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These No-Bake Vegan Cosmic Brownies are just as delicious as your favorite childhood treat, but are gluten free and good for you too!
Have you ever said “no” to a brownie?
Even if you have (though I’m doubtful), it’d be pretty dang hard to decline these yummy AND nutritious treats.
I’ve posted some No-Bake Rocky Road Brownies to the blog in the past, but I wanted to keep things simple with this one. These only require 6 ingredients + salt and come together in no time at all! Plus, they remind me of my favorite lunch box snack as a child, knows as the “Cosmic Brownie.”
Granted these don’t have rainbow chocolate chips, but other than that I’d say they’re pretty spot-on!
They’re fudgy, perfectly sweet, and would be perfect as a lunchbox snack, afternoon treat, or dessert! I’ve been loving them as-is, but you could also spread some peanut butter on top, or chop them up and use them as a sundae topping.
I mean, can we all appreciate this heavenly chocolatey square for a moment?
That my friends, is a decadent brownie thatĀ won’t leave you with a stomach ache afterwards. Yay, plants!
A Few Final Thoughts:
- I chose to use Buckwheat Flour in this recipe because it allows the brownies to achieve a fudgy textureĀ without having to bake them. Plus, it can be eaten raw and is actually a decent source of protein. I wouldĀ not advise or suggest any flour substitutions for this recipe.
- Feel free to use any chocolate of your choice for the chips – I prefer minis because they become more evenly distributed throughout the brownie. If you’re looking for something that is completely free of refined sugar, check out this chocolate that is sweetened only with stevia!
- These brownies stay fresh on the counter for up to 7 days, but you could also freeze them and defrost as necessary – they’ll stay fresh in there for a month or so.
Finally, if you make this recipe be sure to post a photo on Instagram and tag me @frommybowl + #frommybowl! I can’t wait to drool over your yummy chocolatey recreations š
PrintNo-Bake Vegan Cosmic Brownies
These No-Bake Vegan Cosmic Brownies are just as delicious as your favorite childhood treat, but are gluten free and good for you too!
- Prep Time: 50 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 10 brownies 1x
Ingredients
- 1 cup Medjool Dates
- 3/4 cup Buckwheat Flour
- 1/2 cup Cacao Powder
- 1/4 cup Almond Butter
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1/4 tsp Salt
- 1/3 cup Mini Vegan Chocolate Chips, divided
Instructions
- Pit the Medjool Dates and cover them with warm water. Set aside to let soak for 10 minutes.
- In the meantime, mix the Buckwheat Flour, Cacao Powder, and Salt together in a large bowl.
- Drain the Dates, then add them to a food processor or high speed blender with the Almond Butter and Vanilla Extract. Process until smooth.
- Add the Date and Almond Butter mixture to the bowl with the dry ingredients. Reserve 2 tbsp of the mini chocolate chips, then add the remaining chips to the bowl as well.
- Mix everything with a fork to start, then eventually you will need to use your hands to combine everything well. The mixture should be a soft dough when finished and should only be slightly sticky.
- Transfer the brownie “dough” to a loaf pan lined with parchment paper, then use your hands or a spatula to spread it out evenly in the pan (Note: it helps to lightly wet your fingers for this step). Sprinkle the remaining 2 tbsp of chocolate chips over the tops of the brownies and press them into the “dough.”
- Place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes, to allow the mixture to thicken. Then, remove and slice as desired (I made 10 brownies, but you could also make 8 larger ones as well).
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 7 days, or in the freezer for up to 1 month – let thaw before enjoying, obviously š
Notes
There isĀ no substitute for Buckwheat Flour for this recipe.Ā
Almond Butter may be substituted for any other nut or seed butter of choice, just keep in mind that this will affect the flavor.Ā
Make sure your chocolate chips are Vegan – I used the Mini Chips by Enjoy Life Foods.
Want to save these Vegan Cosmic Brownies for later? “Pin” them using the image below!
Wow, really! I’m thrilled. These no-bake refined sugar free brownies are amazing! Even my dad ate a lot of them. I made them yesterday and they’re already gone because they were sooo good š
Thank you so much for your beyond amazing recipe! I really appreciate that!
