Flourless Pumpkin Brownies made in the blender with only 7 ingredients! They’re grain-free, oil-free, dairy-free, and refined-sugar-free, so they make a deliciously healthy snack for when the chocolate cravings hit.
So I know I just posted a chocolate pumpkin recipe not too long ago, but I’m posting another one today because:
a) I have a crazy amount of pumpkin to use up,
b) but I’m not really in the mood for pumpkin,
c) so I’m masking it with the deliciousness that is chocolate,
d) because then you really can’t taste the pumpkin.
Makes total sense, yeah?
And if you’re wondering why I’m basically drowning in pumpkin over here, it’s because the can that I was forced to buy during The Great Pumpkin Shortage of ’16 was a whopping 28 oz… which is 2x the size of the cans I normally get.
I froze some of it just to give myself a little extra wiggle room, but I’d still like to use that up before I forget about it and find it buried in the back of my freezer exactly one year from today.
So now that you know the how and why behind these flourless pumpkin brownies, let’s talk deets.
These brownies are based off the recipe for my flourless chocolate pumpkin muffins, with a few tweaks to make them more… err… brownie-like.
First, they’re baked in a square baking pan rather than a muffin pan. And I promise I’m not trying to go all Captain Obvious on you, but I needed some sort of segue into baking pans because I recently learned a few things about those suckers that I think is pretty useful to know.
See, I test all of my recipes using metal baking pans*, so you might get significantly different results if you use glass and/or silicone. The reason for this is that glass isn’t really a great conductor of heat so it takes a longer time to heat up and a longer time to start distributing the heat into whatever’s inside it. BUT! it also holds heat a lot better than metal, which is great if you’re cooking something wet like a casserole that needs to stay nice and warm after it comes out of the oven, but not so great for something like flourless brownies. That’s because the hot glass will cause the edges of the brownies to set a lot faster, while not necessarily transferring the heat properly to the centre. SO! you might end up with brownies that burn around the edges but stay gloopy in the middle… and no one wants that.
What we do want is brownies that are soft and fudgy all the way through so that we can top them with even more chocolate…
Or not. It’s your call.
I actually wasn’t planning on topping them with anything myself, but I forgot to add the chocolate chips to the batter before I put them in the oven (oops), so I figured I’d melt them and put them on top instead. That turned out to be a brilliant mistake, not only for the increased chocolate factor, but for the textural perfection that comes from a slightly crisp shell contrasting with a soft brownie.
It’s good stuff.
As for the brownies themselves, they’re not quite as dense and fudgy as traditional brownies, but they are grain-free, oil-free, refined-sugar-free, super easy to make. Definitely a delicious way to use up that pesky pumpkin.
Happy eating!
I’d love to know if you make this recipe! Leave a comment and rating down below to let me know what you think, and subscribe to our mailing list to receive new recipes in your inbox!
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Flourless Pumpkin Brownies
- Total Time: 40 mins
- Yield: 9 brownies 1x
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (128 g) almond butter*
- 1/2 cup (120 g) canned pumpkin puree
- 1 large egg
- 6 Tbsp (120 g) honey
- 1/4 cup (20 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- optional: 3 Tbsp (30 g) dairy-free chocolate chips, for topping
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (176°C) and prepare an 8 x 8 (20 x 20 cm) baking pan by lining it with a sheet of parchment paper, leaving a few inches of overhang on the sides to allow for easy removal. Set aside.
- Add all the ingredients except for the chocolate chips to a high-speed blender or food processor in the order listed, and process on high until the batter becomes smooth and creamy.
- Pour the batter into your prepared baking pan, using a spatula to distribute it evenly. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove the brownies from the oven and let them cool in the pan for about 15 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
- If you want to add the melted chocolate topping, place the chocolate chips in a microwave-safe dish, and nuke them in 30 second intervals until they’re completely melted. Then, pour the chocolate over the brownies and use a spoon or spatula to spread it around.
