Fudgy Beet Gluten Free Brownies (vegan)
These Fudgy Gluten Free Brownies are not only chocolatey, easy, and delicious, but are loaded with a secret healthy ingredient: beets! Simple to make and a perfect healthy treat to feed your sweet tooth. And they are vegan to boot!
My daughter and I were playing a game the other day. It was called “I’m the Queen and call all the shots.” I’m sure any of you who have spent 5 minutes with an elementary school kid can guess who was the queen and who was the loyal servant. Needless to say, we were having fun and she was on a bit of a power trip.
“Servant Mommy!” my daughter bellowed in her best queen voice (that has a bit of a British twist and mixed with a bit of southern) and getting comfy on her couch throne, “I command you to get me one of those brownies!”
These beet brownies are a serious healthy treat! Delicious, fudgy, naturally sweetened, and made with blended oats, cooked beets, flax, and applesauce. They are naturally gluten free, vegan and done baking in 35 minutes!
I had just made a batch of these in preparing for shooting them and let her try a bite…you know, for quality control.
“Sorry sweetie. Those brownies are off limits until I get the pictures I need,” I responded, breaking character.
The queen was not impressed….with my answer or me stepping out of my role. She shot me her best queen glare and then said “if you don’t let me have another brownie, it is to the dungeon for you!”
So, while I was dazzled that my daughter was loving on these beet-loaded brownies (8 year-olds are the toughest food critics in my experience), I was even more dazzled that she was telling me I was going to be locked in my room. Alone. For not giving her one.
Alone. Yes, I love being a mom. But I also love quiet time alone in my room…with a book. I’ll take that punishment, kid.
Why these Beet Gluten Free Brownies are so good
This is one recipe that I tested. And tested. And tested again. I’ve eaten so many beet brownies in the past week that I don’t want to even talk about it. But it was one recipe that I was determined to get just right and that got my family’s ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ approval.
These gluten free brownies are trickier than most because beets have a very earthy taste that many people balance out with a considerable amount of sugar. Most of the beet brownie recipes I stumbled upon added 1 cup of sugar along with oodles of chocolate chips to mask the earthiness (aka dirt taste) of beets.
But, I found a way to not only make these brownies fudgy (I’m so team fudgy when it comes to gluten free brownies), but egg-free, gluten free and with as little added sugar as I could while still balancing out the beet taste.
Why beets are good for you
Don’t get me wrong. These Beet Gluten Free Brownies are 100% a treat in my book. But a healthy treat that has a lot less sugar than traditional brownie recipes, and has the added bonus of beets in the mix.
Beets are plant rockstars that add so much to your food. By adding beetroot, you also add: (source)
- protein
- fiber
- Folate (vitamin B9) (this is helpful for cell and tissue growth)
- Manganese (an essential trace element)
- Potassium (good for heart health)
- Iron (an essential mineral that is necessary for the transport of oxygen in red blood cells)
- Vitamin C (something all us parents need oodles of in our diets)
Different methods for cooking your beet
Yep, you need to cook your beet. Please don’t skip this step, as it really could impact the yum factor of these brownies and nobody wants that. Cooking your beet brings out the natural sugars in it and cuts the earthy flavor that makes so many people run far and fast from this root veggies.
But if you already have a raw beet in hand, there are lots of different ways to cook a beet. Some methods I have used are…
- Roast (Suggested. I find roasted beets provide for a stronger color)
- Boiling
- Instant Pot
- Steaming
Tips:
- Cook and peel your beet first. I mentioned it above but I am going to say it again. Don’t try to shortcut this part. Cooking beets helps to bring out their natural sweetness, which is kinds of important in a dessert.
- Let those suckers cool completely. I almost pitched this batch of brownies because I thought they hadn’t firmed up. But once I let them cool completely, they were perfection. So, don’t rush them. Be patient. Let them cool. You will be rewarded with yumminess.
- Make sure your oat flour is certified gluten free. If you have a gluten allergy or are making these for someone with an allergy, this is important. Not all oats are gluten free! The legit ones will boast a label on the outside of their packaging for all to see.
- Don’t over bake. Cooking for too long can make the beautiful beet color in these go away. If they still seem soft when you take them out of the oven, remember they are still cooking while they sit on your counter. They will firm up as they cool.
Suggested Adaptations for Fudgy Beet Gluten Free Brownies
- Make them with eggs. If egg-free isn’t important, replace the flax meal and water in this recipe with 2 eggs. Heads up though, that the eggs make these brownies more cakey than fudgy. But if that is your thing, egg away!
- Make them with whole wheat flour. If you are gluten free due to an allergy or intolerance, don’t do this. But if gluten isn’t an issue for you, feel free to switch out the flours.
- Skip the beet and sub with 1/2 cup extra applesauce, butternut squash puree, sweet potato puree or mashed banana.
- Make them as muffins. Bake at the same temperature for 20 minutes and let cool before enjoying.
