Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies

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These healthy peanut butter brownies are fudgy, and chocolatey. Made with 8 nutritious ingredients (no flour) in less than 30 minutes, they’re an easy & gluten-free & dairy-free dessert to satisfy your sweet tooth.

a stack fo 6 Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies with peanut butter on top and one brownie leaning on the stack


This healthy peanut butter brownie recipe was born out of my love for nutritious baking and the chocolate peanut butter flavor combination.

These healthy peanut butter brownies are fudgy, and chocolatey and made with 8 good-for-you ingredients (no flour) in less than 30 minutes, which means they’re easy to make when the craving strikes!

They’re an easy, gluten-free and dairy-free dessert to satisfy your sweet tooth.

Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies with peanut butter on top

Healthy Peanut Butter Brownies: Ingredients & Substitutions

  • Creamy peanut butter. You could substitute crunchy peanut butter if you like little bits of peanuts in your brownies. Really, any nut or seed butter should work well in this recipe.
  • Honey. Maple syrup can be used in place of honey.
  • Applesauce. You can replace applesauce with and equal amount of butter, coconut oil or mashed banana.
  • Cocoa powder. be sure to use unsweetened cocoa powder.
  • Sea salt. If using iodized salt, decrease the amount by half.
  • Chocolate chips. Great subs for chocolate chips are: peanut butter chips, chopped peanut butter cups, chopped chocolate bars, etc.
overhead photo of the ingredients in this Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies recipe

How to Make Healthy Peanut Butter Brownies

This recipe comes together in one bowl in 5 minutes! Don’t forget to watch the video and follow the step-by-step photos!

Begin by combining the wet ingredients in a medium-sized bowl until the mixture is smooth.

two photos showing how to make Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies -  combining wet ingredients

Then, add the dry ingredients and stir until the batter is smooth. Next, fold in the chocolate chips until evenly distributed throughout the batter.

If you prefer a different mix-in, here are some suggestions:

  • Peanut butter chips
  • chopped peanut butter cups
  • chopped chocolate bar
  • White chocolate chips
  • nuts
  • dried fruit (cranberries, cherries, etc.)
  • a swirl of peanut butter
two photos showing how to make Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies - adding dry ingredients & chocolate chips

Next, pour the batter into a prepared baking dish and bake in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, or until the top is set (it will still be shiny) and the brownies are only slightly jiggly.

Remove from oven and cool completely before cutting.

two photos showing how to make Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies in the pan before and after baking

Serve

Serve these healthy peanut butter brownies slightly warm with a dollop of peanut butter (try this homemade peanut butter), a scoop of vanilla ice cream (or healthy chocolate peanut butter ice cream), or a dollop of homemade whipped cream.

Store/Freeze

Let the healthy chocolate peanut butter brownies cool completely. Then, store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 2 months.

I suggest gently reheating them in the microwave to restore their fresh-from-the-oven, melty chocolate taste and texture.

a plate of 8 Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies

Healthy Peanut Butter Brownies Recipe FAQs

Can I double this recipe?

Yes, double the ingredients and bake the brownies in a 9×13″ glass baking dish.

Can I use a different nut butter if I’m allergic to peanut butter?

Yes, you can use almond butter, cashew butter, sunflower seed butter, tahini, etc.

Can I replace the egg?

You should be able to use egg replacer or make a flax/chia egg but combining 1 TBS ground flaxseed or ground chia seeds with 2.5 TBS hot water.

a stack fo 4 Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies, top one has a bite taken out of it

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Healthy Peanut Butter Brownies

Laura
These healthy peanut butter brownies are fudgy, and chocolatey. Made with 8 nutritious ingredients (no flour) in less than 30 minutes, they’re an easy & gluten-free & dairy-free dessert to satisfy your sweet tooth.
5 from 10 votes
Course Dessert, Snack
Cuisine American
Servings 9 brownies
Calories 187
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time30 minutes

Ingredients 
 

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8×8” baking dish, set aside.
  • In a medium mixing bowl, mix together peanut butter, honey, applesauce, vanilla and eggs until smooth.
  • Add cocoa powder and sea salt and stir to combine.
  • Fold in chocolate chips.
  • Pour batter into prepared baking dish and bake in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, or until the top is set (it will still be shiny) and the brownies are only slightly jiggly.
  • Remove from oven and cool completely before cutting.

Video

Notes

*Nutrition information calculated for this recipe making 9 brownies.
Ingredient Substitutions
  • Creamy peanut butter. You could substitute crunchy peanut butter if you like little bits of peanuts in your brownies. Really, any nut or seed butter should work well in this recipe.
  • Honey. Maple syrup can be used in place of honey.
  • Applesauce. You can replace applesauce with and equal amount of butter, coconut oil or mashed banana.
  • Cocoa powder. be sure to use unsweetened cocoa powder.
  • Sea salt. If using iodized salt, decrease the amount by half.
  • Chocolate chips. Great subs for chocolate chips are: peanut butter chips, chopped peanut butter cups, chopped chocolate bars, etc.
Serve
Serve these healthy peanut butter brownies slightly warm with a dollop of peanut butter (try this homemade peanut butter), a scoop of vanilla ice cream (or healthy chocolate peanut butter ice cream), or a dollop of homemade whipped cream.
Store/Freeze
Let the healthy chocolate peanut butter brownies cool completely. Then, store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 2 months.
I suggest gently reheating them in the microwave to restore their fresh-from-the-oven, melty chocolate taste and texture.

Nutrition

Serving: 1brownie | Calories: 187kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 19mg | Sodium: 139mg | Potassium: 203mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 33IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 19mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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Recipe Rating




11 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    delicious! these were fantastic and i’m absolutely still craving them. I had to add 1-2 tbsp sugar though because it wasn’t sweet enough to my liking, but otherwise this was a great recipe. will make again!

  2. Yet to try making this but looks easy and quick. Can I use salted peanut butter and the. Skip adding any additional salt ?

    1. Sure. I’d suggest tasting the batter first to make sure it has enough salt to your liking!

  3. 5 stars
    Just made these and Omgosh sooo good. I’m waiting for my taste tester. Told him they were “real brownies”.
    Only complaint they look nothing like yours.

  4. 5 stars
    I just made these with my granddaughter. I had not idea what to expect. These were really good!!! I used milk chocolate chips and a sprinkle of semi sweet because that is what I had . We will definitely be making these again!

  5. This looks delicious! Quick question — the instructions in the recipe card say to add baking soda with the cocoa powder and sea salt, but I don’t see baking soda anywhere else in the recipe. Should there be baking soda?

    1. Hey Joanna! NO! I’m so sorry! I fixed that! No baking soda or powder in this recipe! Thank you for bringing that to my attention!

      1. Thanks for getting back so quickly! I have a friend who has a gluten intolerance but loves fudgy brownies, so these look like a great treat to make for her. Thank you!