3 Ingredient No Bake Healthy Brownies (No Flour, Eggs, or Refined Sugar)
These no bake brownies are so easy to make and only three ingredients. They are also a healthy treat as they don’t contain any flour, eggs, butter or refined sugar.
I try to avoid turning on my oven as much as possible these days, so I am really enjoying no bake desserts. These brownies come together in about 5 minutes and then you just need to let them set. You can serve them as is or top them with an easy chocolate frosting to really make them chocolatey.
Ingredients
- Walnuts
- Dates
- Cocoa Powder
Walnuts
Walnuts can be substituted with other nuts like almonds, cashews or pecans. The nuts act as a binder for these brownies. I chose walnuts since walnuts are often added to brownies.
Dates
I recommend using Medjool dates, but they can be made with other types of dates. You do want to use a type of date that is very soft with a lot of flesh, which is why Medjool dates are so ideal. Drier, smaller dates don’t work. The dates in this recipe provide sweetness as well as the chewy texture for the brownies. If you don’t like them, you might like my 3 ingredient no bake brownies without dates.
Cocoa Powder
Any unsweetened cocoa powder will work. You can also use cacao powder.
Frosting Options
While these brownies can be eaten plain, adding some sort of chocolate frosting on top will make them look even more delicious. Plus it makes them even more chocolatey. Some frosting options include:
- Using a Chocolate Spread
- Drizzling Melted Chocolate on Top
- Making a chocolate frosting (this is what I used)
More Healthy No Bake Recipes
- 3 Ingredient Healthy No Bake Peanut Butter Cookies
- 3 Ingredient No Bake Oatmeal Cookies
- 3 Ingredient No Bake Oatmeal Bars
- No Bake Pumpkin Brownies (No Flour, Eggs, or Butter)
3 Ingredient No Bake Healthy Brownies
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw walnut halves
- 1 (packed) cup pitted medjool dates
- 4-5 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder, or cacao powder
Chocolate Frosting (optional)
- 2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, or cacao powder
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
Instructions
- Add walnuts to food processor and pulse until nuts are very small, about the size of large crumbs. Add dates and 4 tbsp cocoa powder. Pulse until dates turn into a thick paste. The mixture should be sticky and it should hold together. Taste and adjust as needed. If you want a stronger chocolate flavor, add 1 more tbsp cocoa powder. If you want something sweeter, you can add more dates. If you feel that the mixture is not sticky enough or too dry, add 1-2 tbsp of water and pulse again.
- Line the bottom of an 8 x 4 inch loaf pan with parchment paper. Firmly press brownie mixture into the pan. Place brownies into the fridge to set (about 1 hour).
- If making frosting, combine oil and cocoa powder in a medium bowl. Mix until smooth and completely combined. Your mixture should look like melted chocolate. Add in maple syrup. (Do not add maple syrup until the end. The maple syrup will cause the chocolate to seize and will thicken the mixture. If you add it with the other ingredients, it will make it very difficult to mix.) Stir until evenly mixed. Spread frosting over surface of brownies after they are set
- If you want the frosting to be firmer, place brownies back into fridge for 15-30 minutes or until frosting is more set. Slice brownies and serve. Store uneaten brownies in the fridge.
Notes
- Medjool dates can be substituted with other dates. Please see the post for more details.
- I recommend using a new package of dates or a recently opened pack, otherwise your dates may be a little dry.
- Walnuts can be substituted with other nuts. Please see post for more details.
- You can grind the nuts to the size you prefer. If you want bigger pieces, you can pulse them less. If you want barely visible pieces, pulse more.
- Please note that for the brownies in the photos, the frosting has not been refrigerated. I added my frosting on after removing the brownies from the fridge. For a firmer ganache-like frosting that is less messy, frost the brownies and then refrigerate them for 15-30 minutes until the frosting becomes firmer.
- I include other simple frosting ideas in the post.
- Estimated Nutrition does not include frosting
This recipe is fantastic, thank you! We love that it is refined sugar-free AND artificial sugar-free. We substituted the maple syrup with shifa and added crushed peanuts. We served it with orange slices and Amasi, a thick, curdled, sour, fermented milk – Four out of the seven tastes, ticked off. We did not expect the seventh, umami, and I’m not skilled enough to judge cool and hot, as tastes: Sweet (shiffa), sour (Amasi and orange), bitter (cacao), salty (peanuts).
So it is 4/4 for us! Thank you Kirbie! And it’s not too expensive either.
thank you for sharing! So glad you enjoyed!
This is the best chocolatey ooeyiest gooeyiest brownies ever!!! add a dash of vanilla.
Thanks so much!
Curious! How long will these last in the fridge once made? Dates have a long shelf life… But is it lessened when they’re pulverized in a food processor?
They’ll keep for a few days at least – we don’t know beyond that because they get eaten pretty quickly!
Hi,
Do you have the ingredients list in grams anywhere?
