The Fudgiest Flourless Brownies — No flour, no problem! Chocolate and peanut butter are all you need for super fudgy flourless brownies!
Gluten-Free Chocolate Brownies with Peanut Butter
These are the fudgiest brownies I’ve ever made. That’s what happens when there’s no flour.
And there’s no flour replacers, black beans, avocado, or any ‘interesting’ ingredients. Ahem.
Lately when I see flourless brownie recipes on the web, it’s a safe bet that there’s beans in them. I love beans, but I’ll keep them in my slow-cooker and out of my brownies. Thanks.
The flourless brownies are made with just a few simple ingredients. Chocolate, peanut butter, sugar, eggs. Now we’re talking.
They taste elegant, classy, and fancy, but take just minutes to make and you don’t even need a mixer.
They’re rich, velvety smooth, and not overly sweet. They’re what you crave on certain days when nothing else will do.
The peanut butter flavor is present yet subtle in the brownies themselves. However, I played up the peanut butter aspect by drizzling them with peanut butter. Going hog wild with my squirt bottle was almost as satisfying as the brownies.
The interesting thing about them is that although they’re very fudgy and not at all cakey, they’re not dense or too thick.
They’re perfect for anyone who’s gluten-free since they’re inherently gluten-free.
And they’re perfect for anyone who loves chocolate and peanut butter, which is everyone, right?
Ingredients in Flourless Brownies
To make these gluten-free peanut butter chocolate brownies, you’ll need the following easy-to-find ingredients:
- Unsalted butter
- Semisweet chocolate chips
- Creamy peanut butter
- Brewed coffee
- Eggs
- Granulated sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Cocoa powder
- Instant espresso granules
Can a Different Nut Butter Be Used?
Of course! You may use any nut butter you’d like for this flourless brownie recipe, noting that no-stir or “traditional” nut butters work best.
For more of a true chocolate brownie flavor, try using cashew butter or sunflower seed butter. They’re milder in flavor than peanut butter.
Can the Coffee Be Omitted?
There’s two tablespoons of coffee and 1 teaspoon of instant espresso granules in the batter. Both serve to intensity and round out the chocolate flavor, but don’t make the brownies taste like coffee.
Although you could use water instead of coffee and skip the espresso, I wouldn’t.
How to Make Flourless Brownies
Making these no-flour peanut butter fudge brownies is simple! Here are the basic steps:
- In a large microwave-safe bowl, add the butter and heat for 1 minute on high power to melt.
- Add 2 cups chocolate chips, one heaping 1/2 peanut butter, coffee, and heat for 1 minute on high power to melt.
- Whisk mixture until smooth.
- Add the eggs, sugar, vanilla, and whisk until smooth.
- Add the cocoa powder, espresso granules, and whisk until smooth.
- Turn batter out into a foil-lined 9×9-inch pan.
- Bake until the edges are set, and the top and center have just set and are not jiggly.
- Place pan on a wire rack and allow brownies to cool completely before adding the PB drizzle.
Can This Recipe Be Doubled?
Yes, very easily! Simply double the ingredients and bake in a 9×13-inch pan. The bake time should remain roughly the same.
Can Mix-Ins Be Added?
I imagine so! Just be sure to use gluten-free mix-ins if you need to keep this chocolate brownie recipe gluten-free.
Tips for Making Brownies Without Flour
“Traditional” no-stir peanut butter from a brand like Jif or Skippy will work best in this recipe. Homemade peanut butter will also work, but the brownies might be slightly oilier.
A few readers have asked whether the eggs / butter / sugar can be substituted, and for all of those ingredients, my answer is maybe. I don’t typically make low-carb or dairy-free desserts, so I really can’t speak to the best substitutes.
I recommend serving the flourless brownies chilled because anything this dark and fudgy tastes better chilled.
Pin This Recipe
Enjoy AverieCooks.com Without Ads! 🆕
Go Ad Free
The Fudgiest Flourless Brownies
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, 1 stick
- 2 cups one 12-ounce bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
- heaping 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
- 2 tablespoons brewed coffee, leftover from the morning is fine; does not make brownies taste like coffee, water may be substituted
- 4 large eggs
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup unsweetened natural cocoa
- 1 teaspoon instant espresso granules, optional but recommend (does not make brownies taste like coffee)
PB Drizzle
- ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- ⅓ cup creamy peanut butter
Instructions
Make the brownies:
- Preheat oven to 300F. Line a 9×9-inch pan with foil, spray with cooking spray; set aside.
- In a large microwave-safe bowl, add the butter and heat for 1 minute on high power to melt. It’s okay if it hasn’t melted after 1 minute.
- Add 2 cups chocolate chips,a heaping 1/2 cup peanut butter, coffee (doesn’t make the brownies taste like coffee and serves to enhance and bring out the chocolate flavor), and heat for 1 minute on high power to melt.
- Whisk mixture until smooth. If necessary, heat in 10-second bursts until mixture can be whisked smooth.
- Add the eggs, sugar, vanilla, and whisk until smooth.
- Add the cocoa, optional espresso granules, and whisk until smooth.
- Turn batter out into prepared pan, smoothing the top lightly with a spatula.
- Bake for about 35 minutes or until edges are set, and the top and center have just set and are not jiggly. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out with a few moist crumbs, but no batter.
- Place pan on a wire rack and allow brownies to cool completely, at least 2 hours, before adding the drizzles. If you add the drizzles to warm brownies, they’ll melt together and while it tastes the same, cosmetically it isn’t what’s shown.
Make the drizzle:
- After brownies have cooled, add 1/2 cup chocolate chips to a small microwave-safe bowl and heat on high power to melt, about 1 minute. Stir until smooth and drizzle over brownies using a spoon or squirt bottle; set aside.
