Vegan Protein Brownies
These 5-ingredient vegan protein brownies make the perfect sweet treat to satisfy any chocolate craving and at just 90 calories each, they’re easy to fit into any nutrition plan.
Features
- amazing decadent fudge-like texture
- quick and easy to make with just 5 ingredients
- just 90 calories each!
- vegan, nut-free and gluten-free
- can be made sugar-free
What You’ll Need
A complete list of ingredients with amounts and full instructions is located in the printable recipe card below. This section covers ingredient and substitution considerations.
- Protein Powder: Use a chocolate or vanilla pea protein-based vegan protein powder such as Vega Performance Protein, Bob’s Red Mill, Orgain or NuZest. Most vegan protein powders are made from pea protein, so just check the ingredients if you’re not sure.
- Applesauce: Sweetened or unsweetened applesauce works. I used unsweetened.
- Cocoa Powder: Any cocoa powder or raw cacao powder works.
- Banana: Ripe or slightly overripe banana works best. The riper they are, the sweeter the brownies will be.
- Chocolate Chips: If you want the recipe to be vegan, use dairy-free chocolate chips such as Enjoy Life or Camino. If not, any chocolate chips work.
Step-by-Step Instructions
You can mix up the batter in a bowl or use a food processor. Instructions below show making it in a bowl. To use a food processor, add everything but the chocolate chips and blend into a batter, then stir in the chocolate chips.
Step 1. Place the banana in a bowl and mash into a smooth paste using a fork or immersion blender. Get is a smooth as you can so there are no large chunks remaining.
Step 2. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix into a thick batter.
Quick Tip: It will seem dry and powdery at first but will turn into a wet batter after 1-2 minutes of mixing.
Step 3. Either line a standard-size loaf pan with parchment paper or give it a light coating of non-stick cooking spray. Using parchment paper is handy so you can easily lift the brownies out once they’re baked.
Quick Tip: Sprinkle with 2-3 tablespoons additional chocolate chips for an extra treat (optional but recommended!).
Step 4. Bake for 20 minutes then let cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes.
Once they’re baked, either cut them in into 8 pieces in pan and lift out one by one or use the parchment paper to lift the whole pan out, slice and enjoy!
Notes
- These are not like traditional brownies. We can only ask so much from 5 ingredients with no flour, added sugar, oil or fat. The brownies have almost a mousse-like texture but once they chill in the rich they’re wonderfully rich, dense and decadent.
- These have somewhat of a banana flavour to them so if you don’t like banana, you may not like them. It’s not super overpowering but it is noticeable.
- These are not super sweet but it will depend on the protein powder you use. The sweeter the protein, the sweeter the brownies will be.
- Crushed walnuts make an amazing addition if you want to add something!
- Once they come out of the oven, try spreading the melted chocolate chips to create a thin layer of chocolate glaze.
- To make these sugar-free, use sugar-free chocolate chips such as Lily’s.
FAQs
I’ve never tested these with whey protein so I can’t guarantee how they’ll turn out as whey has different characteristics than plant-based proteins.
That being said, a number of readers have successfully made them with whey protein and you can find their feedback in the comment section below.
Did you try this recipe? I’d love to hear about it! Click here to leave a review.
Print
Vegan Flourless Protein Brownies
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 8
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
These easy vegan protein brownies are under 100 calories and made with just 5 simple ingredients for a healthy dessert you can enjoy any time.
Ingredients
- 2 medium ripe bananas (240 g)
- 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce (60 g)
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder (60 g)
- 1 scoop chocolate or vanilla vegan protein powder (30 g)
- 3 tbsp dairy-free chocolate chips (45 g, plus 2–3 tbsp for sprinkling on top, if desired)
- 1/4 tsp sea salt, optional
- 1 tsp vanilla, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Prepare a standard-sized loaf pan with a light coating of non-stick cooking spray or line with a strip of parchment paper so it sticks out over the edges. This will make it easy to lift the brownies out once they’re baked.
- To use a food processor to prepare the batter, add everything but the chocolate chips and blend into a thick batter then stir in the chocolate chips.
- To prepare the batter in a bowl, mash the banana in a smooth paste using a fork or immersion blender. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix into a thick batter. It will seem dry and powdery when you start mixing and may take 1-2 minutes of stirring until you have a wet batter.
- Spread the mixture into the prepared loaf pan. The batter will be quite thick so use a spatula to spread evenly until flat.
- Sprinkle evenly with an additional 2-3 tablespoon of chocolate chips. Optional but recommended!
- Bake the brownies for 20 minutes then let cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes.
- If you lined the pan with parchment, use the edges to lift the brownies out of the pan and onto a cutting board. Slice into 8 squares. If you didn’t use parchment, slice the brownies in the pan and pop them out one by one using a knife or fork.
- Place them in the oven. After a few minutes, remove and use the back of a spoon to spread the melted chocolate chips. Place back in the oven.
- The brownies will continue to firm once they cool and are best after they’ve chilled in the fridge.
Notes
Recommend storing in the fridge. Let cool completely then store up to 1 week in a sealed container.
I haven’t tried this recipe with whey protein so I can’t guarantee how they’ll turn out if you use it. Some readers have used it with success and you can find their feedback in the comment section below.
These are not like traditional brownies. We can only ask so much from 5 ingredients with no flour, added sugar, oil or fat. The brownies have almost a mousse-like texture but once they chill in the rich they’re wonderfully rich, dense and decadent.
These have somewhat of a banana flavour to them so if you don’t like banana, you may not like them. It’s not super overpowering but it is noticeable.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1
- Calories: 87
- Fat: 3 g
- Carbohydrates: 15 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 5 g
Keywords: protein brownies, vegan protein brownies
Originally published March 13, 2016.
