Fudgy Nut Butter Vegan Brownies

I'm not sure if I'll ever need to post another brownie recipe ever again. Between our Black Bean Brownies and now these positively perfect fudgy brownies, I truly don't know if we could make anything better!

This recipe was a labour of love to create for you guys (and for my belly). We tweaked it again and again until I can finally say, I think they're perfect. With a beautiful, slight chocolatey crinkle on top, these brownies completely melt in your mouth. Chocolate lovers, put on your stretchy pants because I know you won't be able to eat just one. Enjoy!

🖤 Fudgy Nut Butter Vegan Brownies 🖤

Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup pure maple syrup
• 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce
• 2 Tbsp nut butter (I preferred peanut butter or almond butter)
• 3 tsp chia seeds or ground flaxseed
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 5 Tbsp cocoa powder
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp fine sea salt 

• Optional add-ins: 1/4 cup vegan chocolate chips or 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
• Optional topping: 4 Tbsp nut butter (pictures show peanut butter), 2 Tbsp almond milk, 1 Tbsp pure maple syrup

Note: If using chia seeds, you will certainly get a little bit of crunch in your brownies. Quite honestly, I preferred it with chia seeds because the overall texture of the brownies was out of this world!!

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line an 8x8 baking dish with parchment paper, with a little overhang on the sides. In a small bowl, mix together maple syrup, applesauce, nut butter, chia or ground flax seeds and vanilla and set aside for 15 minutes to allow the seeds to soak.
2. In a large bowl, mix together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and sea salt.
3. Once the seeds have soaked for 15 minutes, add your wet ingredients to your bowl of dry ingredients. Once combined, fold in chocolate chips or walnuts, if desired. *Please note that I did find the walnuts changed the overall taste of the brownies. I would only recommend adding them if you are a walnut lover! 
4. Pour the batter into your prepared baking dish. If desired, slightly warm and mix together ingredients for the nut butter topping, and drizzle over brownie mixture. I did this by heating the ingredients in the microwave in a small glass dish until just warm (do NOT overheat) and whisking with a fork. I then transferred the mixture into a small ziploc bag, squeezed all the air out and cut a small piece off of one corner to use as an icing bag. There was lots leftover, but perfect because I plan to make another batch soon!
5. Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes. When finished, let cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then using the sides of the parchment paper, transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before cutting into 12 brownies. If you cut them while they're still warm, it'll get messy, but they taste amaaaazing when they're warm!

 Be amazed that these are vegan, and enjoy!!

They're still incredible without any nut butter topping! Just look at that perfect chocolatey crisp!