Sink your teeth into these delightful Grain-Free Nutella Brownies — wow!
When I pull Nutella out of a grocery bag in front of my kids, they actually jump up and down and cheer. I do feel similarly, as I think Nutella is just one of the greatest gifts to earth. It is a quick, easy way to bring a smile to the breakfast table spread over some toast, or with fresh strawberries for a sweet treat, and it’s also delightful for baking.
I’ll never forget the first time I tried Nutella. It was never something my mom had in our pantry growing up, but one of my best friends from college introduced it to me when studying abroad and I couldn’t believe I went my whole life without Nutella. Nutella is just a brand of sweetened hazelnut cocoa spread, but if you have a brand of hazelnut cocoa spread that you love, it should work just fine in this recipe (just make sure it’s very smooth and creamy).
These Grain-Free Nutella Brownies are just oh-so-good. They are chewy, fudgy and a little bit cakey. Thanks to the Nutella, the cocoa, and the chocolate chips, they are quite chocolatey but just perfect in my opinion. You don’t want to miss this recipe!!
Grain-Free Nutella Brownies
Ingredients
- ¾ cup Nutella or any creamy hazelnut chocolate butter
- ¼ cup creamy cashew or almond butter
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup pure maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon almond flour
- 1 tablespoon arrowroot flour
- 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup coarsely chopped hazelnuts optional. For the record, my kids hate when I add this part, ha!
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a 9 x 9 pan with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, add the Nutella, cashew butter, eggs, maple syrup, avocado oil and vanilla extract. Whisk until smooth.
- Add the cocoa powder, baking powder, kosher salt, almond flour and arrowroot flour. Whisk until well combined and very smooth. Fold in the chocolate chips and chopped hazelnuts (if using).
- Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Allow brownies to cool for at least 20 minutes before slicing for best results. Enjoy!
26 Comments
williams kelly
July 19, 2022 at 2:10 pmCan I use cacao powder instead of cocoa powder?
Alex
July 19, 2022 at 4:13 pmYes, that will work fine!
Melissa
July 9, 2021 at 4:20 pmI was wondering if I could sub the almond and arrow root for just gluten-free flour?
Alex
July 21, 2021 at 5:24 pmI haven’t tried it yet, but typically arrowroot and almond flour is not a 1:1 swap with all purpose flour so I am not certain it would work.
Rebecca Holmes
July 9, 2021 at 1:54 pmIs there a substitute for Nutella to make a dairy-free version? Thanks!
Alex
July 9, 2021 at 2:33 pmWhile I have not tried it this recipe yet, I have been loving Deux’s Drip Hazlenut Spread and want to give it a try myself in this recipe. It could be a great option for you here! You can also use code ‘DEFINEDDISH’ for 20% off your order.
Swati
June 24, 2021 at 7:54 pmI’m excited to try these, but I’m severely allergic to cashews and most store-bought almond butter say they may have cross contamination with other tree nuts so I avoid those as well. do you recommend anything in place of cashew or almond butter? more Nutella, or peanut butter or tahini?
Alex
June 25, 2021 at 2:33 ampeanut butter or tahini will be great subs.
Lindsey Bayne
April 24, 2021 at 9:17 pmI used a 9” round metal cake pan and I cooked for 30 minutes. The toothpick came out clean but the middle could have cooked longer. But they do taste delicious!!
Allison
April 20, 2021 at 9:52 pmSo unbelievably good! Someone got into my Nutella beforehand and I didn’t quite have the full amount but added a little extra cashew butter and they turned out great! I love to bake and have had to transition to gluten free so finding gems like this renew my love for baking and make me miss gluten a little bit less!
Lindsey
April 12, 2021 at 9:50 pmI love the flavor of these brownies! Amazing! The top of my brownies don’t come out pretty like yours though and they have lots of air bubbles. Any idea what I may be doing wrong?
Lauren
April 6, 2021 at 12:48 amWell these are the best things ever! I made these to accommodate a GF relative for Easter dinner, and they were a hit. They are magical too… like I can’t for the life of me figure out how those ingredients can turn into a brownie 🤣!
Ty
April 3, 2021 at 3:42 amI have major gluten sensitivity, so I was excited to try these. Let me tell you, they didn’t disappoint. Delicious! One question.
My daughter didn’t like the almond butter flavor (very mild to me). Is there anything else to substitute for the nut butters?
Alex
April 5, 2021 at 1:10 pmI find that Cashew Butter is more neutral in flavor! Try that next time.
Joann
April 3, 2021 at 12:00 amFantastic! I eat paleo; what a treat! My husband who doesn’t limit his food in any way loves them also. Thank you!
Char
April 2, 2021 at 1:53 pmI made a double batch of these for family dinner. Omg so good and easy too. Everyone loved them. I will be making these again and again!!!
Mandee
April 1, 2021 at 2:57 pmSo yummy! I made these yesterday and can’t stop eating them!
Alex
April 1, 2021 at 7:20 pmyay!
Sharon
April 1, 2021 at 12:59 amMade these today- YUM!!!
But I did have to bake them for twice as long. I used a glass 9×9 with parchment paper, only thing I can think made a difference?
Alex
April 1, 2021 at 12:33 pmMaybe so– I used a metal baking pan.
A
April 3, 2021 at 12:48 amYes, I had this same issue. It took a lot longer and I also am using a glass pan w/ parchment paper.
A few things in case this helps someone:
-I used olive oil since I had no avocado oil.
-Forgot the cocoa powder. I realized after they had been in the oven.
-Used tapioca flour.
-Used almond butter.
-Halved the maple syrup. This is just a personal preference since I find nutella pretty sweet and was also using semi sweet chocolate chunks instead of dark chocolate chips.
Overall, these are so good and very easy!
Jessie
March 30, 2021 at 8:53 pmDefinitely trying these! Can I sub regular AP flour for all flours in the recipe?
Nora
March 30, 2021 at 7:37 pmThese look amazing! I don’t have arrowroot flour, what would be a good substitute?
Alex
March 30, 2021 at 7:51 pmTapioca would be a good sub!
Kelly
March 30, 2021 at 6:23 pmWondering if I can sub out the egg for a vegan substitute? Possibly apple sauce or is there something else you might recommend? TIA
Alex
March 30, 2021 at 7:52 pmI haven’t yet tried this yet– but I typically prefer a ‘flax egg’ as a substitute in recipes like this.