★★★★★
You’re so welcome, Jules! We appreciate the review.
Make this often. You can definitely use oat flour as a substitute, despite the recipe notes.
★★★★★
Thank you for the feedback, Celine!
These homemade granola bars are made from wholesome ingredients, but taste just like the childhood favorite! Vegan, Gluten-Free, Refined Sugar-Free.
★★★★★
Just made this super simple and tasty recipe, thank you so much for it ! I have some leftover tahini pots, do you think it could work as well for the next time I’ll do this recipe or would affect the flavor?
Are you thinking of swapping the almond butter for tahini?
Did you make it? I also have some leftover tahini
if you have a powerful blender like a vitamix it blends buckwheat groats.
You can blend and make your own flours but sometimes getting it as fine as store bought is just more hassle. Vitamix is great, though!
I didn’t have any almond butter, so I used powdered low fat peanut butter. I also made a mistake by using a big blender, so I had to add half a cup of almond milk to get the dates and PB to blend at all. It was pretty disastrous and thought the whole thing was a lost cause but it actually came out delicious and really reminds me of cosmic brownies which I do miss as a vegan! Thanks!! One day I’ll follow your exact recipe with a decent food processor.
Hey Caitlin!
I tried this recipe but somehow the brownies are not sweet. Did you use unsweetend cacao powder?
Greetings,
Hanna
Yes, I used unsweetened. You can add more Dates or Maple Syrup to the recipe if you would like them to be sweeter – also don’t forget the Chocolate Chips, as those help a lot!
my mixture is a bit crumbly, is this okay?
You can add 1-2 tbsp of Water or Plant Milk to make it more moist if that happens!
whats the nutrition calories and fat for this?
I do not calculate the nutrition information for my recipes, but there are plenty of free recipe calculators online that can help you out! š
I just got some dates because I have been DYING to make this recipe for ages!! Can’t wait to eat them today!
Yay! Hope you enjoyed š
Can you leave out the vanilla extract in this recipe? I don’t have any. Thanks!
yes!
Do I *need* to include the dates? I’m not a fan of them.. :S
yes, for this recipe you do. You can also substitute with another dried fruit if you’d like
could you use cacao nibs instead of chocolate chips, or do you think this wouldn’t be sweet enough?
I don’t think that would be sweet enough – you could do half chocolate chips and half cacao nibs though!
I just made these using oat flour and a nutribullet in my college dorm – SO good. Going to use them for meal prep, thank you for making my weekly meals 10x better š
★★★★★
that’s awesome! I’m glad they worked with oat flour too š
Made these late at night. They were super easy to throw togethet and suuuper yummy too. I also didnt have buckwhrat flour so i subbed oat flour!
★★★★★
I tried making this recipe and i followed everything and had the ratios right but it didn’t work! The “dough” isn’t turning into “dough” and its just like clumps with lots of extra flour and now I’m sad! What did i do wrong!!
Hi Colby, that is strange! If your dough is too dry, I would suggest adding 1-2 tbsp of extra plant milk. That should do the trick!
Why can I use a different kind of flour other than buckwheat?
Hi Bethany! This is because (1) all flours have different levels of absorbency, so the brownies may not come out as fudgy, and (2) it is not advised to eat most flours raw. Buckwheat and oat flours are ok, though – I have not tested this recipe with oat flour though!
I recently learned about the dangers of eating raw wheat flour so it is interesting to hear about buckwheat. Do you know if almond or rice flours are safe?
Almond Flour is fine, but I am not sure on rice flour!
These were AMAZING. I made them yesterday and they’re almost gone already. My family agrees, these are some of the best brownies ever(:
So glad you enjoyed them Zoƫ!
Oh my goodness… YUM! Thank you for your creativity! These will definitely be made again for my husband’s upcoming birthday!
★★★★★
So glad you enjoyed them!
Do you use the dark gray buckwheat flour from the store? Or do you grind up groats? These look so incredible, excited to try them!!
Violet, I use buckwheat flour that is a darker gray color. I don’t think you would be able to grind the groats on your own and make a flour that is fine enough