The most chocolatey fudgy sugar free brownies ever. This simple low carb and keto brownies recipe requires only 6 ingredients and works perfectly time after time. Ready in 30 minutes!
I have not yet met a person who does not like brownies. There is something irresistible about their intense chocolate flavor and their fudgy-ness. My guess is that you like them too - otherwise you would not be reading this!
These brownies are one of my favourite sugar free desserts. I adapted my original brownie recipe that's been passed down to me by my Grandma and made it low carb, gluten-free and keto friendly.
I was super pleased with how this sugar-free brownie recipe turned out. It is really easy to make and I've baked them many times since. They turn out like a dream every single time and satisfy even the strongest chocolate cravings. Pure deliciousness!
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Why This Recipe Works
Regular brownies are a feast of chocolate, butter and indulgent sweetness. It's the same with these low carb brownies - the only difference being that instead of sugar I used powdered sweetener and instead of flour my brownies contain almond flour.
This way, they're not only sugar-free, low carb and diabetic-friendly (they're 3.2g net carbs per portion), but also grain free and gluten-free.
Ingredients
You only need 6 ingredients for this recipe:
- Sugar free or dark chocolate
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Eggs
- Butter
- Sweetener
- Almond flour
Let's chat about the details!
Dark Or Sugar Free Chocolate
Use the best quality you can get hold of. There's a LOT of chocolate in this recipe - almost 2 chocolate bars - so you will be able to taste it. In the UK, Lindt is a popular quality brand and I went for their 90% dark chocolate. It contains only 7 grams of sugar per 100g, which is very low.
You could use unsweetened chocolate as well (in the UK there's a brand called Montezuma, in the US Baker's chocolate is a good option). In this case, you may want to increase the amount of sweetener.
If you decide to use sugar-free chocolate such as Lily's (available in the US via Amazon or in the UK via iherb), simply reduce the amount of sweetener you use.
Low Carb Sweetener
When I make this easy sugar free brownie recipe now I choose allulose because it yields the smoothest result and has no aftertaste.
If you decide to go for another sweetener, I recommend a monk fruit sweetener blend such as Lakanto.
Whichever sweetener you decide on - erythritol, xylitol, stevia, Swerve - be sure to use powdered sweetener. These brownies are very fudgy and their texture will be smoother this way.
With Swerve, be sure to use the cup measurements instead of grams. It's lighter than erythritol.
Grain Free Nut Flour
I've tried it - both fine almond flour and ground almonds work. I first used 100g / 1 cup and the second time reduced the amount to 80g / ¾ cup, which made the brownies even softer and more fudgy.
You could also use â…“ cup or 40 grams of coconut flour in place of the almond flour.
Fat
As you might have guessed even before checking the nutrition facts, Keto brownies are a high fat dessert. They are filling! That's why one batch makes 16 very satisfying portions.
I like butter in my brownies. But if you prefer, you can swap out the butter for coconut oil. If you do, make sure you use an extra virgin coconut oil - it's unrefined and you'll taste the difference.
Instructions
This section contains step-by-step instructions and photos that show how to make this recipe. See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities
1.) Melt the chocolate: Break the chocolate into squares and place in a small bowl. Place this bowl inside a larger bowl which you have filled with boiling water. The water will heat the walls of the small bowl and melt the chocolate.
2.) Blend the VERY soft (or melted) butter, powdered sweetener, eggs and unsweetened cocoa powder with a blender or in a food processor.
3.) Add the melted chocolate and almond flour and mix until you have a thick, smooth brownie batter. I did this in a food processor, but it is possible to simply stir it together with a fork. Option to add a pinch of salt for extra flavor.
4.) Line a rectangular baking pan or small casserole dish with parchment paper. Cut the paper to size so that it covers the bottom and two sides of the dish. Grease the two remaining sides (or cover these with parchment, too).
5.) Fill the batter into the baking dish and smoothen the top. Bake 25 minutes or until the top is firm.
6.) Let the sugar free brownies cool completely before you remove them from the baking tin. They will be VERY soft when warm, but firm up as they cool down.
Expert Tips
UNDERBAKE. I'd say one of the most important tips for extra fudgy brownies is to slightly under-bake them. Yes, take them out before you think they're done! The corners should be cooked and the top just set, but you're looking for a jiggly middle.
If you leave them in the oven for too long, you'll end up with crumbly brownies. We don't want that! Trust me and remove them from the oven after 25 minutes max.
LET COOL FULLY. Then, simply be patient and let them cool COMPLETELY before cutting. If you place them in the fridge, they will firm up even more.
Variations
Add baking powder: I did not use baking powder in this recipe. But if you would like a little rise like you'd expect in a cake, add 1 teaspoon of baking powder.
