date paste, almond butter, and vanilla extract. Mix to combine until no flour can be seen.
- Add half of the chocolate chips, then use a silicone spatula to stir them into the mixture evenly.
- Transfer the cookie dough cake mixture to the tin, on top of the brownie mixture. Gently spread it out evenly.
- Add the rest chocolate chip on top and slightly push them into the cookie dough mixture.
- Bake it in the preheated oven (175°C/350°F) for 24-28 minutes until it’s firm to the touch.
- Let it cool down in the tin for at least 20 minutes before removing it from the tin. Use a sharp knife to cut it into large chunks or squares. Enjoy!
How to Store Vegan Brookies
Let those brookies cool down completely. Then store them in an airtight container in the fridge for 4~6 days or 2 weeks in the freezer.
Questions You Might Have
I don’t have oat flour, what flour can I use instead?
I haven’t tried this recipe with other flour, so I’m not 100% sure if other flour would work. But I think plain flour (all-purpose flour) and gluten-free plain flour would probably work fine as well. Just keep in mind the texture will be slightly different.
Are there other substitutions for extra-virgin coconut oil?
I personally wouldn’t change extra-virgin coconut oil with anything because it’s quite unique in its own right. But if you really have trouble finding it, I would say you can use vegan butter as well. Just keep in mind it will have an influence on the final taste.
Can I use other beans instead of black beans?
I made this recipe specifically with black beans, so I personally haven’t tried other beans in this recipe. I’d say stick with the recipe as much as you can. But if you want to use some of your creative energy, feel free to try anything you think could work as well!
Final Words
These brookies are really a perfect combination for people who crave chocolate brownies and cookie dough at the same time. And even though they are wholesome in their own right, there is no sacrifice on the taste, as one of my friends said she could have never told that it’s made without refined sugar and black beans.
Anyway, I hope you like these special and delicious brookies. If you make them, welcome to tag me on Instagram (@barrelleaf) or comment down below!
More Vegan Dessert Recipes:
Vegan Brookies (Wholesome + Gluten-free)
Ingredients
Chocolate Brownies
- 100 g cooked black beans, (about 1/2 tin) drained
- 65 g pitted dates, soaked in water for 15 minutes
- 14 g cacao powder, (2 packed Tbsp)
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 16 g extra-virgin coconut oil, (1 Tbsp + 1 tsp) melted
- 2 Tbsp soy milk, or other plant-based milk
- 20 g oat flour, (2 Tbsp)
Cookie Dough Cake
- 50 g oat flour, (~1/2 cup
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 40 g Homemade Date Paste, (~3 Tbsp)
- 30 g almond butter, (2 Tbsp)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 35 g dark chocolate chips, (a scant 1/4 cup)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 175°C/350°F. Line an 8-inch loaf tin with baking paper.
Make the Brownies first
- Gently rinse the cooked black beans and add them to a food processor.
- Add pitted dates, cacao powder, salt, and baking powder. Blend to blitz all evenly.
- Then add the melted coconut oil, soy milk, and oat flour. Blend again to combine all ingredients into a paste-like mixture.
- Transfer the mixture into the prepared loaf tin. Spread it out evenly. Set it aside while we prepare the cookie dough cake layer.
Then make the Cookie Dough Cake
- In a bowl, add the oat flour, baking powder, and salt. Use a fork to mix them together.
- Then to the flour mixture, add the date paste, almond butter, and vanilla extract. Mix to combine until no flour can be seen.
- Add half of the chocolate chips, then use a silicone spatula to stir them into the mixture evenly.
- Transfer the cookie dough cake mixture to the loaf tin, on top of the brownie mixture. Gently spread it out evenly.
- Add the rest chocolate chip on top and slightly push them into the cookie dough mixture.
- Bake it in the preheated oven (175°C/350°F) for 24-28 minutes until it's firm to the touch.
- Let it cool down in the tin for at least 20 minutes before removing it from the tin. Use a sharp knife to cut it into large chunks or squares. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Adapted from Natalie
- Storage: Let these brookies cool down completely. Then store them in an airtight container in the fridge for 4~6 days or 2 weeks in the freezer.
- Equipment & tools: I use this Pyrex Magic Loaf Tin (affiliate links) in this recipe. For more of my favourite baking tools and ingredients, please shop my pantry staples & kitchen tools.
