Indulgent Chocolate Brownies (Gluten & Dairy-free)

While brownies aren't the first baked good celiacs crave due to gluten-free brownies being in nearly every cafe, coffeeshop, and supermarket these days. When the odd brownie craving strikes it's best to stay away from those mass produced brownies. Instead treat yourself to some very chocolatey and very indulgent homemade brownies. I promise you this recipe will bring back the joy in chocolate brownies and become a recipe you love.

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Ingredients you'll need

As this recipe calls for little ingredients, it's best to use the best quality ingredients you can find. Plus, remember to check the labels on mass produced products such a dark chocolate or cocoa powder. As gluten can sneak into this products through either cross contamination or as bulking agents.

• Dark chocolate - I find that either 60% or 70% dark chocolate is best for this brownie recipes. For those who want a sweeter more child friendly brownie go with 60% for a more grown up and richer flavour I'd recommend the 70% dark chocolate.

• Dairy-free unsalted butter - A vegan block butter is preferred in this recipe to give the chocolate brownies there dense fudge like texture. If you're looking for a brand suggestion I bake with either Stork Block butter or Naturli Vegan block, the latter is my preferred due to being less processed.

• Brown sugar - Brown sugar adds an additional depth of flavour due to it's rich molasses content which I feel compliments dark chocolate. White caster sugar can be used instead but will often lead to a sweeter chocolate brownie.

• Egg - Any medium UK or large US egg will work in this recipe.

• Vanilla extract - Stay away from vanilla flavourings or essence. You will want to use a good quality vanilla extra in this recipe. Either store bought or homemade.

• Gluten-free plain flour - I tend to only ever cook with a gluten-free plain flour blend of ice flour, potato starch, tapioca starch, maize flour and buckwheat flour. Doves Farm FREEE foods is great if you're based in the UK.

• Cocoa powder - I only ever cook with natural cocoa powder. You could experiment with using Dutch-processed cocoa powder. However, the overall finished brownies taste slightly different from this recipe.

• Almond flour - Almond flour is one of those secret (not so secret) ingredients that can bring a ton of moisture into a gluten-free baked product. It's quite expensive to buy and if you can afford it you can easily replace at 1:1 ratio with plain flour. But so little is used in each recipe and the enhanced texture it provides makes it worth the purchase.

• Salt - Salt will help to enhance the flavour in baked good and you shouldn't shy away from it. Alternatively, you can sprinkle crush sea salt onto of the brownie before it bakes for a salty twist.

Frequently Asked Questions

If you have a question you want to ask that isn't in the frequently asked questions section, please send me your question or drop a comment at the bottom of the recipe. I try to answer every question, ensuring you create perfect recipes every time.

Can I use milk chocolate instead of dark chocolate in this brownie recipe?

Milk chocolate will have a higher sugar content than dark chocolate meaning that the ratio of sugars will be higher in the finished product. This could lead to a too sweet brownie that could be unpleasant to eat. I'd recommend sticking with dark chocolate or using a 60% dark chocolate. If you want to add milk to the brown, I'd suggest using an unsalted dairy butter.

Can I add dairy into this recipe?

If you're not on a dairy-free diet and would like to add a little bit of dairy goodness into the finished result. Then recommend swapping out the vegan block butter for a high quality unsalted block butter. It will add a delicious richness to the finished brownie.

What is a double boiler?

A double boiler is a method of melting chocolate than involves heating up water in a saucepan to boiling. Then lowering the temperature to a simmer before placing a heat proof boil onto the saucepan without allowing the base of bowl to touch the water. You can then place you chocolate in the bowl heating it up gentle providing an more control method of melting chocolate than a microwave or melting straight in a pan.

Can I melt the chocolate in the microwave?

Using a double boiler is a lot more forgiving and easier to control the chocolate temprature than melting in the microwave. It will take a little longer to melt the chocolate but if you over melt it, it's easier to damage control.

My melted chocolate has gone hard and oily what do I do?

A classic problem that every cook will experience at some point is over melting the chocolate, causing it to separate into an oil and solid mixture. I recommend taking immediately of the heat to prevent from completely burning. Then add a teaspoon of water into the mixture at a time while stirring quickly. The increased water should help to rebind the ingredients back together.

Can I make this ever indulgent chocolate brownie recipe gluten-free?

All my recipes are 100% gluten-free so no need to worry about making adjustments to suit gluten-free cooking.

Is this ever indulgent chocolate brownie recipe dairy-free?

The majority of my baked goods recipes are dairy-free unless stated otherwise.

Can I make this ever indulgent chocolate brownie recipe nut-free?

You can swap out the almond flour for 25g of gluten-free plain white flour to make this recipe nut-free.

Can I make this ever indulgent chocolate brownie recipe vegan?

This chocolate brownie recipe isn't vegan due to using a lot of eggs as a binding ingredient. While vegan egg replacements are available in most grocery stores suggesting to substitute the egg at a 1:1 ratio. I haven't tried this method myself so can't advise if it will work. If you decide to proceed with making them vegan. I recommend doing so with caution and I would love to hear about your results. So, please share in the comments below.

How do I store these ever indulgent chocolate brownies?

To keep them fresh, I recommend storing these brownies in an air-tight container. They will last for between three to five days but always taste best on the day of baking.

Can I freeze these ever indulgent chocolate brownies?

You can freeze the baked brownie for up to a month. Defrost them overnight before eating. Or alternatively, place in the microwave for a few minutes to defrost throughly. Checking often to not over heat the brownie.

Recipe

Here's my recipe for these very indulgent and rich chocolate gluten and dairy-free chocolate brownies.

Serving: Approximately 16 brownie squares

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 24 minutes

Ingredients

• 180g dark chocolate

• 200g vegan block butter

• 3 eggs

• 175g brown sugar

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 75g plain white gluten-free flour

• 30g cocoa powder

• 25g almond flour

• 1/4 tsp salt
  

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180ºc (fan) and grease a pan before adding grease proof paper.

2. Create a double boiler by placing a heat proof bowl over a pan of simmering hot water. Make sure that the bowl does not touch the water.

3. Melt butter and chocolate in the double boiler until smooth and glossy. Stir often.

4. Add the egg, vanilla extract and sugar to the melted chocolate and butter mixture.

5. In a separate bowl sieve together the gluten-free plain flour, cocoa powder, almond flour and salt.

6. Make a well before pouring in the melted chocolate mixture and whisk until combined. Make sure not to over whisk.

7. Pour the batter into you square baking pan.

8. Then put in the oven lower the temperature to 160ºc (fan) and bake for 20-24 minutes, until a toothpick comes out without any batter.

9. Allow to cool on a wire rack before serving.

Recipe redeveloped: 09th March 2025

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