Experiment with flavor: You could also play around with different flavours - orange zest would be lovely, or try ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom and 1 teaspoon cinnamon for a warm flavour. 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract would also work here.
Add nuts: Feel free to add in chopped nuts such as walnuts or pecans!
Sugar-free chocolate chips: Option to stir ½ cup of sugar-free chocolate chips into the batter at the end. Lily's is a popular brand in the US.
Dairy-free: Use coconut oil instead of the butter.
Recipe FAQs
It is possible to use regular plain flour or oat flour instead of almond flour. Technically, it will still be no sugar brownie recipe. However, be aware that these flours contain carbohydrates that our bodies convert into glucose. And glucose is a sugar.
The recipe will work with coconut sugar. You can also use a mixture of honey and applesauce, although you may have to add a little more almond flour to stick to the same wet/dry ratio. Using these sugar alternatives will increase the total sugar content of the recipe.
Storage
It's best to store Keto brownies at room temperature, that way they stay nice and fudgy. They stay fresh for 3-4 days. Store in an airtight container to prevent them from drying out.
You can also store them in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Can you freeze them?
Absolutely! I pre-cut the brownies and then wrap them in parchment paper before freezing in an airtight container. Freeze for up to 3 months.
More Sugar Free Brownie Recipes
When I first started Sugar Free Londoner, I created these sweet potato brownies and then these pumpkin brownies. Since then, I have posted lots of low carb and keto brownie recipes on my website. Here they are:
- Keto Peanut Butter Brownies35 Minutes
- Keto Avocado Brownies Recipe55 Minutes
- Keto Coconut Flour Brownies40 Minutes
- Keto Cheesecake Brownies40 Minutes
Tried this recipe? Give it a star rating below!
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Recipe
Fabulously Fudgy Sugar Free Brownies
from Sugar Free LondonerNote: The servings slider only changes the first amount in each line and not any subsequent amounts. Please make your own calculations where necessary.
Ingredients
- 1.5 stick butter unsalted, softened, 175g, 6.17 oz
- â…” cup powdered sweetener 100g
- 3 eggs
- â…“ cup cocoa powder unsweetened, 40g
- 6 oz dark chocolate at least 85% cocoa solids, melted, 175g
- ¾ cup almond flour 75g
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180 Celsius / 356 Fahrenheit
- Melt the chocolate: Break the chocolate into squares and place in a small bowl. Place this bowl inside a larger bowl which you have filled with boiling water. The water will heat the walls of the small bowl and melt the chocolate. (see notes)
- Blend the VERY soft (or melted) butter, powdered sweetener, eggs and cocoa with a blender or in a food processor.
- Add the melted chocolate and almond flour and mix until you have a thick, smooth batter.
- Line a rectangular baking tin or small casserole dish with baking / parchment paper. Cut the paper to size so that it covers the bottom and two sides of the dish. Grease the two remaining sides.
- Fill the batter into the dish and smoothen the top. Bake 25 minutes or until the top is firm.
- Let the brownies cool before you remove them from the baking tin. They will be VERY soft when warm, but firm up as they cool down.
Anja
Oh thanks for this recipe! I made this yesterday and it is really delicious! its just perfect fudgy!
Thanks a lot!
I make a free digital magazine about low carb/keto eating. Can i use it? under your name ofcourse and i will link to your website!
the magazine is calded CarbGlossy.
Debbie
Can you tell me how many servings this makes? It isn't listed with the other nutritional information. THANKS
Katrin
Hi Debbie, the recipe makes 16 servings. Servings are always stated at the top of the recipe card.
Maximum
I’d love to add raspberries to these. Do you think that would be ok? And how much do you think?
Thank you xx
Katrin
That sounds like a great idea! I'd add a handful, so you'd get 2-3 per square/slice
Sanah Khan
Love it! It comes out amazing every single time. Ok so a silly question.. can this be taken on a 7 day travel nad stya out if the refrigerator without going bad?
Thanks.