Other beet recipes that are going to make you love this veggie…
- The BEST Beet Hummus
- Pink Beet Pancakes
- Vegan Beet Waffles
- Homemade Strawberry Beet Fruit Leather
- Super Vitamin C Smoothie
- Strawberry Beet Instant Pot Applesauce
- How To Roast Beets
- 10+ Delicious Beet Recipes
Did you try this veggie-loaded recipe and now you’re hungry for more?
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Fudgy Beet Gluten Free Brownies
Ingredients
- 2 tbsps flax meal
- 5 tbsps water
- 4 ounces beets (about 1/2 cup pureed), cooked and peeled. I suggest roasted beet, as it holds color best in my experience. If the color is not important to you, than use whatever cooking method you like.
- 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce, or you can sup mashed ripe banana
- 1/4 cup maple syrup , or honey
- 1/4 cup almond or coconut milk
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar, or granulated sweetener of choice
- 1/4 cup coconut or avocado oil
- 1 1/2 cups gluten free oat flour, See below for how to make your own, if needed
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 tsps baking powder
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, not Dutch processed or cacao
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup chocolate chips or chocolate chunks, plus extra for sprinkling on top. Optional. Also, make sure they are dairy-free if that is important
Equipment
- Food processor or blender
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉ and line a 9×9 pan with parchment paper. Or grease it well with additional oil. Set aside.
- Mix the flax meal and water together in a small bowl. Set aside for at least 5 minutes to "gel".
- In a food processor or high-speed blend, combine cooked beets, vanilla, maple syrup, milk, applesauce and oil. Blend until the beets are completely pureed and the mixture has an even and smooth consistency.
- Add flax/water mixture and remaining ingredients (except the chocolate chips) into the blender/food processor and blend until mixture is smooth. Scrape down side of bowl and reblend if needed.
- Stir in chocolate chips.
- Pour batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle additional chocolate chips on top if desired.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the top of the brownies are set and dry to the touch.
- Let cool completely before slicing. I like to let mine chill in the fridge for a bit.
- Slice and enjoy. Store leftovers in fridge for 4 days.
Notes
- start by pouring rolled oats in a blender. If you have a smaller blender, do less and work in batches.
- Pulse until a coarse flour texture forms. This will happen pretty quickly, though you may need to take a spoon a stir the flour up between blending to make sure the oat flour has a consistent texture.
- Use in a recipe right away or store in an air-tight container for future recipes!
What about canned beets?!
You could probably do it with that! Hmmmm. I’m going to have to try!
Hi Taesha
I’ve just made this with eggs as muffins and they’re so amazing! 😍 do you think they would work with coconut flour instead of Oat (with flax eggs)? I’d love to make them for my partner but he can only handle coconut flour
I am so glad you enjoyed them, Virag! Okay, so let’s talk coconut flour. It is a VERY unique flour that behaves differently than oat, almond, or whole wheat flours in recipes. I don’t recommend using it in recipes that aren’t designed to be made with coconut flour because it requires such a delicate balance to be successful.
Oh that’s sad. Do you think almond would work?? 🙂
It might! I have much more success swapping out almond meal and oat flour
I’m so impressed that you found a way to make beet brownies that aren’t overloaded with sugar! I’ve had such a sensitive stomach ever since I went vegan, and too much sugar and sweets don’t usually agree with me. Not easy for someone who LOVES deserts! I can’t wait to try this recipe. Thank you for sharing!
If I use a gluten-free flour mix instead of oat flour would it be the same amount? Do you think that would work OK? I just have some on hand that I would like to use up.
It might work. I haven’t tried it with a different flour though so I can’t be sure
What is the reason you can’t use cacao in place of cocoa?
You can but cacao can change the acidity of the brownies and *might* impact the color. Beets are tricky to bake with when it comes to maintain color. If the color is not super important to you, then cacao powder would work fine
About how many beets are 5 ounces as recipe calls for? Making this for school Vday festivies.
The recipe calls for a 4 ounce beet. My 4 ounce beet was a smallish beet (not tiny). If you were to puree it up, it would be about 1/2 cup of puree
How long do you roast the beets for?
I’ve linked some suggested cooking methods above…including roasting that will walk you through it!
Maybe I made these wrong, but they were sticky and all I tasted were beets. They were pretty disgusting. I saw rice flour was a gf recommended switch. Don’t do this- unedible.
Hi Sarah! Sorry to hear they didn’t work out. I haven’t made these with rice flour, so I can’t speak to how they change the texture or flavor. Where did you see that recommendation? I didn’t see it comments or in the Suggested Adaptations part of the post. As for the beet flavor, that surprises me since most people have told me they felt it didn’t taste beety at all compared to most other beet baked goods. However, we all have different taste preferences and I know some people might be more sensitive to beet flavor in a recipe than others. Some people have shared with me that they’ve replaced the beet in this recipe with sweet potato with success!
My kids and I loved this recipe! The texture is so great and the beets add such a depth of flavor (without tasting a ton like beets). Will definitely be making these again!