I don’t know where i got it wrong but my preparation was very powdery. So i added a little non dairy milk . It worked like a charm. My breakfast was delicious, thank you !
★★★★
Made these today but with a few changes that I think put them over the top! I added vanilla and some salt (salt makes chocolate more chocolatey) and since I only had pumpkin purée I used that in place of the applesauce. I also changed the way I added the chocolate chips, I put them on after the brownies were cooked and spread the melted chocolate then, they gave more of a chocolate glaze rather then just being absorbed into the cooked brownie. Next time I think I’d sprinkle a little more sea salt on the melted chocolate to add that salty/sweet element. And a tip, the individual packets of protein powder are perfect for this, especially if it’s a protein powder you don’t have and don’t want to commit to an entire tub.
I have an oral allergy to bananas. What could you use to replace that?
You could maybe try pumpkin or sweet potato but I haven’t tested it in this recipe so I can’t guarantee it will work. It’s only 5-ingredients and the bananas play a roll in sweetening and binding, so it’s not that easy to replace them in this one. I do have other brownie recipes that don’t contain banana if you have to have a browse around! Thanks.
I just bought a bag of pea protein and wanted to try a recipe using it, and this was the first one, because I just happened to have some over ripe bananas. These banana-cocoa brownies are great. I did not have any applesauce handy, so instead I used an extra banana and about 2 Tbsp coconut butter. Peanut butter would have also been good, and I think I will try again for a peanut butter version and the original applesauce version. The coconut butter added oil that is not in the original recipe, so that probably changed the texture some. I imagine that the applesauce version might seem a little “cakier”, whereas mine was more fudgy. Also, I had unflavored pea protein, so I added a little vanilla extract. In my version, coconut flavor hardly came through, and I suspect that peanut butter would add a more noticeable flavor which would work well with bananas and chocolate. The great thing about this recipe is that it is truly easy to make, with minimum ingredients. It tastes very sweet even though there is nothing sweet except the bananas. Sweet bananas and dark chocolate – what could be wrong with that? Thanks Deryn for a great idea.
Amazing! Love those ideas. So glad you enjoyed them. Thanks for the message!
Could you replace the cocoa powder with chocolate protein powder to increase the protein in this recipe?
You try it but they won’t be as chocolatey and I haven’t tested it so I can’t guarantee results. Let me know if you do! Thanks.
I am not a chef by any means and these brownies turned out great! Super easy to make!
★★★★★
So glad you enjoyed them!
I loooooved these. They were so easy. I used egg white protein powder, NOW brand, and substituted carob powder in place of cocoa powder. I added a little chili powder and cinnamon too, and used Lily’s chocolate chips. I was pleasantly surprised to find how moist these were! I haven’t been able to bake with egg white protein because it’s turned every recipe I’ve tried into a dense brick. My scoop was 30 grams instead of 41 grams, so I might try experimenting with the recipe to increase the protein content.
★★★★★
Oh, yum, sounds amazing with chili powder and cinnamon. So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Happy experimenting!
I used chocolate protein powder and followed the rest of the recipe to a T. Sprayed mini-muffin tins with baking spray, put in batter and topped with mini-chocolate chips and baked for 15 minutes. It was super easy to pop them out of the tins! So, the first bite was okay, but next bite I turned it over so the chocolate chips hit my tongue first and it made a huge difference. I’ll definitely make these again. Thanks for sharing!!
★★★★★
Yum!! So glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for the review!
Just made these using whey protein powder and they are amazing! So fudgy and rich. Definitely going to become a regular treat for me.
★★★★★
Glad you liked them, Jasmin!
Excited to try these! Do you think a Kitchen Aid mixer would work in place of the food processor?
Yes, that should work!
MUST LOVE BANANAS!
These are gross. Followed the recipe exactly. They have a weird consistency and way too much cacoa powder.
Sorry they didn’t work out for you, Lucy. There a very popular and much loved recipe so I’m not sure what went wrong if you followed the recipe exactly. Thanks for letting me know.
Do these freeze well? I made them and omg they are amazing!! No one would know they are the least bit healthy, I added a tad baking soda and an egg white.
Hi Sydni, I’m sorry I’ve never froze them so I can’t say! I think they’d probably be okay though. Glad you enjoyed them!
I made this with the mocha flavored Vega and the coffee flavor was pretty nice!
Hi. If i want more protein, can i add additional scoop of whey? How do i adjust the other ingredients? Thank you!
You could try adding additional banana and/or applesauce but I’m not exactly sure how much, it’s hard to say without testing it so I can’t guarantee results. Let me know if you try it. Thanks!
Absolutely loved these!! I didn’t have any apple sauce so I kinda eyeballed it and used almond butter instead. I used chocolate flavoured soy protein powder and this was fabulous. I scooped them into silicone muffin liners and baked for 20 mins at 180C. So so so yummy!
★★★★★
Awesome. So happy to hear that, Vickie! Thanks for leaving some feedback for the changes you made!
Good base but even with very ripe bananas they were not sweet enough so I added liquid sweetener and I think that prevented them from setting. This recipe didn’t not work for my tastes.
★★★
Very good I used chocolate protein powder next time I’ll try vanilla
Hi, I don’t have any chocolate or vanilla protein powder, only strawberry so would I be able to use that?
Ya, that should work! They’ll just have a different flavour.
These look right up my alley! I could turn this into a single-serving mug cake recipe too probably…very similar to the mug cakes I already do. And I’ll bet it works just fine with pumpkin or extra banana! (sweeter with more banana!)
I’m sure it could work as mug cake! I haven’t tried it but that’s a great idea. Let me know if you try it!