Nov 23
The BEST flourless Black Bean Brownies made with heart-healthy avocado and wholesome, real ingredients. Absolutely delicious!
A little update from me: I haven’t been able to give the blog the love it deserves. You may have noticed that I’ve been taking time off from doing my Friday Favorites because we’re launching a new healthy living website that’s been taking up most of my time. To top it all off I’ve been testing cookies for 4 days straight in preparation for an upcoming cookie week. YOU GUYS ARE GONNA FREAKING LOVE IT.
MY LATEST VIDEOS
Before that happens though, we really need to discuss my new and improved dairy free and gluten free black bean brownies made with AVOCADO instead of butter, coconut sugar and a tiny bit of coconut oil.
Do any of you remember these bad boys? They are originally from the 2012 days of blogging when I told you I got “chocolate wasted” on them. Literally almost ate the entire pan in one night with my two Godkids. They were good then and they’re damn good now.
I wanted to bring you an updated version with a few simple small changes that take the brownies to the next level wholesome chocolate goodness. I used eggs with the yolk, a little extra coconut oil, less sugar and just a tiny bit less cocoa powder. The brownies are FREAKING FABULOUS.
There’s also an option to make these more cakey by adding an additional egg!
I hope you love these healthier black bean brownies. They’re a staple in my diet & packed with nutrition.
Check out the video to see how to make them:
Pin these brownies:
If you make this recipe, be sure to leave a comment below and rate the recipe! You can also snap and picture and post it on Instagram using the hashtag #ambitiouskitchen. And of course be sure to follow Ambitious Kitchen on Instagram. xo!
- Serves: 12 brownies
- Serving size: 1 brownie
- Calories: 141
- Fat: 6.5g
- Saturated fat: 3.9g
- Carbohydrates: 23.6g
- Sugar: 13g
- Fiber: 4.4g
- Protein: 2.9g
- 1 (15 oz) can of black beans, rinsed and drained
- 2 eggs or flax eggs (add an additional egg if you like cakier brownies!)
- 1/2 of a large ripe avocado
- 1 tablespoon melted coconut oil
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder plus 1 tablespoon
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2/3 cup coconut sugar or sub brown sugar (or sub 1/2 cup pure maple syrup)
- 1/3 cup chocolate chips + 2 tablespoons for topping
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 8x8 inch baking pan.
- Place all ingredients besides chocolate chips into blender or food processor. Process or puree until ingredients form a smooth batter. If the batter is WAY too thick and won't process then add in a teaspoon or two of water. This batter needs to be very thick in order to produce fudgy brownies. Add in 1/3 cup chocolate chips and fold into batter.
- Pour batter into prepared pan, sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of remaining chocolate chips. You can also fold in nuts or swirl in peanut butter. Bake for 25-35 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out somewhat clean and top of the brownies begin to crack. Cool pan completely on wire rack then cut into 12 delicious large brownies!
To make brownies more cake-like: Use 3 eggs instead of 2.
Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by Sarah Fennel
Adapted from my original black bean brownie recipe.
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i’ve been meaning to mess around with using avocado in my baking; it’s so creamy that i can only see good things happening! and love that you give different egg options for cakey/fudgy brownies (:
Those look so FUDGY!!!!!!!! Why don’t I bake with avacodo? I want those really badly in front of me! Awesome that they are gluten free. By the way, I love your recipes!
These are absolutely incredible looking!! Any way to incorporate regular chocolate into my life is OK with me :)!
Probably my favorite recipe of yours, hands down!! So freaking excited for The Healthy Glow to launch! 🙂
These look so fudgy! A brownie with no guilt? Gonna get on it next week
I made them last week and used three eggs…..ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!! I was wondering if I can substitute honey for the brown sugar?
Excellent, hope you love them.
Can I just say that for healthy brownies, these look ammaazzing! I have been wanting to try black bean brownies forever but been hesitant… But these totally make want to try it
What can I replace eggs with?
I’ve made both black bean brownies and avocado brownies, but neither has really hit the mark. Maybe I just needed to combine them! These look absolutely incredible…I will definitely be trying them soon 🙂
Avocado Brownies are good….I substitute stevia for sugar for a diabetes friendly dessert.
How much stevia per this recipe?
