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These super fudgy gluten-free mint chocolate brownies couldn’t be simpler and are a perfect Christmas treat!
When it’s time to plan my Christmas dessert menu, something with chocolate and mint always makes its way to the top of the list. It has such a soothing effect, which is always nice after weeks of holiday preparation!
I’ve made these mint chocolate brownies a few different ways and my favorite version is also the easiest one to make. Add peppermint extract to the batter and instead of adding frosting, just toss in some chocolate chips! Make sure to use peppermint extract and not mint extract, which tastes more like spearmint and doesn’t complement chocolate very well.
If you prefer cakey brownies, you’ll want to try another recipe as these are incredibly gooey and fudgy, as long as you don’t overmix the batter or overbake the brownies. They’re also intensely chocolatey. The key to that is Dutch-process cocoa powder, which imparts a darker and deeper chocolate taste than regular cocoa powder. If you don’t have access to it, I recommend Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder.
Have you ever baked with buckwheat flour? I was interested in it because it’s 100% whole grain, although it’s actually not a grain at all, but a seed. I’ve tried so many recipes with buckwheat and had to throw them all away with the exception of the cocoa powder based treats.
Buckwheat flour is an acquired taste, which I personally think tastes like dirt, but in these mint chocolate brownies, you can’t taste it at all. These brownies really taste like they were made with all-purpose flour, despite being gluten-free and whole grain. If you don’t have buckwheat, these brownies work just as well with whole wheat flour and if you want to use all-purpose flour, I’d recommend making Jamie’s thin mint brownies.
You can leave out the mint extract if you’re not a mint chocolate fan and toss in up to 1 cup of whatever add-ins you’d like. Peanut butter chips, nuts, or candy would all work wonderfully here. If you’re as crazy about the mint chocolate combination as I am, be sure to check out my gluten-free mint double chocolate cookies.
Gluten-Free Mint Chocolate Chip Brownies
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup buckwheat flour for a gluten-free version or whole wheat flour (for a non-GF version)
- ¾ cup Dutch-process cocoa powder sifted if lumpy
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup + 1 tablespoon unsalted butter or coconut oil* melted and cooled slightly
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons peppermint extract
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 1 ¼ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips or other add-ins
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line an 8"x8" pan with parchment paper.
- In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the flour, cocoa powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together the melted butter or coconut oil, sugar, and vanilla and peppermint extracts. Once combined, add the eggs one at a time, and stir just until combined.
- Add the dry mixture to the wet and stir just until almost no streaks of flour remain. Do not overmix! Fold in 1 cup chocolate chips.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 16-20 minutes or until the brownies have formed a thin crust and appear set in the middle. A toothpick inserted into the center or sides will come out wet. The brownies will continue to bake as they sit in the pan and will firm up as they cool.
- Sprinkle 1/4 cup additional chocolate chips on top, if desired.
- Let cool completely and then cover and store at room temperature for up to 4 days.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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These look awesome! These look more fudgy rather than cakey which is what I want when I have a brownie! Do you think I could substitute applesauce for some of the butter? Sometimes that effects the texture negatively and I was wondering if you have tested this yet. Can’t wait to try these this weekend! :)
Isabelle-
We haven’t tested this personally, but if you do, please stop back to leave your thoughts. Happy baking!
-Jamie
This recipe looks wonderful. Can’t wait to try it. Do you think that that flax eggs would work as a substitute for this recipe?
I made your strawberry rhubarb crumble a few days ago, and my family loved it so much that there is another batch in the oven right now!
Hi, Rhoni! I haven’t tried flax eggs in this recipe, so I honestly don’t know. I’m really glad your family enjoyed the crumble!
Erin, this is the second recipe of yours I have tried and it is sooooo rich and good. The other recipe that I have tried of yours is the strawberry rhubarb crumble and it is very good also. I have fixed it a few times, but with blueberries instead of rhubarb. I have never baked with buckwheat flour, but you are right, you can not even tell I used buckwheat flour. I am such a chocolate fan. Thanks sooooo much for the recipes, they are awesome! I will be baking these two recipes often.
I’m so very happy to hear that you enjoyed the brownies and the crumble! I love the idea of using blueberries and will have to try that before the season ends. That’s awesome that you gave buckwheat a try! I usually can’t stand the taste but in chocolate goodies? It’s perfect. Thanks a ton for your feedback! I really appreciate it. :)
Hi, thank you for the recipe, do you know If I replace the sugar with anything else like Stevia or Xylitol how much I have to put in the recipe? or dates, honey, coconut sugar, etc. Thank you
You can use the same amount of coconut sugar. I often make them that way and they’re just as delicious and fudgy. Dates and honey would require a lot of readjusting to the recipe and if you have Stevia that’s a 1:1 sub for granulated sugar, that’d work too (though the taste would be much better with coconut sugar!) I hope you’ll enjoy the brownies if you try them. :)
I had to stop by and mention how amazing these brownies are. I actually made two batches – one as written and another that replaced the chocolate chips with those half and half chocolate and peppermint chips. All I can say is that these are magical. I shared them with lots of family and friends, all of whom really loved them, and no one (including me) had any idea they were made with buckwheat flour, which usually has very distinctive nutty, hearty taste, but doesn’t in any way come through in these brownies. I highly recommend you try them if you are a) a fudgy-brownie lover b) a bonafide chocolate lover or c) both.
Nora-
Thanks so much for stopping by! I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe.
-Jamie
I am a fan of chocolate/mint desserts so you can be sure I will try these brownies with buckwheat flour. In fact, I have a nice recipe of Madeleines made with buckwheat flour, a surprising taste, even for those who pretends not to be a fan.
http://missdiane.canalblog.com/archives/2013/04/06/26860397.html
I hope that you’ll enjoy these brownies! Madeleines with buckwheat sounds interesting. I would have never thought to try that! Thanks for sharing. :)
Hi Erin ~
Thanks for the recipe ~ however, I do recommend that you need to change either the title or the recipe. You offer on option of flours to your readers: buckwheat flour is gluten free however whole wheat flour is not. So either they are just brownies or if you delete the option of wheat flour, they can be considered gluten free. Thanks, Mary
Hi, Mary! Thanks for pointing that out. I’ve edited the recipe to make it clearer that for a gluten-free version, you have to use buckwheat flour, and for a non-GF version (for the people who don’t need it or don’t have access to buckwheat flour), you can use whole wheat flour. I hope you’ll enjoy the brownies if you get a chance to try them out! :)
Chocolate and mint really are perfect together! Especially this time of year! Erin you are pro at making gluten free anything look so good! :)
I think so, too! And thanks so much, Chelsea. :) So nice of you to say!
These look delicious Erin. I bet the minty flavor is awesome :)
Thanks, Amanda! By the way, last night I used the mint chocolate morsels you sent me in some cookies. SO good! Thank you. :)