Home » Recipes » Desserts » » Healthy Brownies Recipe
By Katie Moseman 7 Comments
4K Shares
Print Recipe Jump to Recipe
These healthy brownies use healthier fats and wholesome whole wheat flour, while still delivering the delicious taste and texture of a traditional brownie.
Delicious yet good for you!
Healthy Brownies
When I startedwriting a recipe for healthy brownies, I decided to take a somewhat conservative approach. I wanted the brownie to taste as close as possible to a traditional brownie, but withadded health benefits.This required a couple of changes to the standard brownie recipe:
- Changing the fats to a more healthy kind by exchanging butter for olive oil.
- Using whole wheat flour instead of standard flour.
Other recipes for healthy brownies that I’ve looked at seem to have many different ideas of what constitutes a healthy brownie. For some, it’s whole wheat flour. Others like to add mashed up fruits and vegetables, such as avocado, applesauce, or bananas. Some attempt to completely eliminate sugar or butter. And then there are recipes for healthy brownies that are written to accommodate sensitivities such as gluten or lactose.
In terms of flavor and texture, other healthy brownie recipes claim to measure up to a traditional brownie, but in many cases that just isn’t the truth. Fruits and vegetables can add different flavor notes that aren’t in your standard brownie, and removing too much fat or sugar changes the texture of the brownies completely. So, I’ve done my best to deliver the brownie flavor and texture that you expect, while giving you a little more peace of mind about its health impact.
And how do these healthy brownies taste? Other than being a littlechewier than the average brownie (thanks to the oil and to the whole wheat flour, both ofwhich increase chewiness), you’d hardly know the difference! Ten people taste tested these, and the most common comment was, “If you hadn’t told me, I’d never have known they were healthy!”
If you’re looking for more healthy brownies, you should also try this recipe for Applesauce Brownies. They’re super soft and work great as a quick snack!
(And if you’d like a traditional brownie, I suggest you try this Easy Brownie Recipe or this Chocolate Brownie Recipe. For the ultimate in brownie indulgence, try my Ultimate Deep Dish Brownies!)
5 from 1 vote
Healthy Brownies
These healthy brownies are delicious and just a little chewy! White whole wheat and olive oil give them a nutrition boost.
CourseDessert
CuisineAmerican
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 9
Calories 182 kcal
Author Katie Moseman
Ingredients
- 1/4cupolive oilyou may substitute another vegetable oil
- 2TBwater
- 1tspvanilla extract
- 1cupgranulated sugar
- 1/4tspsalt
- 3/4cupcocoa powderplus 2 TB unsweetened
- 1/4cupwhole wheat flour
- 2large eggs
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 325 and prepare an 8 inch square pan by lining it with parchment or aluminum foil.
In a large bowl, combine the oil, water, and vanilla extract. Beat together with a whisk or fork until combined.
Add the sugar, salt, cocoa powder, flour, and eggs. Stir until just combined.
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth out evenly. Bake for approximately 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out with moist crumbs but no wet batter on it. Set pan on a rack to cool.
Nutrition Facts
Healthy Brownies
Amount Per Serving
Calories 182Calories from Fat 63
% Daily Value*
Fat 7g11%
Saturated Fat 1g6%
Cholesterol 36mg12%
Sodium 80mg3%
Potassium 134mg4%
Carbohydrates 28g9%
Fiber 2g8%
Sugar 22g24%
Protein 3g6%
Vitamin A 55IU1%
Calcium 16mg2%
Iron 1.3mg7%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
4K Shares
Previous Post: « Think You Know How to Backlink? Think Again.
Next Post: How to Make Brownies from Your Brownie Mix Gift »
Reader Interactions
Subscribe
Comments
Love the idea of whole wheat flour in a brownie. Nice and nutty – a little virtuous, but not TOO virtuous 🙂
Reply
Katie
It turned out well, even though I’ve always been suspicious of “healthy” brownies! In fact, in my original draft for this post, I wrote that I didn’t want to make a brownie that tasted like rot. 🙂 It didn’t, and people really liked it. Thanks for stopping by!
Reply
I am a little confused with the quantity of flour as there seems to be a mistake…. 1/4 plus 2TB cup whole wheat flour…..i am presuming that it should read 1/4 cup plus 3TB whole wheat flour…..guess i will find out when i make these in a few minutes.
Reply
Katie
Hi Debbie! I’m so sorry for the typo. It is indeed 1/4 cup plus 2 TB of whole wheat flour. I’ve fixed it just now. If you like healthy recipes, you should check out my Applesauce Brownies, too. They have only 2 tablespoons of butter- the rest is replaced with applesauce.
If you get a chance, do let me know how they turned out. I’m always interested in feedback!
Reply
Milena
OMG I love you for this recipe. Such good brownies! I’ve been looking for a healthy (and cheap) brownie recipe and this is it! Certainly going to my book <3
Reply
RivBaker
I’ve made these a bunch of times and it is always a hit and so very popular.
A couple notes:
I have found it needs about 30 minutes of baking. As well it’s a good habit to sift the cocoa powder to remove clumps. And the easiest way for me to make it was by mixing the dry ingredients in a bowl before adding to the wet less mixing time and less clumps to sort through making for a better brownie.Reply
Katie
Great tips! I wrote the recipe with a variation of the “dump and stir” method to keep it simple, but mixing or whisking the dry ingredients together is a favorite technique of mine- one that I’ve used in quite a few recipes. It’s a great way to make this recipe even more perfect. 🙂 Oven times tend to vary by as much as ten minutes depending on calibration, so it’s always best to check for doneness with a toothpick or cake tester.
Reply