- Store the brownies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Notes
* I like using almond butter because of its mild flavour, but you can sub it out for whatever nut butter you have on hand. Or, use a soy nut butter to make these nut-free.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
Looking for more healthy brownie recipes? Try one of these!
Flourless Double Chocolate Brownies
2 Minute Sweet Potato Brownie
No Bake Brownie Batter Truffles
Flourless Double Chocolate Zucchini Brownies
Flourless Sweet Potato Brownies
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Love this is flourless.
Thank so much for sharing this EXCELLENT recipe! It came out perfectly by simply following your instructions. What a delight to know we can have delicious, flourless brownies again.
Hi! Could I sub extra pumpkin for the almond or nut butter (equal amount)?
Everyone loved these! So nice to find a chewy brownie recipe that has more nutrients than traditional brownies (plus you can change the flavour based on your nut butter so I love the versatility).
I love these brownies!!! I used dates instead of honey and they turned out great.
Wow. I never leave a comment because I’m lazy. Just made these with a few tweaks to account for what I had on hand and they were soooooo good. Next time I will double it for sure. Even my husband loved them. No one tell him there was pumpkin in there!!!!!
My tweaks:
I used maybe 4 tablespoons of raw honey because that’s I could find in pantry and then added some pure stevia powder. I used Georgia Grinders chunky unsweetened hazelnut butter instead of almond butter. I added some salt because I love me some salt. Also baked 20 minutes. Topped with Lily’s Sweets chips
Well thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review, Elizabeth! I really appreciate it 🙂 And I’m so glad you and your husband liked the brownies.
WOW!!! these turned out great!!! i was honestly super skeptical about these as with all other healthy baked goods recipe but i have to say i’m impressed! the pumpkin taste is not noticeable at all and i would say you can faintly taste the almond butter. I let my 14 year old brother try these and he did not believe me that there were actually pumpkins in it! I’m honestly super surprised that these taste absolutely great with no flour or butter/oil whatsoever. I think I’ll try reducing the amount of honey next time though, and i’ve baked them for about 23minutes. These brownies were more of a super moist chocolate cake, accidentally added twice the amount of chocolate chips though…, instead of fudgey dense brownies. i’ll try baking these for a slightly shorter time too. Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe ☺️
I’m so glad you liked them, Lex! Thank you so much for taking the time to let me know.
Hi there, I just made these and had to taste them just moments of the pan. They are wonderful. I cut the honey to 1/4 cup and just a little salt for balance. Also added 1/4 c choc chips just a minute or two before removing from oven. And smoothed them over when brownies came out. They are so delicious. Soo good. Thank you for this recipie. I can see I will go thru my 28 oz can of pumpkin very quickly. Have to get more almond butter and honey.
I’m so glad you liked them, Jean! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment letting me know 🙂
They turned out more cakey than fudgy and a little dry, I think 25 minutes was too much for them I would start checking at 20-22 minutes next time.
I love that they come out so clean, they don’t crumb a lot like cakey but are so easy to cut and shape they’re almost spongy.
I added some salt to balance out the flavours, it helped a lot when I tasted the batter, but don’t think that it won’t taste like pumpkin, it will, maybe not a lot but there will be a pumpkin taste (and smell when you take it out of the oven), but it’s a good sugar/chocolate fix
Thanks so much for this recipe. It is delicious and just what I was looking for! So many low carb dessert recipes have almond flour and I am not a fan of it. I am doing keto and to make it a little more keto friendly I substituted the honey for 6TBSP of Swerve mixed with 1/4 cup of water. Do you think I could substitute the pumpkin for avocado next time to add more fat and decrease the carbs?
I am completely obsessed with this recipe! My boyfriend and I definitely have a sweet tooth, and these brownies give us an amazing chocolate fix without all the guilt! I’ve made these for dinner parties and everyone wanted the recipe! Thank you for sharing these- I’ll be making them forever! Xo
Just made these this weekend. I had just made some with stevia and they were awful. I decided to try again and found your recipe! I didnt have pumpkin so I replaced with an equal amount of mashed banana and they were delicious! Everyone ate them right up!
