In my opinion, the brownie is hands down the most important American contribution to the world of pastries. I typically make sprouted flour brownies for my family, but I have gotten into the routine of making them grain free with whatever sprouted nut butter I have on hand of late.
These grain free brownies are crazy good and I am in full anticipation of a lot of email love floating into my inbox from those of you who try them!Â
Homemade Nut Butter Brownies (grain free)
The key to the amazing taste of these grain free brownies is the quality of the nut butter you select. Our favorite is macadamia nut butter followed by hazelnut butter although you can certainly use any nut butter you want.
For this particular grain free brownies recipe, the best nut butter to choose is one that has been made from soaked/sprouted raw nuts. The reason is because raw nuts are seeds and as such, their hulls contain many enzyme inhibitors that can prevent all that wonderful nutrition from being digested thoroughly.  These inhibitors can also cause digestive distress if many raw nuts are consumed.  For some people, even a few raw nuts cause digestive problems or a rash around the mouth.
Deactivation of these enzyme inhibitors can be accomplished through sprouting and/or soaking the raw nuts in salt water for a few hours and then drying in a warm (not hot) oven or dehydrator. According to Nourishing Traditions Cookbook, soaking and drying of raw nuts mimics the careful and wise practice of the Aztecs, who soaked seeds in salt water and then dried them in the sun before grinding into flour or eating them whole.
While I used to sprout or soak raw nuts myself before making nut butter in the past, there is now an excellent brand of properly prepared nut butters for you to choose from so you don’t have to engage in this time consuming practice if you don’t want to.
This brand is Better Than Roasted (click here for a list of sprouted/soaked nut butters).
The big plus of using sprouted/soaked nut butter in this recipe is that you will find these grain free brownies surprisingly filling. The more digestible and nourishing a food, the less you eat while still feeling satisfied. This is particularly important with a treat such as brownies. You don’t want to be eating half the pan! Â Eating just one or two of these small brownies will be plenty satisfying when a quality nut butter is used.
Grain Free Nut Butter Brownies Recipe
This grain free brownies recipe made with the nut butter of your choice is perfect for those who are gluten free or Paleo. So rich you will likely be full eating just one!
Ingredients
- 1 cup nut butter preferably soaked and/or sprouted
- 6 large eggs
- 1 cup maple syrup
- 1 Tbl vanilla extract
- 1 cup cocoa powder preferably organic
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 cup chocolate chips optional, preferably organic
Instructions
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Blend nut butter of choice, eggs, and maple syrup by pulsing in a food processor (I like this one).
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Add vanilla, cocoa or carob powder, sea salt, baking soda, and optional chocolate extract and pulse a few more times to mix thoroughly.
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Pour batter into a 9x13 glass baking pan (I like this one) and stir in chocolate chips.
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Bake at 350F/177 C for 20-30 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool, cut into squares and serve.
Recipe Notes
Substitute an equal amount of carob powder if you prefer to use instead of cocoa powder. If using carob powder, add 2 tsp chocolate extract to the batter. Also substitute carob chips for the optional chocolate chips.
Enjoy!  You can thank me later 🙂
Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist
Good nutrient dense food IS expensive. Not worth it to buy cheap stuff because it doesn’t nourish you, just makes you feel filled up for a bit.
It’s expensive because we are conditioned by the cheap, GMO treats at the store and supermarket bakeries. I have always bought the best of whatever was available and it always pays dividends by our family eating less as they are more satisfied and well nourished. The food budget always works out to be reasonable and shockingly, less than those I know who cook meals using boxes, packages and cans and less quality food in general.
I have to agree, Kathy, this is an expensive treat. I must say they don’t look very appealing to me.
Can’t wait to try this one. We have been eating no flour Black Bean brownies for quite some time and this look yummy as well. We raise our own black beans. Wish I could nuts!
They look delicious. I was actually going to give the dates one a go this weekend! Can’t wait!
Noorie Waheed, saw this and though of you- no dates in this recipe! I’ve not tried it myself but when I do I’ll be using almond butter 🙂 yummy!!
Oops! To see if anyone else thinks the same or just what they might think on this subject. I do try to incorporate many healthy choices in my life but as far as making these oh so yummy looking treats that look so tempting I have to opt out. Problem is that they all make me crave the unhealthy cheaper versions. Oh well such as life. Gotta be thankful for the quick access I have to my family farms around my part of the country which others don’t from what I read. Thanks for letting me share this bit of frustration over this matter. Love your site HHE.
I think that when you make a commitment to a certain way of eating, you realize that there are going to be some sacrifices…when you give up grains, you realize that your baked goods aren’t going to maintain that wonderful consistency that gluten gives them. You also realized that the alternatives are pricey (we are Paleo, so nothing is cheap). These brownies would be a treat in my house…something we would make, maybe once every couple of weeks…and we would eat small portions as well, maybe with some homemade coconut ice cream…mmmm…anywho…we make our own nut butters from nuts bought in bulk to try to keep costs down, and don’t indulge too often either. 😉 Making your own ingredients from high quality products bought in bulk generally ends up being cheaper than something more convenient in the long run.
Have you tried them with carob (plus some chocolate extract, maybe)? Even with the nuts and eggs, I think my kids would go through the roof with all that cocoa and maple syrup. Sounds yummy, though.
Yes, this is why one small brownie is enough 🙂 Carob might work … haven’t tried it though.
I am finally going to comment about all the fabulous recipes such as this that are floating around these days. As much as I think so many are probably wonderful, I have to wonder if there are very many out there that find them to be just too expensive. The ingredients of many of them make them a very expensive treat. I have tried a few. Some are good and some I don’t care for. What’s really disappointing is to use such expensive ing., and than not care much for it.
Ok, I just wanted to share this to see if anyone
I can’t believe how easy that sounds! Really looking forward to trying these!
Yes, they really do whip up in a hurry. I’ve never found a grain free brownie that competes with the wheat flour versions, but this one definitely does … perhaps even better? You will have to let me know what you think.
These brownies look to-die-for! Do you have any suggestions for making them egg-free? We have an egg allergy in our family. Thanks!
You can try flax or chia seed gel as the egg replacer (1 TBL seeds soaked in 1/3-1/4 cup of filtered water per egg to be replaced) Here’s a written and video how-to on how to make: https://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/video-the-best-baking-substitute-for-eggs/
I don’t think they will turn out as rich using egg replacer as the egg yolks add so much to the recipe. Please let us know how it turns out if you try it!