Katrin
I think that depends on the temperature it's being kept at. It contains a lot of butter, which can go rancid when it's too hot. It's fine in the fridge and I'd say it will keep if you store it somewhere fairly cool, in an airtight container. Take it along wherever you're going and do a sniff test before enjoying 🙂
Kathy Graves
You are certainly a very patient woman to answer our questions. Thank you. I used a whole avocado for half the butter. I didn't have powdered sweetener, so I whomped it up in the blender. It looked pretty powdered to me, but we'll see. I also didn't have enough unsweetened chocolate, so I made up the difference with the equivalent formula on the baking cocoa package. (This is going to be a totally new recipe in a minute--I despise people who do that! ) I added sweetener to taste on top of what you did because the avocado flavor was too prominent. Then I added pecans and 75% chocolate chunks. (This was an emergency chocolate fix, I'm telling you!) I'm pretty sure I'm a true sugar addict, because I just couldn't find that zing that sugar adds. So I, hopefully wisely, gave up on adding more sweetener. It's in the oven now, and it smells chocolate-y. Fingers crossed! If it tastes yucky, I will repent and report to you my failings. XXXX
Katrin
I'm soo interested to hear how this went! I'm getting into using avocado in chocolate recipes, though I have yet to try it in baking. I've just redone my chocolate avocado mousse and made it keto - I previously had it sweetened with banana. Using the avocado in place of the butter makes the recipe more nutrient-dense, it really is a great idea. I think the 75% chocolate in your recipe would have given some nice sweetness, too. Thanks for your detailed description!!!
Daria
Can i use rice protein powder instead of almond flour?
Katrin
I have never tried that' but it's an interesting idea. It could work - if you try it out let me know how it went!
Sky
Hi, instead of using almond flour could I use coconut flour?
Katrin
Hi there, you could try that but definitely use less coconut flour than almond flour. I suggest starting with 1/3 the amount. Wait a couple of minutes until the flour has absorbed all liquid and see if you think it's enough. I think it should be. Definitely do not use more than 1/2 the amount or your brownies will become too dry.
TEE
Can I use salted butter and equal gold sticks?
Katrin
I think using salted butter might be interesting. Salted chocolate always tasted good! You might need to up the sweetener a bit so it's not overpowering. I think equal is a sweetener brand? I have not used it. Check if it's a 1:1 sugar replacement, ten you can use it in the same amounts as the erythritol
John James
Please check out the safety of equal Canderell and all other artificial sweeteners. They upset your digestive system and make you put on weight. The changes can also encourage you to become type 2 diabetic. Avoid diet drinks and reduced sugar Ribeana etc. Only Stevia, erithritol, xylitol and other sugar alcohols are considered safe. Tesco and Sainsbury's both sell sugar free dark chocolate.
Katrin
Hi John, do you mean unsweetened dark chocolate? I have not come across a sugar free brand at Tesco or Sainsburys.
Ruthie
I'm using Baker's Unsweetened for my chocolate. Should I increase the amount of powdered erythritol I'm using?
Also, made these a few days ago but they turned out very dry and not sweet. I followed the measurements and ingredients exactly (switched my scale to grams for better accuracy, even 🙂 so I was surprised. After scouring the recipe and all the comments I think I have the answer: in the oldest comment you state you used a 14 x 23 cm pan. This is about the same as a 9" x 5" loaf pan. It's rare to bake anything but bread in this size tin in the US unless specified in the directions. I used a "regular" (for here) 9" x 13" baking pan, which probably accounts for dryness and lack of sweetness because I'm sure they were burnt! Here goes a second try! 🙂
Katrin
Hi Ruthie, thank you for your comment about the baking pan - I'll add that into the post to clarify. It is possible that if your brownies were flatter than mine because your pan was larger they would turn out drier and maybe even burned a bit.
As for the chocolate, I'd say you probably need an additional 2 tbsp of sweetener if you use unsweetened chocolate. 90% chocolate contains 7g of sugar only and is actually not very sweet.
However, I'm not sure that that lack of sweetness you found was due to the pan / dryness. Maybe you just prefer your brownies a little sweeter than I do, we're all different. Definitely taste your batter and add some more if you feel it needs it!
Ruthie
Thank you! I made these again on Saturday and used 110g powdered Swerve instead of 100g. They are much better this time. A LOT more moist in the 9" x 5" pan - and sweeter than my first attempt, too. In comparison, I think I burnt the first batch badly! Only the center brownies in this pan are really "fudgy", though. The edges of the outer pieces are still burnt, so I guess it's just my oven?? Will just reduce baking time on next batch and maybe add a bit more sweetener... I love the batter so it's strange. Practice, eh? 😀 Thank you for such a great recipe and awesome website! It's an amazing resource.
Katrin
That's so good to hear Ruthie. Sounds like next time they will be perfect 🙂
Allie
Can I use a 8 inch pan?
Katrin
I'm sure that would work too. Your brownies will be a little thicker. I don't think it would affect the oven time.
Lenka
I only have granulated Xylitol. How much shall I use instead of the 100g powdered sweetener?
Katrin
I'd start with 1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp / or, if you have scales, stick with 100g.
Allison
can you tell me the protein content per serving?
Katrin
HI Allison, I've re-calculated the recipe and updated the protein - it's 2.9g per serving.