St Patrick’s Day Brownies (Vegan GF-Option)

These vegan brownies are fudgy, rich and so indulgent made with only a few simple ingredients. Use mint chocolate, cut them into shamrocks and decorate them with a fresh creamy green buttercream for the ultimate St Patrick’s Day bake (that is also gluten-free friendly).

Every year St Patrick’s Day comes around and it’s not something I tend to celebrate or make much for. But this year, I wanted to develop a special recipe as this past year has been tough and we all need a little more fun where we can get it. For this example, the fun comes in the form of St Patrick’s Day Brownies. Rich and fudgy, the brownies are so easy to make in a few steps and the fun part is cutting them up into shapes and frosting with a bright green buttercream. I’ve shared two options for the frosting depending on whether you want to use matcha powder (I used this for the photos below, and you cannot even taste it!) or regular green food colouring (they are not all vegan, so read the labels carefully).

The base for these fudgy brownies relies on dark chocolate and I used mint chocolate to continue to green theme, but any will work:

• Dark chocolate: use any flavour and even milk chocolate would work, but make sure they are dairy-free, if needed, and remember that the flavour of the chocolate will impact the flavour of the baked brownies. I used this Mint Dark Chocolate.
• Vegan butter or margarine: due to the fudgy texture of these brownies, I think butter or margarine work better than coconut oil here.
• Ground chia or flax seeds: these act as our “egg” replacer to bind the brownies together and add a lovely moist texture. I like to grind my own chia seeds first but you could use ground flaxseed too, which are available in most shops now.
• Sugar: this is essential for the lovely sticky and shiny top of these brownies. You can use coconut or caster sugar, but I do not recommend using a sweetener which will not act in the same way to form the glossy top.
• Vanilla essence: for flavour – you can skip it if you have run out.
• Plain flour or GF plain flour: this keeps the St Patrick’s Day Brownies really light and fluffy while still being dense and fudgy. I think spelt flour would also work and if using a GF flour, make sure it is a recommended 1:1 blend with xantham gum to bind the batter.
• Cocoa or cacao powder: you can use either but use one that is 100% cocoa/cacao and not one with added sugars as this will mess around with the ratios and richness.
• Baking powder: for a rise but not too much as we want these to be fudgy rather than cakey.
• Ground almonds: I love adding this to my bakes for the lovely nutty taste and texture. If you are nut-free you could use ground sunflower seeds, for example, or swap the almonds for the grind/meal/flour of another nut like hazelnut or peanut.

Making these St Patrick’s Day Brownies is pretty straight forwards and relies on a few steps, which are explained in more detail in the method below.

• Melt together the chocolate, butter and water: to a silky-smooth mix.
• Whisk in the sugar: until fully dissolved. This is our liquid mix that makes it so sticky, and it may look oily but this is essential for the shine on top.
• Make the chia egg: and then add with the vanilla to the wet mix.
• Sift the dry ingredients: and stir to a thick sticky batter. Pour into a tin and smooth over the top.
• Bake until just done: or a little under-done for fudgy brownies. We want them fudgy but sturdy enough to be able to cut out shapes. If you are not cutting them out into shapes, you can leave them a little softer/fudgier.

Once they are baked, allow to cool fully and then cut out the shapes. This step is optional, and if you don’t have cutters, simply slice them into squares or bars. Also remember to ice and eat the scraps around the shapes, too, or make cake balls.

The green buttercream for these St Patrick’s Day Brownies is a really simple and trust-worthy blend of vegan butter, icing sugar, plant-based milk and either green matcha tea powder or green food colouring. Add as much or as little as you like to reach the desired shade of green and then pipe to your hearts content. I also added on some St Patrick’s Day sprinkles (again, these are optional).

These brownies last for a few days, if you can resist, and un-frosted brownies will keep well wrapped up in the freezer for a month for when your brownie cravings hit. They are so yummy warmed back up (without the buttercream) and enjoyed with ice cream, too.

These brownies are fudgy and deliciously rich and decadent, balancing out the sweet buttercream. They are naturally vegan, easy to make with gluten-free options and they are so fun to make with little ones. Why not try cutting out any number of shapes and colouring the buttercream any colour? 

Let your imagination run wild!

If you are looking for other bakes, how about my:

• Vegan Double Chocolate Brownie Cake for 2
• Dark Chocolate Raspberry Fudge Banana Bread
• Vegan Gluten-free Vanilla Sheet Cake
• Strawberries and Cream Donut Sandwiches
• Espresso Cinnamon Roll Tear and Share

St Patrick's Day Brownies (Vegan GF-Option)

• Servings: 6-12
• Time: 40 minutes plus cooling
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

These vegan brownies are fudgy, rich and so indulgent made with only a few simple ingredients. Use mint chocolate, cut them into shamrocks and decorate them with a fresh creamy green buttercream for the ultimate St Patrick’s Day bake (that is also gluten-free friendly).

Ingredients

Brownies:
• 120g dark chocolate (mint works well), broken up
• 80g vegan butter or margarine
• 2 tbsp ground chia or flaxseed + 5 tbsp water
• 60ml water
• 200g golden caster or coconut sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 130g plain or GF plain flour
• 50g cocoa or cacao powder
• ¼ tsp baking powder
• 60g ground almonds
• A pinch of salt
Green Buttercream:
• 50g vegan butter
• 150g icing sugar
• 1-2 tsp plant-based milk
• ¼ -1/2 tsp matcha powder or green food colouring
• Sprinkles, to decorate

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 150Fan/170*C and line a tin with parchment paper (18cm x 26cm).
2. Add the chocolate, butter/margarine and 60ml water to a small saucepan and stir until melted. Allow to cool for 5 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, make the chia/flax egg by stirring the chia or flaxseed with the water and leave to form a gel.
4. Pour the sugar into the chocolate mix and whisk until smooth and dissolved then pour in the vanilla and chia/flax gel.
5. Sift the flour, cocoa powder and baking powder into a large bowl and add the ground almonds with a pinch of salt.
6. Pour the wet mix into the mixing bowl and stir to a thick batter. Pour into the lined tin, smooth over the top and bake for 20-25 minutes until firm to touch but slightly wet in the centre.
7. Allow to cool fully and then cut out the shapes or leave as a whole.
8. Make the buttercream by beating the butter until soft and gradually adding in the icing sugar, plant-based milk and matcha powder/green food colouring. Pipe or spread over the cooled brownies, and then slice the brownies if you are cutting into squares. Decorate with the sprinkles. Store in an airtight container for 3-5 days or keep un-frosted brownies in the freezer for 1 month.

I look forward to hearing what you think of these St Patrick’s Day Brownies so please let me know in the comments below and tag me in your fun bakes! I love seeing your creations – I’m @nourishing.amy on Instagram and use the hashtag #nourishingamy. I’m also on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest  – please say hello!

With St Patrick’s Day love x