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Paleo Raspberry Cacao Brownies! Made gluten free, dairy free and nut free! A deliciously sinful tasting dessert that's healthy and quick to make! Top with a raspberry chocolate sauce for more chocolatey goodness! Paleo + Gluten Free + Low Calorie
Looking for a tasty treat today? These Raspberry Cacao Brownies will do the trick!
They're grain-free, dairy-free, gluten free, low in sugar and only 67 calories each and so easy to make.
I like to remind my clients that while calories are important for their weight loss goals, the composition of their foods and macronutrients are important too.
We often forget that a 100-calorie snack pack with do different things to our hunger and satiety hormones than a 100-calorie balanced snack with protein and fiber. More on this in this podcast episode!
What Makes These Grain Free Brownies Healthier?
- Lower Calorie - Only 67 calories per brownie. Remember calories are not everything, the composition of calories is important to for hunger and satiety hormones.
- Lower Carb - These brownies are reduced in added sugar and contain no grains or grain-based flours making them lower in carb. I also used coconut flour to add a bit of fiber to the brownies.
- Protein - Each brownie has 3 grams of protein. Protein balanced in meals and snacks is so important and something I constantly talk to my clients about. Women over 35 are losing muscle mass year over year - couple that with chronic dieting (losing weight and gaining weight) causes the metabolism to down regulate. This makes weight gain much easier and is why adequate protein intake is so important.
Ingredients For Paleo Cacao Brownies
Here's what you need to make Paleo brownies that are lower in sugar.
- Eggs
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Maple Syrup
- Vanilla Extract
- Coconut Flour
- Cacao Powder
- Baking Soda
- Salt
- Raspberries
- Coconut Oil
- Chocolate Chips, dairy-free
See the substitutions section below for substituting specific ingredients!
How To Store Paleo Raspberry Brownies
These healthy grain-free brownies do need to be refrigerated or kept frozen.
- Refrigerator - Keep the brownies in an airtight container 5-7 days. Make sure the brownies are fully cooled to room temperature prior to refrigerating.
- Freezer - You can freeze these Paleo brownies in a plastic storage bag or airtight container up to 3 months. You can freeze them first on a baking sheet spread out into individual servings so they don't stick together during freezing. I like to place parchment paper in between the brownies as further insurance they won't stick together.
Substitutions For Raspberry Cacao Brownies
Here are the substitutions you can make for this easy and healthy dessert recipe. Remember when you make substitutions, it does change the nutritional values from what you see in the recipe card below.
- Cacao Powder - Cocoa powder can be used instead.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil - As long as you are baking 350 F or below, olive oil is safe to bake with. You can also use coconut oil or avocado oil.
- Eggs - I do not recommend replacing the eggs in this recipe as it is needed to bind the brownies.
- Maple Syrup - The maple syrup gives these brownies just the right touch of sugar. I prefer things lower in sugar personally so to some people these may not be sweet enough. If that is the case, I recommend using cocoa powder. If you want a lower calorie added sweetener, you can use a zero calorie maple syrup or maple syrup sweetened with monkfruit.
- Coconut Flour - I do not recommend replacing the coconut flour in this recipe as it binds the brownies along with the eggs. You could try almond flour, but I have not tried it myself.
- Raspberries - I used fresh raspberries for this recipe and I recommend you do the same. While you could replace with frozen raspberries, it can be tricky to replace baked recipes with frozen fruit as It disrupts the dry and wet ingredient ratios.
- Chocolate Chips - I used dairy-free chocolate chips for this recipe. Any chocolate chips will work with the recipe.
Paleo Raspberry Cacao Brownies
Ingredients
Brownies
- 4 eggs
- 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup maple syrup or liquid stevia
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons coconut flour
- 1/2 cup cacao powder cocoa powder can be subbed
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup raspberries
Raspberry Chocolate Sauce
- 1 teaspoon coconut oil
- 1/4 cup raspberries
- 1 tablespoon chocolate chips dairy free
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare a baking pan with parchment paper or lightly grease with olive oil.
- Mix the eggs, oil, maple syrup and vanilla extract together in a bowl.
- Add the flour, cacao, baking soda and salt to combine.
- Next add the raspberries breaking them down into the batter with a spatula. Don't leave them whole in the batter as it will weight it down and be difficult to slice into and eat.
- Bake at 350 F for 30 minutes or until a toothpick can be inserted in the center.
- Remove from the oven and cool in the pan 10-15 minutes before slicing into 16 brownies.
- While the brownies cool in the pan, make the sauce by placing the ingredients in a glass bowl over a pot of boiling water. Make sure the pot is large enough to sit on top of the pot.
- Stir the ingredients together until smooth. Pour over the brownies and devour!
Notes
- The brownies are lightly sweetened as I am do not like things super sweet. You can add up to a 1/2 cup total of maple syrup if they are not sweet enough for you. This will alter the nutritional info.
- Nutritional info does not include raspberry chocolate sauce.
- My Amazon shop has more products similar to those used for this recipe and that I recommend to my nutrition clients.
Nutrition
What I Used For The Recipe
These look good. Thanks for sharing. Did you pour the sauce over the whole pan of brownies before cutting them? Or, did you pour sauce on each individual cut brownie?
I put it on individual brownies. They get soggy otherwise with the sauce sitting on top.
Yum, these brownies look tasty Megan! I made Lynne Pancakes for Valentines Day. I think it would have been nice to have had a chocolate treat like these though too. I'll save that thought for next year. Or, as you talk about, should I just make then now as every day should be a celebration of showing how you feel for each other shouldn't it?
Happy Valentine’s Day! These look amazing!
Thank you! You too Emily!
OMG Men, Paul says "it's a made up holiday" he doens't like being told when and how to show he loves his wife. LOL whatever I bought candy last night and we ate it ALL well not all but a pretty impressive chunk! Now he is giving up sugar for lent and I'm giving up chocolate !
I can't believe Matt gave me a dozen roses after he told me we weren't doing anything.
These are my Valentine. I need to divorce Alex so I can marry them!
LOL I think your new baby is really your Valentine!