I made these for a Christmas party and everyone loved them. People were blown away when I told them it was made with beans and avocado!
I’ve been making black bean brownies for a few years now…I’m allergic to chocolate, just use carob instead.
Thanks for this recipe that adds avocado…will try next time. I just made my recipe today so need to wait until next baking time. I use sunflower seeds as my topping. I also use baking cups so no cutting. Just pack and store.
Freaking Fabulous? Absolutely!!!! I made them last week and my family ate them in a matter of minutes. I’m making a double batch next time
Just made these and was shocked that I could barely tell there were black beans in there (or avocado for that matter)! Such a good healthy version of one of my favorite desserts. Thanks for the awesome recipe–can’t wait to try some of your dinner recipes!
Thanks for this recipe, it has become a regular (like a few others from this site!). I make it two batches at a time, cut and freeze for a easy, healthy and peanut free lunch box treat for my kids. I haven’t actually eaten one of the frozen and thawed brownies, but the kids request this snack and it always gets eaten. Black beans and avocados for the lunch box WIN.
Can you replace the egg with egg white or egg beaters? or would that change the texture?
SO difficult to do with a blender! This would have been impossible with all the ingredients at once. I recommend blending the beans as much as possible first with the avacado and oil, then adding eggs which will make it easier to blend . Mix the dry ingredients separately then add the blended mixture to the bowl and hand mix until all blended together. I could really taste the black beans in the batter so we’ll see what happens after baking!
the black beans is much more subtle after baking and my husband had no idea!
Use a food processor.
SO difficult to do with a blender! This would have been impossible with all the ingredients at once. I recommend blending the beans as much as possible first with the avacado and oil, then adding eggs which will make it easier to blend . Mix the dry ingredients separately then add the blended mixture to the bowl and hand mix until all blended together. I could really taste the black beans in the batter so we’ll see what happens after baking!
I made this the other week and they were a hit! I’ve made other black bean brownies before and thought other recipes were decent for a black bean brownie. These were decent for a regular brownie! I used brown sugar instead of coconut sugar and reduced the quantity of the sugar and the chocolate chips. I drizzled peanut butter on top and swirled it in – I thought it was a great addition!
Just made these. They are fabulous! Hot out of the oven, no bean taste at all!
I made them in a mini-muffin pan, so I just cooked for 15 min. They are perfect! Definitely will be making again!
These turned out amazing and are perfect for my training
I was so hoping this recipe would cure my chocolate craving. I’ve tried TWO different avocado brownie recipes and I’m so sad to say they were both awful. I feel so bad posting about it. Now, I will say I didn’t follow your exact recipe, so that could have been my error. I used Pyure instead of sugar. And I used Stevia dark chocolate chips. The brownie on top looked SO burned and black. But, I had to continue baking it because the inside was underdone.
Has anyone used any of the baking sweeteners before with any success???
I was so sad t his didn’t turn out. I spent a lot of time and money on ingredients. HELP!!!!
Hey! Artificial sweeteners have a lower melting point compared to regular sugars so it is very easy for them to burn while the rest of the recipe is still cooking. Maybe using regular sugars for baking and then saving the artificial sweeteners for other times, such as in beverages, if you’re trying to limit sugar/calories. Hope that helps!
I made garbanzo bean brownies & sweet pea brownies & added more cacao so it’s dark choco. They were delish
These were amazing! Cannot taste the beans at all. I’ll admit I went very dark on the chocolate and I was generous with vanilla bean paste. I also added a bit of almond extract.
Do these need to be refrigerated? My thought was yes.
Yes they should be!
Hi Monique! I’ve made these brownies a BUNCH of times and they always turn out great! I was wondering if the brown sugar could be replaced with honey?
LOVE THIS RECIPE! Making it for the 4th time but this time I don’t have black beans but I have red. Would that work?
these were so good! I brought them to a party and even the ones who say ‘i hate black beans’ loved it! in fact, most people couldn’t tell these weren’t regular brownies…
thanks for sharing these delicious treats!!
These were delicious! I substitute the sugar for 1/4 cup maple syrup!
Very good recipe!
Hi, Is the carb count per brownie or for all 12?
Awesome, thank you!
Instead of coconut sugar, can I use 1/2 cup honey or maple syrup?
Yes I think that would work well!
