Healthy Vegan Chocolate Coconut Brownies

Guys, I’m freaking out. These healthy vegan chocolate coconut brownies are insane. Like I-want-to-eat-the-whole-pan dangerously kinda good. The texture from the coconut, the richness from ripe banana and cocoa powder and the added chocolate chips, these babies are firing on all cylinders.

Workout Brownies

They were a bit of a happy accident too. I was planning on banana coconut cookies but when the batter wasn’t turning out how I wanted, I added cocoa, then chocolate chips and it was looking more like brownie batter and then……oh my god..drool..so good.

These bars are a bit higher in fat due to the unsweetened shredded coconut but in addition to being one of my favourite ingredients, coconut is a good source of iron and zinc, both important minerals for plant-based athletes.

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These bars actually make a great pre or post-workout snack thanks to the balance of carbohydrates, fats and protein they contain. If I can get away with chocolate post-workout, obviously, I’m going to!

Let’s see what else they have goin’ on!

Vegan Chocolate Coconut Brownies

• only 6 ingredients, or just 5 if you skip the stevia!
• easy to make in a blender or food processor
• healthy ingredients like coconut and banana
• no eggs
• no dairy
• high in protein
• high in fibre
• gluten-free
• grain-free
• no added sugar
• amazing dessert but healthy enough for breakfast or a snack
• perfect for a pre-workout snack
• awesome texture from the coconut
• chocolately and fudgy and coconutty

Taking a Treat Break

So, when I shared my Healthy Coconut Carrot Cake Cookies a few days ago I said I need to take a break from making treats. And that is still true. I’m having a hard time sticking to my macros lately and having a bunch of treats in the house isn’t helping. It’s like the closer I get to my goals, the easier it is to not care, which is totally crazy. lol..

Mentally, I’m a little torn with flexible dieting right now. I think it’s an amazing tool for reaching fitness and body composition goals but sometimes I don’t know if it’s the healthiest thing for me. I feel like I’m starting to obsess over food and overthink things and I’ve been having some crazy cravings, something I’ve never struggled with before. As much as I appreciate the results I’ve seen so far, I believe in intuitive eating and eating whole, real, nourishing foods to fuel your body without worrying about macros.

Always Something to Learn

I’m not very accurate with weighing my food and while I’m very happy with my results and progress so far, sometimes I think it’s a little crazy to be weighing out of healthy foods like vegetables. It’s like the whole food-loving, plant-based hippy in me is fighting with the CrossFitter who wants all the gains. And I miss dates and bananas…hahaha.

That being said, what I’ve learned about portion sizes and what I need to eat to optimize athletic performance has been invaluable. Training has been going amazing too. I feel faster, stronger, lighter and just all-around fantastic gym, a much bigger benefit than any change I’ve seen in my body.

I’m going to stick to it for now. I have 4 more weeks to go with my nutrition coach then I’ll determine what the plan is after that. I’ve lost about 6 lbs in 8 weeks without too much trouble but I’m starting to lose focus with measuring and entering my food into MFP day in and day out.

I don’t know…hahah…I’m so back and forth with my feelings on this right now. I want to keep going but I also want to eat all the fruit and veggies without putting them on a scale first.

You experienced flexible dieters, I’d love to hear your tips for staying motivated over the long-term. Especially once you reach your initial goals. Please leave your thoughts in the comments below!

I’ll Still Eat Chocolate Coconut Brownies

At least I can eat these healthy vegan chocolate coconut brownies still…so there’s that…and that’s a pretty big deal. These might be the best happy accident of all time, they are unreal and I hope you enjoy them whether you log them in your macros, or not.

6-Ingredient Vegan Chocolate Coconut Brownies

★★★★★

4.7 from 3 reviews

You only need 6 simple ingredients to make these delicious, vegan chocolate coconut brownies. They’re oil-free, gluten-free, grain-free and have an amazing rich flavour and texture. Enjoy as a snack, dessert or even breakfast!

• Author: Deryn Macey
• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Cook Time: 15 mins
• Total Time: 20 minutes
• Yield: 8-12 brownies

Ingredients

• 2 very ripe bananas (300 g), spotty is perfect!
• 1 cup (120 g) unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1 scoop (30 g) vegan protein powder, chocolate or vanilla
• 1/4 cup (30 g) cocoa powder
• 8 drops liquid stevia drops, or to taste
• 3 tbsp (45 g) + 1 tbsp (15 g) dairy-free chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place all the ingredients except the chocolate chips in a food processor or blender and mix until it forms a batter.
3. Stir in the 3 tbsp of chocolate chips.
4. Line a loaf pan with parchment paper then fill with the batter.
5. Evenly sprinkle the remaining 1 tbsp of chocolate chips on top.
6. Bake for 15 minutes.
7. Lift out of the pan and cut into 8-12 squares.

Notes

• I would highly recommend using a digital food scale to measure your ingredients. Volume measurements can vary greatly, so for best results, use a scale for accuracy. Buy one here.
• I cut mine into 8 large squares but I think it you could make 10-12 bars out of it and it would still be a satisfying serving size. Adjust nutritional info according if you change the number of bars you make.
• To reduce the amount of carbs and fat per serving, you can omit the chocolate chips, though I wouldn’t recommend this! If you make them without chocolate chips, 1/8th of the recipe will be 14C/11F/5P.
• I use Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips which are dairy-free, gluten-free and soy-free. Buy them here.
• I used Now Foods Organic Liquid Stevia Drops, which is optional but I wanted the recipe to be a little sweeter. Sweeten to your own preference using the stevia drops or powdered stevia. If you’re skipping the stevia, make sure you have nice, ripe, spotty bananas for the best taste!

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1/8 of recipe
• Calories: 202
• Fat: 13
• Saturated Fat: 10
• Carbohydrates: 19
• Fiber: 5
• Protein: 5

Like these?? Try my Fudgy Flourless Protein Brownies too!