What can I sub for honeyto make low carb? Also, I tend to overtake for fear off the eggs. How can I tell they’re done?:)
Can I using dutch cocoa powder to sub with natural cocoa powder?
Just made these for Thanksgiving but I couldn’t wait and had a few–They’re delicious! Great recipe!
Just had to say this is my go-to recipe for brownies.I know know it by heart and have made them many times. So happy to have a tried and tested yummy and safe dessert for my sensitive guts! Love your recipes! Thanks do much!!
Hi! How would you adapt this recipe to someone who doesn’t have access to pumpkin purée? I assume it’s easy to make, no? Have you every tried?
Omg, made them into cupcakes. Best g-free, sugar free that I’ve ever had!
I’ve made this recipe twice already — it’s the best recipe for flourless brownies, and they turn out DELICIOUS.
I just made these they are SO good. I did not put in as much honey, and did not put in the chocolate chips – and it still tasted incredible. Thank you for this super easy, fabulous recipe 😀
These are so delicious! I just add the chocolate chips in the batter instead of on top! Yummy!
Can I make this with stevia instead of honey?
Thanks 🙂
Hi again, just made these with stevia and sprinkled coconut flakes on top. It turned out well – tastes like chocolate cake 🙂 Although next time I’ll try with honey or…would maple syrup work?
Thank you!
Delicious! They are so good no topping is needed.
I made them once as written (but used peanut butter instead of almond because it’s all I had at home) and no chocolate chips because I’m trying to stay away from refined sugars) and I thought they were pretty good but my husband wanted them to be more moist and my son wanted them to be sweeter. I think they were expecting traditional sugar and fat laced brownies. I just made them again tonight but we added a banana for a little extra moisture and natural sugar and then I mixed up some peanut butter with a bit of honey and vanilla almond milk to thin it out and added a tiny scoop to the center of each brownie before baking and they went over much better with the men folk this time!
Thanks so much for sharing your modifications, Megan! I’m glad your family enjoyed them 🙂
Hi Amanda!! Love your blog and recipes!!! Omg!! Just made these and they are the BEST!! I used a flax egg, added chocolate chips inside & then when I took them out put more on top to spread around til they melted and then hardened. So beyond yummy, fudgey and great!!! Thanks!!
I’m so glad you liked them, Lori!! Thanks so much for letting me know that a flax egg worked 😀
Can I bake these using a cast iron skillet, like corn bread?
I haven’t tried it myself, Christine, and I don’t have a lot of experience baking in cast iron skillets, so I can’t say for sure. Sorry!
These are DELICIOUS! I added a couple of shakes of pumpkin spice. I can’t stop eating them!
I was considering doing the same and now you helped me decide😁
OMG. I had an amazing comment to write but I need to message you instead.
These looks so good and I personally love to sneak in some veggies anywhere I can! I’ve never tried pumpkin in brownies before, so something tells me that I should try making this recipe. And any dessert that seems acceptable to have for breakfast as well is right up my alley!
Hope you have a lovely Sunday 🙂
I may be slightly biased, but I think you would like them, Emma 😉 Have a great rest of the weekend!
If I didn’t know any better, I’d have no idea pumpkin was in here, and that makes me happy. Although I do have a pumpkin on my counter which I need to use at some point.
Also I just removed tomato paste from my freezer dated 11-9-15. It’s not a year old yet. 🙂
Would you hate me if I fed these to you without telling you there was pumpkin in them? Because you really can’t tell 😛
I see so many recipes lately that use nut butter. (I do see you have a soy butter alternative). However, is there anything else I could replace it with? First, what ROLE does it play? (i.e., what does it replace compared to traditional brownie recipe?) Is it used in place of butter/oil? Another egg? Other?
