These dairy free black bean and cherry brownies will be one of your favorite desserts this year! The beans blend wonderfully with the chocolate – I promise, your kiddos won’t suspect this fiber-booster in this sweet treat. And fresh cherries add a fun pop of flavor. You’ll love this simple dessert recipe with no expensive dairy free substitutes, just pantry-friendly ingredients.
Quick heads up: the texture of these black bean cherry brownies is a bit lighter and more cake-like when first out of the oven. They do get a little fudgier when you refrigerate them though. That said, if you’re looking for a super fudgy recipe, I recommend my dairy free brownies with olive oil.
Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you’ll need to make this recipe, with some selected ingredient notes:
- Canned black beans – You’re going to use both the liquid from the can (called “aquafaba”) and the black beans themselves in this recipe. It might sound weird to add these to a dessert, but I promise, it tastes good.
- Cherries – I have used both fresh pitted cherries and frozen pitted cherries for this recipe; either works.
- Dairy-free dark chocolate chips – I recommend Enjoy Life dark chocolate morsels (note: amazon affiliate links; I earn a commission on purchases), as I find the quality of the chocolate to be great and love the rich flavor. Wegmans brand or Guittard extra dark chocolate chips also work. (Keep in mind that some brands, like Guittard, have other varieties that are *not* dairy free, so be sure to check the labels to ensure you’re choosing the right option.)
Surprised not to see cocoa powder? I developed this recipe a long time ago when I was out of cocoa powder that day and just kind of stuck with it, haha. Because of that, it’s important to use high quality dark chocolate so that you get that rich cocoa flavor.
Instructions
You’ll find the full recipe amounts and instructions in the recipe card below, but here’s a helpful overview with photos and tips.
Start by pureeing the beans and some of their liquid together in a food processor, like this:
Mix that with the applesauce, sugar, oil, and vanilla.
Melt about two-thirds of your dark chocolate. I always do this using a microwave safe bowl and microwaving in 30-second intervals. The key is to stir in between each interval! It will melt pretty quickly and doing it like this ensures it doesn’t burn. Pour that melted dark chocolate into the mixing bowl with the other ingredients.
Now add the dry ingredients and fold in the cherries.
Pour that in an 8×8 dish, bake, and enjoy! I recommend storing these in an airtight container in the fridge because of the black beans in them; store for up to 4 days and reheat in the microwave if you want a warm piece.
Allergens and Modifications
Disclaimer: Always double check ingredients and labels yourself prior to making a recipe. While I try to check all ingredients for allergens, there’s always the chance I may miss something, or manufacturer formulations can change.
As written, this recipe is dairy free, egg free, and nut free.
This recipe does contain wheat/gluten (in the flour). It also may contain soy in the chocolate chips, and of note, vegetable oil is derived from soy (some folks with soy allergies may still eat it, but calling it out here).
To make wheat/gluten free, just use a 1-1 gluten free flour blend in place of the all purpose flour. To make soy free, use avocado oil instead of vegetable oil, and double check that your chocolate chips do not contain soy. (Enjoy Life chocolate chips are soy-free).
More Dairy Free Chocolate Desserts
Who doesn’t love a good chocolate dessert?! One of my favorite dairy-free options is this Guinness chocolate cake, which is so good around St. Patrick’s Day. These double chocolate olive oil cookies are also a top choice; I love the way fruity, earthy olive oil pairs with cocoa and dark chocolate chips. You can also try these dairy free chocolate glazed donuts (they give me Dunkin vibes but completely dairy free!).
I hope you enjoy these black bean cherry brownies – if you get a chance to try ’em, feel free to leave a recipe rating or comment below!
Dairy Free Black Bean and Cherry Brownies
Ingredients
- ½ cup canned black beans
- ⅓ cup the liquid from the can of black beans (also called "aquafaba")
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup unsweetened applesauce
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil (or any neutral oil)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup dairy-free chocolate chips, divided
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¾ cup chopped pitted cherries
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8×8 dish and set aside.
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Add the beans and the liquid from the can of beans to a small food processor. Puree until smooth. Pour in a mixing bowl.
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To the same mixing bowl, add the sugar, applesauce, oil, and vanilla. Stir together until well combined.
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Take ⅔ cup of the dark chocolate chips and place them in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring in between each, until the chocolate is fully melted. Stir this into the mixing bowl.
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Add the flour, baking powder, and salt to the mixing bowl and stir to combine.
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Fold in chopped cherries and remaining ⅓ cup of dark chocolate chips.
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Pour into the 8×8 dish and bake at 350 degrees F for about 20-25 minutes, or until the top looks dry and a toothpick pulls out clean. Let cool and slice into squares.
Recipe Notes
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- An 8×8 pan of brownies will make 9 large brownies (cut 3×3) or 16 small brownies (cut 4×4). The nutrition analysis below assumes 16 small brownies.
Nutrition analysis (approximate per small brownie): 179 calories, 11 g fat, 4 g saturated fat, 100 mg sodium, 24 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber, 13 g sugar, 2.5 g protein, Vitamin D: 0%, Calcium: 3%, Iron: 20%, Potassium: 4%
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