Applesauce Brownies

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These double-chocolate super fudgy brownies are made with no oil, no butter, and no flour! But the great news is - no weird veggies or beans either!

These double-chocolate super fudgy applesauce brownies are made with no oil, no butter, and no flour! But the great news is - no weird veggies or beans either!

Course Dessert, Snack

Cuisine American, Vegetarian

Keyword applesauce brownies

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Servings 16 bars

Calories 140kcal

Author Chelsea

Cost $3.72

Ingredients

1/2 cup (135g) creamy peanut butter
2 tablespoons (47g) honey
1/4 cup (45g) brown sugar lightly packed Note 1
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
1/2 cup (112g) unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup (25g) oat flour (old-fashioned oats that have been blended)
1/4 cup (19g) unsweetened cocoa powder (NOT dutch cocoa powder)
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 + 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips, divided (can use semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips)

Instructions

PREP: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8-x-8 baking pan with parchment paper. (Do not use a different size pan; don't forget to line it or these brownies won't come out well.)
MAKE OAT FLOUR: Place the oats (old-fashioned or quick oats) in a food processor or small blender jar. Pulse the oats until they are ground into a powder-like consistency that resembles flour. Make sure to measure the 1/4 cup oat flour after it’s been turned to flour and not in the original whole-oat form.
BATTER: In a large bowl, mix together the peanut butter, honey, brown sugar, vanilla, egg, and applesauce. Once completely mixed and smooth, add the oat flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and 1/2 cup (92g) chocolate chips. Stir together until combined.
BAKE: Use a spatula to transfer every bit of the mixture into the lined baking pan. Smooth the top in one even layer. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup (38g) chocolate chips over the mixture and gently press them in. Bake for 20-22 minutes or until lightly puffy. I like to slightly under-bake the brownies because they will be softer, chewier/fudgier and overall taste better. You'll know they're done when the batter pulls away from the edges slightly or a toothpick when inserted into the center (not in a chocolate chip) comes out with moist crumbs or comes out clean.
ENJOY: Remove and allow to cool in the pan on a cooling rack for about an hour before cutting into the brownies and enjoying.
STORAGE: Store cooled brownies in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to a week. These brownies are best within 2-3 days of being made.

Notes

Note 1: If you are new to healthier desserts, you may want a bit more sugar in these brownies. If you make a lot of healthier recipes and don't mind the brownies being less sweet, you can slightly reduce the sugar. We like these brownies best with a lightly packed 1/4 cup. If you'd like them sweeter add 1/3 cup.

Note 2: Make sure all ingredients are, in fact, gluten free. While the ingredients called for in these brownies are naturally gluten free, make sure to check all your ingredient labels to verify they weren’t processed in a facility with gluten.

Nutrition