- Add 1/3 cup peanut butter to a small microwave-safe bowl and heat on high power to melt, about 45 seconds. Drizzle over brownies using a spoon or squirt bottle.
- I recommend chilling the brownies before serving because they’re rich, bold, and taste better when chilled. Cover pan with a sheet of foil to prevent fridge smells and chill brownies for at least 4 hours, or overnight, before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
©averiecooks.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited.
More Flourless Dessert Recipes:
Flourless Chocolate Cake — A classy, elegant cake that’s ultra rich, fudgy, and tastes better than what you’d get in a fancy restaurant and it’s so EASY!! Your friends and family will think you slaved over it and be so impressed!!
The Best Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies — Soft, chewy and they’ll be your new fave PB cookies!! One bowl, no mixer, no butter, naturally gluten-free!
Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies — These peanut butter chocolate chip cookies are hands down the best peanut butter cookies I’ve ever made. Know that I don’t say that lightly!
Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cake — The cake is soft, extremely moist, dense but not heavy, and has bold peanut butter flavor that’s complemented by chocolate.
Peanut Butter Toffee Bit Cookies — You need just 6 simple ingredients to make these toffee cookies! The peanut butter cookie dough is accidentally gluten-free and packed with toffee bits!
These look seriously divine! I bet they taste just as good as they look too!
THANK YOU for keeping the “interesting ingredients” (haha, love it) out of these delicious brownies. You. are. awesome.
Yeah I know reading your share of blogs you’ve seen all those ‘interesting’ ingredients that I’ve seen :)
Hey Averie, how much would i have to tweak the amount of butter by if i wanted to ommit the peanut butter? (My poor poor brother is allergic)
About 1/3 cup I’d say but I haven’t tested it and butter is thin and runny, PB is thick and dense; so it may or may not work out without it. If you are looking for a tried and true brownie recipe that you know will work, use one of them in the ‘related recipes’ that way there are no surprises!
Ohmygosh. Somehow, my guy hates BOTH chocolate and peanut butter. No joke. If there’s peanut butter in anything I bake, he refuses to take a bite (although he’s okay with whole peanuts — go figure), and he’ll only take one or two bites of anything with chocolate. Only if he’s “in the mood.” In other words, your brownies would be so perfect and so dangerous for me to make at the same time. I’d devour them all — no self-control with either of those two around!!
Somehow, my guy hates BOTH chocolate and peanut butter. <--- my initial reaction was, leave him! KIDDING of course :) But seriously how is that even possible?!? Eek, that is 90% of my blog recipes, using either choc or PB!
It was touch-and-go for a bit in the beginning of our relationship! ;) But after I got over the initial frustration of him refusing to taste test for me, I realized it was actually a blessing. I’ll never wake up to find an empty PB jar or my favorite dark chocolate bar wrappers from TJ’s in the trash! And with how much I love both, that’s really a blessing!
Why would anyone skip the coffee?!?
I would like a plate of the brownies, but I would settle for that squirt bottle of peanut butter.
And you can have these! No gluten! And they’re not a super sweet dessert, either. If you ever want authentic really good brownies, I think you’d love these. And the Pb squirt bottle, too! lol
I was just thinking about a flourless brownie the other day. Love that there’s no crazy ingredients, just all pantry staples. Fudgy brownies are my favorite so I know I’d love these!
I’m so with you Averie! No beans in my brownies, thanks :) Now peanut butter and chocolate?! That’s what I’m talking about! Love these so much!!!
wow these look amazing and that too flourless!
Do you know how much I wish I wasn’t sitting at panera right now? I want to eat a pan of these RIGHT NOW. But I have to wait. OMG.
You’re at Panera? Well they have plenty of diet-busters and things that you probably shouldn’t order, but want to anyway. Go order something :) LOL
“Chocolate is good, but if I can work peanut butter into something, even better. ” This is such a true statement!
I made some flourless, dairy free brownies over the weekend using almond butter. They were to die for! But OMGEEE, I really gotta try these. Move over, almond butter. Here comes peanut butter.
Your brownies sound excellent! Normally I don’t bake with almond butter very much (PB trumps it for me) but I can see where AB with brownies could add so much richness and a subtle but really great flavor!
Love the double drizzle of chocolate and PB! I have a co-worker who would love these because they’re gluten free (and I bet she would love me for making them). I’ve never made a flourless cake either–in fact, I didn’t realize how many eggs and how much butter was involved (wow). These look waaay easier–and so good with PB in the batter too!
Yeah flourless cakes usually rely on a carton of eggs, or nearly :) Would be great to make when you come into all those local eggs again! One of those classic French-ish type desserts where no cholesterol or fat grams are spared between the eggs and butter!
These look stupid good! Totally pinning.
Thoughts on a caramel/sea salt topping instead of peanut butter?
I think it would be great. I just happen to have a rash of salted caramel recipes coming up and I knew I couldn’t do (another) one here, but yes, go for it!
I love recipes that are naturally gluten-free! Peanut butter and chocolate just make everything better. Definitely pinned this recipe for later!
Thanks for pinning! :)
These look like fudge! So dense and chewy – the best way to have brownies! I love that you create a recipe that doesn’t use flour. Pinned!
Thanks for pinning, Chelsea! :)
Whoa these look so fudgey! And brownies ALWAYS taste better chilled :-)
Agreed!
Averie, these are beautiful! I am so glad you didn’t include beans or any other filler. My husband is a gluten-free eater and he hates it when people try to mask veggies in dessert. This recipe is just pure goodness! So fudgy and as always, the peanut butter is a fabulous addition. Pinned!
Thanks for pinning & I totally agree with your husband. No veggies and even some of the flour subs are marginal at best. In a recipe like this, you can get away without using flour so why not!