4 recipes for zucchini brownies: vegan, without sugar, with whole wheat flour or from the Thermomix

While strawberries have conquered gardens and kitchens so far, everything is now about zucchini! This tasty vegetable is so versatile that it has sneaked into the hearts of all baking fans not only because of its impressive nutritional values. You may have heard of zucchini noodles, zucchini casseroles, quiche and lasagna. But did you know that vegetables are also wonderful ingredients for sweet pastries? We provide you with proof of this with 4 recipes for zucchini brownies that are not only incredibly tasty, but also healthy.

Juicy zucchini brownies with chocolate chips

Without eggs, without butter and other animal products – these Zucchini Chocolate Brownies are juicy and just delicious! In addition, the preparation takes very little time and is ideal for a spontaneous afternoon baking. This is how the zucchini brownies are made:

For 12 pieces:

• 250 g flour
• 300 g of sugar
• 50 g unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 220 g rapeseed or other vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 440 g finely grated zucchini
• 200 g dark chocolate pieces

Preheat the oven to 175 degrees and line a baking sheet (22 x 33 cm) with baking paper. Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl, then add the oil and vanilla extract. The mixture should end up resembling sand. Fold in the zucchini and stir until a moist, thick consistency is formed. Fold in 2/3 of the chocolate chips and distribute the finished dough on the baking sheet. Scatter the remaining chocolate chips over the top. Bake everything for 28 to 32 minutes and use the toothpick sample to check that the cake is ready (it should no longer be moist). Let it cool completely before cutting the zucchini brownies.

Tip: You can prepare these zucchini brownies vegan by either leaving out the chocolate chips or using vegan chocolate instead.

Vegan zucchini brownies without flour and sugar

This recipe is for zucchini brownies with no sugar, using maple syrup instead (a healthier alternative). You can also get vegan brownies by using flaxseed instead of eggs and almond butter instead of regular ones. You can also use a vegan variant without milk for the chocolate chips.

For 16 pieces:

• 260 g peeled and grated zucchini
• 1 tbsp ground flaxseed
• 2 tbsp water
• 240 g almond butter
• 100 g maple syrup
• 35 g cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 170 g dark chocolate pieces

Preheat the oven to 175 degrees and line a baking sheet (20 x 20 cm) with baking paper. Squeeze the grated zucchini to remove excess liquid (in a fine sieve or in portions in your fist) so the zucchini brownies don’t get soggy. Combine the flax seeds and water in a small bowl and set aside. Then mix the remaining ingredients in a bowl, adding the flaxseed as well and only folding in the chocolate chips at the end. Spread the finished dough on the baking sheet. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes (test with the toothpick sample) and let the finished cake cool completely before slicing it into brownies.

Recipe with whole wheat flour

You can also get healthy brownies if you use whole grain flour instead of wheat. Coconut oil is used for this zucchini brownies recipe, but you can also replace it with olive oil or rapeseed oil. Either way, these delicacies are guaranteed to taste good! And they’re sugar-free too!

For 16 pieces:

• 350 g grated zucchini
• 100 g coconut oil, melted (or olive / rapeseed oil)
• 150 g natural maple syrup
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 210 g whole wheat flour
• 50 g unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• 225 g chocolate chips (if desired with 50 to 70% cocoa content)

Preheat the oven to 175 degrees and line a baking sheet (20 x 20 cm) with baking paper. Let the paper protrude on two opposite sides. Then squeeze some of the liquid out of the grated zucchini, but not all of the liquid. Then mix the coconut oil, maple syrup, eggs and vanilla in a bowl. Fold in the zucchini. In a separate bowl, again mix the dry ingredients, then add them to the liquid mixture and stir everything well. Fold in the chocolate chips and place the finished dough on the baking sheet. Bake the cake for 30 to 35 minutes and take it out of the oven to cool after the toothpick sample shows it’s done. Then cut the cooled cake into 16 zucchini brownies.

Prepared with cashew in the Thermomix

Do you have a Thermomix? Perfect, because with its help you can prepare delicious brownies with zucchini even faster and more conveniently. The cashews are an original ingredient for the following Zucchini Brownies from the Thermomix. You can also replace these with other nuts. How to prepare the juicy mini cakes:

For 15 pieces:

• 150 g zucchini, cut into large pieces
• 100 g cashew nuts or other nuts
• 50 g dark chocolate, crushed
• 75 g butter
• 2 eggs
• 150 g of brown sugar
• 50 g flour
• 1 level teaspoon baking powder
• 2 heaped teaspoons of cocoa powder
• 1 packet of vanilla sugar

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees and grease a baking sheet (28 x 17 cm) or a springform pan. Chop the zucchini together with the seeds for 5 seconds on level 6 in the Thermomix. Fill in the mixture and then melt the butter and chocolate chips in the device for 4 minutes on level 1 (50 degrees). Then add the brown sugar, eggs and vanilla sugar and stir everything for one minute on level 4. Mix the remaining dry ingredients, add them to the Thermomix through the lid opening and stir on level 3. Then you can stir in the zucchini with the seeds for 20 seconds, using level 2. Spread the batter on the baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes. Once the chocolate cake has cooled, cut it into small zucchini brownies.