I would try to convert it myself, however, whenever I have tried to convert a recipe from cups to grams myself it has always gone very very wrong. I do not know if this is because different places use different cup sizes, so converting to grams is different for each place depending on where the recipe came from. Or, if I just messes it up every single time with every single recipe I tried to convert somehow. Which, to be fair, is completely possible.
Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Alice
We’re sorry, but not all of our older recipes have grams, but many of our newer ones do. Here is another Healthy Brownies recipe you might like to try that has weighted measurements.
Hello. Lovely recipe, thank you. I want to swap the walnuts; do you have any recommendations, please? Perhaps peanut butter or almonds. Wishing you joy 🙂
You can use your favorite chopped nuts – peanuts, almonds, cashews, macadamia nuts.. those are just a few choices!
Love, love, love this recipe. Thanks for sharing it Kirbie!! I added a pinch of salt and nutmeg and it is perfect.
We’re so glad you love it!
The recipe should be simpler
Have you tried it?
These no bake brownies are awesome!! Easy to make, and oh so delicious! It’s hard to believe there’s no sugar added.
Thank you for the wonderful recipes!
We’re so glad you loved them!
For the frosting can you sub Minooka honey for the maple syrup
We haven’t tried it – if it has the same consistency as maple syrup it should work okay. If it’s thicker it will be hard to mix and may not spread easily.
If the dough is too sticky, even after chilling, what can I add? I prefer not to use more cocoa powder. Would a little homemade oat flour work? If so, how much should I try to start?
The dough is sticky, but it should hold together. Is yours so sticky you can’t press it into the pan? It can help to lightly butter your hands or it may be that you didn’t mix the dough long enough to fully incorporate the syrup. We don’t recommend adding more cocoa powder and we haven’t tried adding oat flour, so can’t say how that will work.
OMG! These are so delicious! I used Deglet Nour dates as it was all they had at the shop, and added a small thumb of ginger peeled and chopped – it worked really well. My mix was also a little dry so added 1 tsp of maple syrup and it was perfect. So quick too – these will become a regular I think!
So glad you enjoyed them!
I would really like to try your recipe your recipes I should say but you don’t give the amounts of the difference ingredients. So what’s up with that?
The full recipe is in the recipe box at the end of the post and does include ingredient amounts along with instructions.
I have a wheat allergy. I see this recipe and I have the ingredients in the cabinet, so what the heck, right? I’m pulsing the ingredients in the food processor and as they come together, my daughter and I can’t wait, so we open it and taste. How is this even possible. What purpose does refined sugar and flour serve in our lives?! All we need are these brownies!! Gonna add some peanut butter to the frosting and see what happens.
I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much!
I’ve made these brownies 3 times this past month, my family LOVES them and my sister-in-law says they are the best brownies she’s ever tasted!
I add a sprinkle of sea salt into the date/walnut mixture.
Wondering if anyone has tried freezing these and if so, do they freeze/thaw well?
I’m so glad your family loves them! I haven’t tried freezing, hopefully someone else can let you know
They freeze perfectly. I actually had to keep mine in the freezer because they were too sticky to even keep in the fridge. They only needed a couple minutes before eating, as they never froze solid, even after weeks.
Thanks for sharing that!
I love ?. However, I eat 98% fresh and raw. So, last week I asked the UNIVERSE for something tasty, nutty, and chocolatey. Sunday as I looked over the news headlines, this article appeared: Chocolate Cookies, only three ingredients; no refined sugar, no eggs, no flour, no bake chocolate cookies. Ingredients: cacoa, almond butter, and maple syrup. I had cacoa, substituted coconut oil for almond butter, substituted dates for maple syrup, added cashew flour, and sprinkled tops with hazelnuts and English walnuts. My grandson said they tasted like Ferro Rocha. My request to the UNIVERSE was answered. I made my second batch this evening. They are everything I could imagine and more. They look like cookies. They hold up like cookies. But they taste HEAVENLY! AH SO HEAVENLY! Thanks so much for the recipe.
I love chocolate!
Thank you for sharing. I’m glad your request to the universe was answered!
I made the brownies without the frosting, they were delicious. Thank you.
I’m glad you liked them!
I love this recipe! I think it tastes wayyyy better than a normal brownie! My mom got very sick earlier this year (flu and covid together) and she can no longer have refined sugar. Natural sugar is okay for her. She no longer wants me to make regular brownies for her. All she wants are these. She says for her they are more like a fudge protein bar, but she said she can’t eat anything else like this. I am so glad you put this recipe together! Thank you thank you!!!
Thank you for your kind comment. I’m so glad you and your mother are enjoying this recipe!
Omg these are SO tasty! Will double the recipe next time!
I’m so glad you liked them!
I used pecans instead of walnuts, and deglet noor dates instead of medjool dates, but this recipe came out amazing! It was very moist and had a rich chocolate taste, loved it! 🙂
I’m so glad you enjoyed!
