These small-batch vegan oat flour brownies are oil-free, gluten-free and are naturally sweetened with dates. Applesauce and tahini replace the oil, making these a delicious and allergen-free treat anyone can enjoy.

Stack of 3 vegan oat flour brownies on a grey surface with some chocolate chips scattered around.
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What You’ll Need

  • Oat flour. Make your own oat flour by adding rolled oats to a blender. Quick and easy!
  • Cocoa powder. You’ll need some cacao powder or regular cocoa powder to create that chocolate goodness.
  • Dates. These brownies are sweetened naturally with dates. We’ll be soaking them in water first to ensure they help help create the perfect gooey brownie texture.
  • Applesauce. Unsweetened applesauce replaces oil and helps add moisture to the brownies.
  • Nut or seed butter. I used tahini to keep the recipe nut-free but any nut or seed butter.
  • Chocolate chips. Without chocolate chips these are pretty plain, so I would definitely recommend adding them. I used Enjoy Life Dark Chocolate Chips.

Quick Note: These are definitely on the healthy side and are not super sweet or decadent but if you’re after a health-conscious treat, these definitely fit the bill. They are made with dairy-free chocolate chips, are nut-free and naturally gluten-free so everyone can enjoy them.

Overhead shot of 6 vegan oat flour brownies on a grey surface scattered with chocolate chips.

Step by Step Instructions

Step 1. Soak the Dates

To soften up the dates, you’ll want to soak them in hot water for 20 minutes or so. This will help add extra gooey and delicious texture to the brownies. To do this, placed pitted dates in a glass bowl, pour boiled water over them and let them soak.

After they’ve soaked, drain them using a colander and proceed with the recipe.

Glass bowl filled with dates and water sitting on a white surface.

Step 2. Make the Oat flour

To make the oat flour for this recipe, measure out 1 cup, or 100 grams of rolled oats and then blend into a fine flour. I used my Vitamix for this but any blender or even an immersion blender will work.

Metal measuring cup with oat flour in it.

Step 3. Mix up the brownie batter

Once you’ve soaked and drained the dates and made the oat flour, add everything except the chocolate chips to a food processor or high-speed blender and mix until you have a thick batter.

Once you’ve blended up the batter, add the chocolate chips and pulse a few times to combine.

Note: As you can see below, the tahini I used was quite drippy so make sure whatever nut or seed butter you use isn’t too dry.

Oat flour, tahini and applesauce in a food processor.
Oat flour, tahini and applesauce ready to blend.
Oat flour, tahini, cocoa powder and applesauce in a food processor.
Add the cocoa powder and sea salt too.

Thick brownie batter with chocolate chips in a food processor.
Add the chocolate chips to the brownie batter and pulse to combine.

Step 4. Spread in a loaf pan and bake

Once you’ve prepared the batter, spread it into a loaf pan, sprinkle a few extra chocolate chips on top and bake in the oven for 24 minutes.

Quick tip: prepare the loaf pan with a spritz of non-stick cooking spray, rub it with a little oil or line it with parchment paper for easy removal after baking.

Raw brownie batter being spread in a loaf pan with a spatula.
Use a spatula to evenly spread the batter into a loaf pan.
Raw brownie batter with chocolate chips in a loaf pan.
Sprinkle some extra chocolate chips on top for extra goodness.
Stack of 2 vegan oat flour brownies sitting on a cooling rack.

Substitutions and Notes

  • You can use any nut or seed butter in place of the tahini. Peanut butter, almond butter and sunflower seed butter all work.
  • Make your own oat flour by blending 1 cup of rolled oats into a fine flour.
  • Regular cocoa powder is fine but you can use cacao powder for extra nutrition. Cacao powder is rich in magnesium, iron and antioxidants.
  • For a sweeter brownie, add a pinch of stevia or a few stevia drops.

Do these taste like dates?

These brownies definitely have a hint of date-flavour but I wouldn’t say it’s overpowering. In fact, I think it’s delicious! If you really don’t like dates, it might not be the recipe for you

Related Recipes

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Stack of 3 vegan oat flour brownies on a grey surface with some chocolate chips scattered around.

Vegan Oat Flour Brownies

  • Author: Deryn Macey
  • Prep Time: 15 mins
  • Cook Time: 20 mins
  • Total Time: 35 minutes
  • Yield: 8 1x
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegan

These small-batch oat flour brownies are easy to make with healthy, wholesome ingredients making them the perfect health-conscious sweet, chocolate treat. 

★★★★★

4.6 from 11 reviews
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Ingredients

  • 1 cup rolled oats (100 g) blended into oat flour
  • 3 tbsp cocoa powder (21 g)
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  • 1 tsp vanilla (optional)
  • 1 cup packed, pitted dates (225 g)
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce (120 g)
  • 1/4 cup tahini (60 g)
  • 1/4 cup dairy-free chocolate chips plus a few more to sprinkle on top

Instructions

  1. Place the dates in a large bowl and cover in hot water. Soak for 20 minutes then drain well.
  2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  3. Measure out 1 cup of rolled oats then process them in a blender to form fine oat flour. 
  4. Add the oat flour and everything except the chocolate chips to a food processor and process into a thick batter.
  5. Add the chocolate chips and pulse a few times to combine.
  6. Spray a loaf pan with a bit of non-stick cooking spray, or line with parchment paper, then scoop the batter into the pan and spread with a spatula until smooth. The batter will quite thick.
  7. Sprinkle a few more chocolate chips on top, if desired.
  8. Bake the brownies for 24 minutes then remove from the oven and let sit in the pan for 15 minutes before carefully slicing and lifting from the pan. 
  9. Store in the fridge for up to 7 days or freezer for up to 2 months.

Notes

If you’d like the brownies to have a little bit of lift to them, add 1/2 tsp baking soda. I tested these every which way and they work fine with and without baking soda.

These are not super sweet brownies as they have no added sugar except for the chocolate chips. I don’t recommend leaving the chocolate chips out as they add a nice sweetness and decadence to the recipe. Feel free to increase them to 1/2 cup if you want!

Keywords: oat flour brownies, flourless brownies, tahini brownies