If there’s going to be one thing that my husband and I agree wholeheartedly on, it’s chocolate desserts. He’s 100% a chocolate or die kind of guy, craving the kind of desserts that are chocolate on chocolate (like these sweet cookies), while I’ll gladly take any chocolate dessert, but also love a fruity dessert thrown in there occasionally too. Really, I’ve been testing these vegan deep dish brownies to celebrate two years of being married and they came at just the right time. I usually tend to get the urge to make some sort of complicated dessert for celebrations, but scooping the perfect vegan brownie batter into little ramekins, baking, and topping with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream was the right way to celebrate our wedding anniversary this year.
I’ve been on the hunt to testing for my favorite vegan brownie recipe the last few months. Between trying out a few recipes of my own, testing out a few of the top-rated vegan brownie recipes on All Recipes, and trying Dana’s version relentlessly, all on the quest for the perfect vegan brownie. While I haven’t quite found my perfect pan of vegan brownies just yet, I used my grandma’s brownie recipe as a base for these and found it to work perfectly. The trusty flax egg was used for the binder in these vegan brownies, disguising the ground flax seed under a sweet cocoa brownie batter and a healthy dose of semi-sweet chocolate chips. For the liquid component, I would usually use almond or cashew milk but opted for water this time, which resulted in a lighter, better deep dish brownie. I’ve always kind of doubted my late grandma’s brownie recipe, especially since there appear to be so few ingredients for a dessert of its kind. But the brownies always turn out each and every time, doubting aside. Also, I know this sounds so very Ina of me, but be sure to use the good cocoa powder, as it really shines in this vegan deep dish brownie recipe. It will make all the difference!
If you don’t have ramekins, you can use a muffin tin to make a few more vegan deep dish brownies or try baking it in a loaf pan (I haven’t tested this one out yet). But really, if you don’t have a set of ramekins now, you should put them on your baking Christmas wish list, because I use my ALL the time. Also, I have a fun Christmas twist on a vegan creme brulee recipe coming next month, so you are going to want a set of ramekins to make that recipe before the holiday season hits. As one last note, do not be alarmed if you vegan deep dish brownies come out of the oven looking perfect and end up sinking a bit in the middle. The beauty of these brownies is that they are cooked and crispy on the edges, with a perfectly gooey center that is perfect for scooping vegan vanilla ice cream into. If you want just the right amount of sink, but not too much, be sure to not fill your ramekins all the way to the top. This might mean you need to bake a few rounds of vegan deep dish brownies, but it’s totally worth it in the end.
Vegan Deep Dish Brownies
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Dessert
Description
Vegan Deep Dish Brownies are a sweet, chocolate filled treat for a special occasion or easy enough for a weeknight treat!
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 6 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
- 2/3 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 7 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 4 ramekins or oven proof dishes and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the sugar, ground flaxseed, water, vanilla, and coconut oil. Mix on low to medium to a hand mixer, until smooth.
- Add the flour, baking powder, cooca powder, and salt. Mix on low until combined and no flour streaks remain. Add the chocolate chips and mix on low just until chocolate chips are mixed into the batter.
- Divide the batter evenly between the 4 ramekins, making sure to not fill them all the way to the top.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the tops are done and look crackly. Allow the brownies to cool slightly before serving.
Sara @ Cake Over Steak says
Robert is gone part of this week so I’m totally gonna pick up some ice cream and try this recipe out as a little treat for myself while being home alone. I love the idea of doing them in ramekins!!! I only have 2 or 3 ramekins of that size so I’ll probably try the loaf pan situation and report back. Love this!
Heart of a Baker says
Please do! Enjoy girl! xo
Traci | Vanilla And Bean says
Don’t you just love it when a tried and true works again with just a few tweaks? This is absolutely delicious, Abby! Your gandma knows where it’s at! The more I bake with coconut oil, the more I find water to be the magic ingredient. If you think about it, from a fat standpoint, butter has water in it. Coconut oil does not. So adding a bit of water when using coconut oil is the sticking point! Hooray for perfect deep dish brownies! 😀
Heart of a Baker says
YES! You are so right and so brilliant! The more I think about it, more oil isn’t always the key, but water is just perfect sometimes 🙂 xoxo