Great recipe .Super yummy 🙂 Thank you
I’m so glad you liked the brownies!
Omg I did my shopping,got all the ingredients that I need to make my brownies just to finish reading through how to prepare….I DON’T HAVE A FOOD PROCESSOR.
I guess I can zip lock and squeeze away any frustration
I’m sorry
I made these with mixed raw nuts as in the base. I used older dates so the mix was dry, I just added 1/4 cup of melted coconut oil and it worked like a treat. So delicious! Glad to find an easy Healthy raw recipe that is refined sugar free!
I’m so glad they worked out for you!
Awesome! Texture is very similar to fudgy brownies and the taste is exceptional. I substituted Deglet dates and black cocoa powder. I prefer the black cocoa powder for added depth of flavor and extra fiber and protein. These are so good I’m afraid I’ll be eating them more often than I should!
I made these with Deglet Dates and black cocoa powder. They taste amazing! I like black cocoa powder in place of regular cocoa powder for depth of flavor and extra fiber and protein.
Thank you for sharing. I love the idea of using black cocoa powder
Unbelievable. Wasnt expecting it to be this good. Added more dates wasnt sweet enough. Doubled frosting. Cant wait to share with my gluten free, dairy free friend and others
I’m glad you got it to work for you!
Luvd the recipe.. it sure was yumilicious!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed!
I would love to try this but I only have roasted walnuts available. Is that okay?
that should be fine as long as they are unsalted.
so super easy to make and is delouses
I’m so glad you liked them!
Did you know that dates have a large percentage of sugar in them. So really you can’t say they have no sugar.
I am aware dates contain sugar. I never said these have no sugar. I only state that they don’t contain refined sugar.
This recipe is absolutely fabulous…Tried it…and loved it.
I made it with almonds, and my twist to the recipe was to mix dark chocolate to the brownie base and then refrigerate kt, after topping it with sprinkles!
Thanks for sharing.
I’m so glad you liked them! Your twist sounds delicious, thank you for sharing!
These are great. Thank you. Such a brilliant combination.
I’m so glad you liked them!
Hello! I have just finished making this recipe but the dough that came out was too thin. I had to double the amount of the ingredients in order to have a final result of 10×20 cm and approximately 2 cm high.
Hmm, I’m not sure why they came out so thin for you. But I’m glad you got it to work
I have not prepared no bake brownies because I just read the recipe and it seems to be quite nutritious, healthy and yummy too
I hope you enjoy
I really like yo recipe n looks so appettising
I hope you give it a try
Any idea what the glycemic index is on these?
no sorry
They are delicious.
I’m glad you liked them!
I loved it!
So glad you enjoyed!
I joint like dates, can they be replaced with something else.
I haven’t tried making them with anything else
Thanks….was looking for a healthier option!
You are welcome
Bulk carob powder is NOT sweetened. Don’t buy the roasted, it has a different flavor.
Can you use Carob powder as it is better than chocolate. Would it be the same amount?
I haven’t worked with carob powder but my understanding is that it is sweetened, so it would not be the same amount.
Carob powder, as I have found it in bulk, is NOT sweetened.
ok thank you for sharing. but it’s not clear what carob powder the reader was asking about.
This recipe is very similar to a Middle Eastern treat, where the date paste is rolled into a small ball and coated with finely crushed nuts, powdered sugar, or other “toppings”. So I made your recipe but made the traditional balls instead of the brownie shape. They were delicious, easy to make, and tastier than the purchased ones.
I’m so glad you got them to work for you!
After making the point about no refined sugar, it only makes sense to make a frosting without refined sugar either, I suggest carob syrup and cashew butter mixed with cocoa, to get rid of a plain old fat. I will try this tonight with a homemade hazelnut butter, carob, cocoa combo.
there is no refined sugar in the frosting…
How would you suggest storing them and how long would they keep?
Store them in the fridge in an airtight container. They should keep for a few days
Is it possible to use something like plums in place of dates? Or melted chocolate in place of cocoa powder? Those are just things I happen to have.
I haven’t tried with dried plums. It may work but the taste of the plums might be strong. Dates have a pretty mild taste which gets mostly covered up by the cocoa powder and nuts.
Plums sounds like you’re making a laxative. Always try the receipe ingredients before you try substituting.This here receip calls for dates not prunes,dear.
Can’t wait to try for my grandkids
I hope they enjoy
Nyummy recipe! Will try it soon 🙂
I hope you enjoy
What is the substitute for maple syrup
You can try another syrup
Fantastic
I’m glad you enjoyed!
Hi Kirbie, your recipes is often keto friendly. What does this one do in the keto lifestyle. I do see 25 gr of carbs, but is that net carbs? Dying to try these. They look yummie.
yes I do share a lot of keto friendly recipes but my blog is not exclusively keto recipes. This is not a keto recipe.