I had to alter the recipe. The batter didnt taste like brownies, so I had to put a total of 1 cup of sugar instead of the 1/2 cup. 1 brownie is 190 calories, so it isn’t that much of a difference. I pureed the black beans by themselves. I also creamed the sugar with the oil and avocado. After I added the beans, then the other ingredients minus the whites. Then I whipped the whites till light and fluffy and folded them in. It made it so the brownies were not dense. With my adjustments I really liked them! I will make them again for sure.
I made these today as written, only I put the batter in mini muffin tins (made 17) and baked for 15 mins. I can’t get over the fact these have beans & avocado in them! And the batter tasted just like brownie batter (long time bowl licker here!). My avocado was on the small side, so I used it all (it measured 1/2 cup mashed). This recipe is going in the “favorites” binder! Can’t wait to “trick” some people at the next potluck, bwahahaha!
Also, I ran it through a calorie calculator, and for 17 servings, per serving it is: 77 calories, 2.3 g fat, 1.4 g sat fat, 13 g total carbs, 2 g fiber, 7.2 g sugar, and 3 g protein.
AMAZING! They’re a “sneaky” crowd pleaser 🙂 So cool that you baked them in a mini muffin tin!
Made these last night–AMAZING! Cannot believe theres a can of beans and a half of an avocado in this chocolatey masterpiece.
So glad you loved them!
i just came across your site and loving it! feel like I want to cook and bake everything, haha. will start with the brownies! i love your approach to food also – feels like we would get along 😉
Yay let me know how you like them!
Daaaaaaaang. Made mini brownie bites in my mini muffin pan and they were so light and chocolate-y! Definitely a keeper! Baked for 11 minutes was perfection.
Oh my gosh that sounds amazing!
I followed the recipe exactly and they came out looking delicious, but the taste not so much. I had really high hopes for these but they just didn’t do it for my family. At 141 calories I expected them to taste more like a brownie than baked black beans. We’ll just continue getting fiber one brownies, they are 90 calories a piece and at least satisfy the occasional chocolate cravings.
Those also have a bunch of crap ingredients in them
I’m making these tomorrow for a November birthday celebration for me (yes, I admit it!) and someone else. I am really worried about how they will turn out. Can you substitute a small amount of melted butter for the coconut oil? Coconut oil’s really hard at least for me to acquire due to its somewhat high cost. Also, if I use the “larger” (aka the iconic-size) chocolate chips, should I chop the lesser amount up and sprinkle them on top per the directions?
Hi Shelby! Butter should work just fine in here, as will the chopped up chocolate chips on top. Happy birthday!!
Coconut oil has more saturated fat than butter. I’m following the Forks Over Knives Diet. No animal products or oil so I’m making it with the avocado only and I expect it will be just as good.
I hope you liked these with the avocado!
Hi! I recently found out I am sensitive to avocado (Sob)- would some cooked squash or pumpkin be an okay sub? I know the fat content is important so could I just add in a little extra butter (I’m ok with grassfed dairy) Thank you!
Hi Lianna! Try these instead: https://www.ambitiouskitchen.com/2015/03/gluten-free-flourless-black-bean-brownie-muffins/ Enjoy!
If you are sensitive to avocado you may have a latex allergy or be allergic to birch. My daughter has oral allergy syndrome. Heat breaks down the allergy-inducing proteins so she can have the fruits and vegetables she’s allergic to as long as they are cooked. She can’t eat apples but apple pie is fine, etc. If you are seeing an allergist, you may want to check this out.
I made these brownies last night. I was skeptical because of all of the unique ingredients. Well, all I can say is WOW! These are fantastic! They were easy to make and they have that rich dark chocolate taste. I used 3 eggs because I wanted them to have a more cake-like texture. I also used maple syrup instead of the coconut sugar. I brought them into work for a few people to try and they got a “thumbs up” from everyone. I am going to make them again this weekend and this time I will add some unsweetened coconut and almond extract, instead of vanilla, just to vary the recipe a little. I have arthritis, so I no longer eat gluten or dairy because it’s inflammatory. Sugar is also very inflammatory, so having this very low sugar recipe is great. These brownies totally satisfy my need for chocolate. Thank you so much for this recipe.