Could I use part butter (or coconut oil), and an egg, or applesauce, or pumpkin, or banana? Or avocado? I prefer not to use nut butter, and am allergic to soy. And any way I can reduce calories is amazing! Thanks!
Hi Shawna, since these brownies are made without flour, the nut butter takes the place of the flour + oil combo to give them structure and moisture. I wouldn’t use regular oil or butter since those would be too oily and the brownies probably wouldn’t set properly. You can try subbing in a banana, but I haven’t tried it myself so I’m not sure how it would work.
I am also allergic to nuts. I used sunbutter and they came out great!
What a great idea!!
Thanks for the compliment, Jenn! I actually do this with a lot of things (maybe ’cause I’m a little lazy, maybe because I like to have things ready at hand when I need them). A couple of things that come to mind: caramelized onions (to add to pizzas, or in quesadillas, etc.) because they’re kind of time consuming to make, waiting for them to caramelize, and a big batch of oatmeal. When I need these kinds of things, I just pop them into the microwave to thaw and then use them. The oatmeal especially makes for a healthy, quick breakfast.
Me again, just thought I’d pass on a tip: for leftover pumpkin, I use a large ice cream scoop and place each scoop on a baking sheet and freeze. Once frozen, I take them off the sheet, and put the “balls” in a plastic freezer bag for use when I need it. Two scoops equal 1/2 a cup exactly.
Hey Amanda, remember me from the flourless pumpkin brownie debacle a few weeks ago? You kindly suggested that the reason my last batch of brownies turned out too squishy was the fact that I baked them in glass vs metal. Well…I just made this recipe and the only metal baking dish I had was for muffins, so I used that thinking they could be two bite brownies; OK, maybe four bite; OK, maybe one bite rammed into my mouth because these turned out AMAZING!!! Instead of chocolate chips, I had some dark chocolate sea salt caramels I wanted to use up, so I chopped those up and added them to the top of the brownies before baking. Oh sweet mother of pearl – delicious!! Thank you for your advice and the intro to this recipe explaining glass vs metal. You’ve converted me to a metal head for sure!
I totally remember, Rose! That was actually the reason I looked into the whole metal vs. glass baking dishes more closely, so thanks so much for the lesson 🙂 And are you kidding me with the sea salt caramels!?!? Oh.my.GOD that sounds amazing. This is the part where I wonder why I don’t have any of those hanging around my kitchen. And thanks so much for the tip about freezing pumpkin! I can finally put my ice cream scoop to good use, since I usually just eat mine straight from the tub with a regular spoon 😆 Happy Saturday, Rose!
You are definitely the brownie queen! I use metal pans mostly.
Thanks, Casey! Happy Saturday 🙂
My dad seems to really like flourless goodies; they aren’t as doughy as some baked goods; I think maybe these will be on the list for tonight’s dessert! Thank you for posting this today Amanda!
That’s what my dad says about them as well! I hope you and your family enjoy them, Emily 😀
I’m still enjoying pumpkin, but this sounds like the perfect recipe to use a little bit left in a can. Also, chocolate is delicious any time of the year. 🙂
This is very true! And I think I’d enjoy it more if I could find my favourite brand. Hopefully the big holiday rush is over and it’ll stay on the shelves for longer.
Drizzle all the way 😉 Seriously you will laugh when you see my “drizzle” AKA puddles chocolate! They look awesome!
Puddles > drizzles when chocolate is involved. I can’t wait to see yours!!
I practically leaped out of bed when I saw the email for this recipe! 😀 Absolutely DIVINE! I’ve always used metal baking pans and have never had any issues with them, although I do want a glass 9×13!
Brownies for breakfast?! Let’s do it 😀 And metal has always been my jam as well. I don’t even own any glass bakeware, although I know my mom uses it mostly for casseroles and fruit things…
They look yummy! So could you add the chocolate chips into the batter instead of melting top? Just wondering…
You definitely could, Kris! That’s what I was going to do originally, but it totally slipped my mind before I stuck them in the oven, which is why I put them on top 😆