Amazing Vegan Brownies, Seriously

I have been trying to perfect a vegan brownie recipe for a long long time – there have been many years of dry, crumbly, tasteless disasters and oily, wet, bland misadventures.  Last night, though, I was seriously craving brownies, so much so, that I decided to give it another try.  In the past, I tried to convert my favorite non-vegan recipes into vegan ones.  But this time, I decided to try something different: Google :).

After sifting through the online world of vegan brownie recipes, they all started to sound eerily familiar.  They all sounded like my previous failures – they are ok, if you quantify them as “vegan” brownies, but I didn’t want just ok, I wanted to make something that would be so delicious no one would think to question the vegan or non-vegan attributes.  Finally, I came upon Mattie’s 7yr vegan brownie odyssey and his Ultimate Vegan Brownie recipe (http://www.veganbaking.net/recipes/brownies-and-bars/brownies/ultimate-brownies).  They looked amazing, and like a good jumping off point, so I jumped (fingers crossed!!).

Well, these brownies came out incredible and yummy.  They are rich and fudgy, with a perfect crispy top, and an intense chocolate flavor.  I would still change a couple minor things just because I’m particular, but really they are pretty awesome just the way they are.  Woohooo, here’s to another vegan odyssey ending in success :).

Vegan Brownies

• 2 tbl ground flax seed
• 6tbl warm water
• 1 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 cup butter substitute
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup strong coffee, cold
• 1/4 cup + 2 tbl almond milk
• 3/4 cup walnuts (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350F.  Line an 8×8 pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil and spray with baking spray.
2. In a small bowl, combine the flax seed and water and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, cocoa powder, salt, and sugar.
4. In a separate microwave-proof bowl, combine the butter and chocolate chips, and heat in the microwave 30 seconds at a time, until the chocolate is completely melted (this is so it doesn’t boil over).
5. Add the coffee, vanilla, flax seed mixture, and almond milk to the melted chocolate.
6. Add the wets to the drys, mix until well combined, but be careful not to overmix.  Stir in walnuts.
7. Scoop into prepared pan and bake for 35-40 minutes. {I baked them for 35 minutes and it wasn’t quite long enough, the center was still a bit more gooey than I like}

**things I would potentially alter next time:

• I would use a 9×13 pan.  The 8×8 pan was fine but made a super thick brownie and I prefer thinner ones.  Doing this would also mean adjusting the baking time.
• I would play around with using all coffee and no almond milk, or all almond milk and no coffee.
• There is also potential for adding other things besides walnuts:  chocolate chips, coconut, different extracts, vegan candies