I’m so happy to hear that, Laura! Such a great treat with sneaky healthy ingredients 🙂 Enjoy!
This has become a favorite in my house. Bonus is that no one knows they contain black beans and avocado – don’t feel too bad making it for them ;]
So happy to hear that! The sneaky healthy ingredients are the best 🙂
These are super delicious, especially when you know how good they are for you! I was tempted to leave out the chocolate chips, but glad I didn’t. They really add to the brownies!
Aren’t they awesome? Agreed – gotta have some bites of gooey chocolate, too 🙂 Glad you enjoyed!
This is one of my favourite recipes. You seriously cannot taste the avocado and black beans at all. My only drawback is how much sugar is in the recipe, however in saying that – it is a brownie recipe & is meant to be sweet. Next time I will freeze a portion of the brownies because I just ate them too fast!
Made these yesterday, except I made them into mini cupcakes to make the mixture go further – I got 28 little ‘bites’ out of them, and my friends LOVED them! Perfect wee bite size treats to kill a chocolate craving without killing my calorie budget!
I didn’t mix the chocolate chips through, instead I melted them down to drip on top and topped each with half a pistachio nut 🙂
Those sound amazing! I’m glad you and your friends enjoyed 🙂
I was incredibly skeptical but WOW! Delicious and very filling!
So happy you liked these! The ingredients can look a little “odd,” but they make for amazing brownies!
Hi Monique! Do you know if I can replace the coconut sugar with monk fruit sugar? I don’t have any coconut or brown sugar on hand. Thanks!
Hi Jennifer! I haven’t baked with monk fruit sugar so I’m not 100% sure how the sweetness will turn out. You can also use 1/2 cup of maple syrup!
These were the best brownies I’ve had in a long time! Very moist & fudgy. You can’t gell they have black beans or avocado in them at all. My husband ate 3 of them before I told them what was in them! He likes to put them in the refrigerator. The recipe was also very east – the hardest part was getting the batter out of the blender.
I’m so happy you both enjoyed these! They’re delicious straight from the fridge 🙂 And yes, they just need a scrape with a spatula.
I made these a little more Weight Watchers friendly with granulated Splenda. Turned out great. They remind me of Little Debbies with their denseness, but without the chemical taste. They seem even better after sitting a day or two.
Great! Yes – these have much more natural ingredients. They’re even delicious straight from the fridge! Glad you enjoyed!
How can these be Vegas if there are eggs in them?
I have an option for using flax eggs – super easy!
Have tried other recipes of yours with success. Unfortunately this is not a favorite. Very bitter and overdone top layer at 25 min. Had added a little almond milk when blending to get smooth.Put in fridge hoping it would be better but it was not.
Sorry to hear that Cali! I’ve made these many times with success. I would double check your ingredients + consistency with the video!
Roughly how much avocado? 1/2C? 1/4? My avo is tiny.
I’d say roughly 1/2 cup!
So good! Thanks for this recipe! Where were all these healthy recipes when I was raising my boys 20 years ago?!❤️
You bet! You’ll have to bake some for them now 🙂
Pleasantly surprised by how good these brownies are ! I will for sure make it again.
They’re sneaky healthy and delicious! Glad you enjoyed 🙂
First of all, I never leave comments for recipes. But these were SO GOOD I had to. I’ve been wanting to try black bean brownies forever, but wasn’t convinced. I finally tried these and OMG. My husband even loved them (he even said “I don’t understand why normal brownies aren’t just made this way!”)
Highly recommend. My only question is how to store them/ and how long they stay good?
That’s amazing!! So glad you both love these. I like to store these in the fridge for about 3-4 days – they’re delicious chilled or you can serve them at room temp!
I, personally, don’t like breads, cakes or brownies but my husband and kids love them and my husband has a gluten intolerance so finding recipes to replace his favorite flour based foods is difficult to say the least. I found this recipe and made two batches of these brownies last night. (Used organic maple syrup as the sweetener) One regular batch and one with peanutbutter. Both are AMAZING!!! My husband and kids love them! I even like them!! I will say that the cooling period is crucial to the flavor and they taste even better cold out of the fride. I will be making these again and again, Thanks!!!