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Hey! Can you freeze these brownies?
They work great for me in the freezer. I cut them into portions, freeze and take one out to thaw when I’m craving one.
I was skeptical about these Taesha and I made a half recipe but I just finished making them and DAMN! I wish I made a double recipe LOL. I couldn’t stop licking the batter. This is an amazing recipe. Kudos to you!
I am SO GLAD I was able to make a believer out of you!
Like!! Great article post.Really thank you! Really Cool.
Yum!
I am in love with these brownies! The only problem is that my family gobbles them up so quickly that I’m craving them again by the next day 😅. I’m thrilled that my children get excited when I say we are going to bake beetroot brownies.
Quick side note: we live in Germany and finding the right cocoa powder was tricky. Eventually got “Kakaopulver stark entölt“ in the local organic supermarket. The colour isn‘t as pink as in the photos but they still taste 🙌🏻
Lol! That is a good problem to have! The “right” cocoa powder is more to help with the color, because getting that pink color with baked beets is so tricky! Any cocoa powder will work, but the color might not be as strong.
These look amazing! Could you freeze these?
Yes!
These taste delicious but looked like regular brownies (no red hue) I was disappointed because I followed all instructions 😱 oh well, they’re absolutely delicious!
Beets are such a tricky thing to bake with! Sometimes these beets add that lovely color and other times they don’t. It can depend a lot of the acidity of a particular ingredient (like baking powder) which can vary from brand to brand. Or on the beet itself, how “juicy” it was and/or how it was cooked.
Regardless, I am glad they were tasty!!
This recipe is AMAZING! I can’t believe its gluten-free, it has such great rise and moistness. My favorite is no need for a store-bought GF flour mix. Homemade oat flour is awesome and affordable. Thanks for sharing this with the world! I made it with roasted beets and got great red color, made it again with steamed beets and they lost the red color, but none of the taste – still so YUM! The steamed beets speed up the process though – just shredded one medium beet with a hand grater and steamed for 10 minutes in a steamer pot on stovetop. I had some extra I’ll use for salad mixins.
So happy you enjoyed these!
So good!!
So glad you enjoyed the, Sophie!
Can you sub beet powder?
You probably can but I haven’t tried! You’d need to replace the moisture the beets would give the recipes with something (maybe applesauce) and then add the beet powder.
Did you end up trying the beet powder? I’d love to know how it went!
Hi there! Would it work to use honey instead of a granular sweetener? Many thanks.
You can but they will be extra gooey! Which I like but might not be everyone’s jam!
TY!!!
Hello , could I use granulated sugar instead of sweetener ?
You could!
These were great! I added the eggs, and because I didn’t have enough apple sauce I also added some baked sweet potato. The only think I measured was the oat flour so I would also like to say these are pretty foolproof. I also don’t like chocolate chips so I made a ganache and poured that on top. My husband thought I was crazy when he saw all of those ingredients go into the vitamix but has already eaten a third! Thanks for testing this recipe out so many times for us!
I LOVE this! I am so glad it was a success and, oh my gosh, I need to try these with ganache now!
Wow! This is the bomb. I have a 1.5 year old and am so particular on what he gets to eat. Avoiding alot of processed or high in sugar foods. I did use 2 eggs instead of flax meal, used spelt flour in replace of oat flour and the sugar I did the recommended 1/4 c pure maple syrup (my family makes maple syrup in WNY) and used only 2 tbsp of granulated maple sugar instead of 1/4 coconut sugar. I used donut pans and it made 18 donuts! and only needed to bake for 12 mins. Amazing results and sooooo yummmy. thank you.
Oh I love all those swaps, Kate! And homemade maple syrup in these must have tasted magical!
These were quite simple to make and are SO GOOD. Mine didn’t then our pink? I used canned beets perhaps that’s why. I also only had about 1/4 c of cacao powder and it still worked! They look like regular brownies, but are fudgy and delicious!
Beets are funny to bake with! They sometimes hold their color and other times don’t. I’m still trying work on understanding the science of that. But! I have found that using roasted beets to be the best way to get a lovely pink color in my beet-loaded recipes. It holds onto the juices a bit better than other cooking methods. Canned beets still make these brownies veggie-loaded….just not as colorful.
Loved these! I dislike beets, but they imparted a beautiful color without dominating the finished product. I subbed cacao powder for the cocoa, a GF flour blend for the oat flour, and brown rice syrup for the maple syrup and am pleased with the results.
So glad you enjoyed them, A! Great swaps that I’m sure other readers will find helpful. Thanks for sharing!
I usually never write comments on recipe but i have to admit that thoses brownies are the best i ever had.
This recipe is perfect for all occasion, thanks for the share !
I am so glad you enjoyed them, Tanya! Thanks for sharing!
Can I use beet root powder?
I haven’t tried but I am sure you can. I’d suggest replacing the beets with about 1/3 cup applesauce to make sure that the wet:dry ingredients are balanced.