Many years ago, Enjoy Life shared a recipe with us for “vegan no bake brownies”. I recently made the recipe so that I could add photos to this post. But what I discovered wasn’t really no bake brownies, but rather chunky-style, super-seedy brownie fudge bites. It’s a delicious hybrid snack-like treat that is much denser than brownies, but a little healthier and less sweet than fudge.
What are those adorable little slabs I’ve served my brownie fudge bites on? Color Lab Trivets from Revol Porcelaine!
The original Enjoy Life recipe had a yield of 12 full-sized brownies. But let me tell you, that’s a lot of intense chocolate and seeds to eat in one sitting! I cut them into 36 brownie fudge bites, but 24 would work, too. And though I’m not usually a fan of “chunky” fudge, the sunflower seeds in this nut-free, dairy-free treat really do work. Enjoy Life had stated to “chop” the sunflower seeds. I’m not sure if they really meant to grind them, based on the description. But I took the middle ground, pulsing them to get a mix of fine and coarse bits. We thought they were delicious this way.
Finally, I did bump up the sweetener to 3/4 cup. They used 2/3 cup, which was just a wee bit too bitter for my taste buds. That little extra nudge of sweetener cut the cocoa powder bitterness right off, especially when the brownie fudge bites were allowed to rest in the refrigerator for a few hours.
This post is sponsored by Enjoy Life Foods, but the photos, adaptations and notes are my own. Plus, I’ll happily make brownie fudge bites with their dairy-free chocolate chips any day!
Special Diet Notes: No-Bake Brownie Fudge Bites
By ingredients, this recipe is dairy-free / non-dairy, egg-free, gluten-free, grain-free, nut-free, peanut-free, soy-free, optionally vegan, vegetarian, and top food allergy-friendly.
- 2 cups sunflower seeds
- 1 10-ounce bag Enjoy Life semi-sweet chocolate chips
- ¼ cup coconut oil*
- 1⅓ cups cocoa powder (I use Trader Joe's)
- ¾ cup brown rice syrup or honey
- ½ cup sunflower seed butter (like Sunbutter)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Generous pinch salt
- Place the sunflower seeds in a spice grinder or food processor and pulse 5 to 7 times, or until chopped with both fine and coarse pieces.
- Place the chocolate chips and oil in a large microwave-safe bowl and microwave on HIGH for 1 minutes. Whisk vigorously. If not fully melted, microwave 15 seconds more and whisk vigorously.
- Add the cocoa powder, sweetener, sunflower seed butter, vanilla and salt to the chocolate and stir to combine. Add the sunflower seeds and stir to combine. It should be rather thick.
- Line an 8x8-inch dish with wax paper or parchment paper. Add the chocolate mixture and even it out. If it's too sticky, refrigerate for 10 minutes, remove and then pat it down until even.
- Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour, or until set.
- Remove the brownie fudge using the sides of the wax paper and invert onto a cutting board. Peel off the paper and cut into squares. I cut them quite small since they're very rich.
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Note that the flavor will meld and mellow a bit when allowed to chill for at least a few hours.
34 Comments
Do the sunflower seeds need to be salt free?
I used raw kernels when I made the recipe. I think lightly salted could be tasty, but I would omit the salt.
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We can’t get any kind of substitute butter where we live – is there anything else that can be used instead of the sunflower butter? I really like the look of these and would be perfect as one of us has a dairy allergy, the other has a nut allergy!
Hi Lou, you can make your own! Simply grind some seeds or nuts in a food processor (I actually use a $10 spice grinder instead) until they begin to release some oils. If too thick, add just a touch of oil to get the butter to smooth out. Coconut cream (the very thick part from coconut milk) may also work, but will produce softer results.
I totally forgot about sunflower seed butter until this! These fudge bites look delicious. 🙂
These are the perfect bite size treat! Love how easy they are to make!
Thanks Lindsay!
Wow these look amazing! Such chocolatey goodness!
I’m with you on smaller “bites” when the chocolate is rich. Love no-bake recipes, so this one is a keeper in my book – small, rich and easy:)
Thanks Laura, good to know I have a chocolate no bake bites buddy in this 🙂
Alisa! These look soooo good! I love how fudgy they look without baking! Can’t wait to try them.
Seriously fudgy Julie. And a little healthy – I think you’d like them :0
This looks so good and so delicious!!! I like that it’s a healthier sweet treat!
You and me both Sharon – and nut-free for your clan!
I LOVE no bake cookies (clearly brownies would be the same), like love them to the point of making myself sick 🙂 but um these are healthier, right?! ha so I could just maybe try to love them a tiny bit less
Confession: I’m the same way Amanda. Can’t stop with the no bakes. Luckily, the sunflower seeds make these quite a bit more satisfying. I actually stopped at one … er or two.
Perfect bite-sized treat!
These look so rich and decadent. Love that I don’t have to bake them!
I am a sucker for brownies and chocolate but no bake is just a huge plus 😉
Anything fudgy and chocolaty in my book 🙂
I’m not sure which I like more – the recipe or those adorable plates you’re serving them on. I’ll take them both!
Haha, I know, I’m addicted to those trivets Kelly! I seriously make things just to put on them!
These look simply delicious! I will have to forward this to a friend that was just telling me how she bought a jar of sunflower butter and her family didn’t like it… I bet this is a way they can use up that jar that they will like!
Yes indeed. My husband doesn’t like sunflower seed butter either, but he really liked these.
I am craving chocolate today and this looks just perfect. I’ve never used sunflower seeds in brownies before – I love this idea!
I hadn’t either – I’m not usually into sunflowers, but loved this!
I’m a HUGE sunflower seed fan, and this recipe sounds like a great way to put them to use in a new way. Thank You for sharing!
This recipe has your name written all over it then Georgianna 🙂
These look like the perfect dessert to me! Wish I could grab through the screen and get them!
Lucky for you, they’re super easy to make Cricket 🙂
You could substitute the coconut oil, but I think I’d like the coconut taste.
Regardless, these look really good (and easy)! Thanks for sharing!
Hi Keith, there is no coconut oil taste at all, whether use it or regular oil – there just isn’t enough of it to influence the flavor 🙂