Yesss love to hear that! I’m definitely trying these with peanut butter next 🙂
So I just made these and am in love! However…I didn’t have black beans on hand, so I used organic chickpeas, which offers better nutrition than black beans anyways… And I was surprised at how yum they turned out! Thanks for sharing!!
I followed the recipe and I’m feeling badly as if maybe I’m missing something. First bites taste exactly like black beans and avocado… I waited for them to cool a little more and they still taste very savory. I have checked the recipe over and I followed it. I used coconut sugar. Maybe this blend just isn’t for me.
Sorry to hear that, Alana! I’ve found that these are perfectly sweet with the chocolate chips, cocoa powder + coconut sugar. Try these brownies next 🙂
I’m sorry, but I think you should take the word “healthy” out of the title. Sugar is sugar; it doesn’t matter if it came from a coconut of from a sugar cane plant. I made these (with the extra egg) and they are delicious. But I checked my blood sugar after eating them and it was quite high, over my sugar targets. :'( These brownies are by no means healthy just because they involve half an avocado and don’t have flour. Black beans are still mostly carbohydrates and the amount of sugar in the recipe is quite high.
Whenever I make desserts I try to use as many natural, real ingredients as possible, but they are still a “treat!” These have much better ingredients than most traditional brownies, which is why I consider them a healthy treat. Everyone’s definition is different!
Hello! I am from Spain and yesterday I tried this recipe, but when I was blending the black beans it was just so difficult! And now i have just watched the video another time and I have two questions:
1. The black beans are cooked? Or only soaked in water overnight and then drained? This is what I did and it was very difficult to blend as I said before.
2. Because in Spain we work with kilograms or instead cups I converted the 15 oz and it has given me 425 gr of black beans but watching the video I think that you use less amount of black beans. Is it possible that I did it wrong?
Instead of these little problems the recipe is genius! Absolutely delicious and free of blame.
Thank you!
Hi Beatriz! The black beans I use are from the can, so they’re already cooked and are soft enough to blend. 425 grams sounds correct to be! Sorry you had trouble – I’m glad you enjoyed this one anyway!
These are truly YUMMY! I will make these over & over & over again. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHARING!!
I used dark chocolate chips & added those plus walnuts into the food processor, right at the very end – worked well.
You’re so welcome!! I’m glad you found this yummy recipe 🙂 Love the dark chocolate!
OOPS! forgot to rate it…
Can you give a more definitive measurement than 1/2 a large avocado? Thanks.
It’s about 1/2 cup heaping mashed avocado 🙂
Could I substitute banana for the beans? I’m doing a whole30 and this looks amazing except I can’t have legumes.
Can this be made without the chocolate chips, as I don’t have any at home? Or will it not be sweet enough?
I’d recommend keeping the chocolate chips in to make them super fudgy, but they’ll still be good without them!
Made these a few days ago at my son’s family home. EVERYONE loved them, including my six year old granddaughter (who is quite finicky, I might add)! Making them in a couple days as part of a heart healthy meal for a friend and her husband. So, so good!
Amazing! I’m so happy everyone loved them. The perfect healthy treat!
These are so good! I made mine using Hershey’s Special Dark 100% cacao powder, and they had an amazing dark chocolate flavor! Even my avocado-hating boyfriend loved them. 🙂
Amazing! Glad your boyfriend loved them too 🙂
Mine came out dry! Still tasty! Could it be that I added the nuts? Should I have added more liquid? Thoughts?
Did you overbake?? Next time, you can always try and add in a few tablespoons of milk or a tablespoon more of oil.
WOW what a great recipe! Had a craving for brownies today and stumbled upon your recipe when looking for a healthier version. Can not believe this is made with black beans… After pouring the batter into the pan, I licked the spatula and said out loud to myself “Holy S***” because I couldn’t believe how tasty it was! I made it using the recommended 2 flax eggs and subbing the sugar for maple syrup. I also omitted the chocolate chips entirely (didn’t have any!) but I added 2 tbsp all-natural peanut butter to amp up the “richness” factor. Baked for 25 mins and they are nice and fudgy in the centre. Absolutely fantastic, will 100% make these again!!!
So glad you found this recipe! Love the idea of adding PB 🙂 Enjoy!!
These hit the spot but I added 3rd egg and brownies are just too fudgy for me maybe a 1/2 cup of almond flour to the recipe might have made them better.