Mom's Texas Brownies, Grain Free
Mom's Texas Brownies, Grain Free are paleo, keto, low carb, thick, delightfully frosted brownies.
Mom's Texas Brownies, Grain-Free are adapted from my Mom's brownie recipe, which is her favorite recipe. Texas Brownies were big, thick, cake-like, and had a fantastic chocolate frosting.
They are somewhat like chocolate cake brownies. My Mom gave me the recipe and asked me to give them a healthy makeover.
A tall order, since her recipe involved 2 cups white flour, and a whopping 3 ½ cups confectioner's sugar in just the frosting alone!
It is a wonder I still have teeth after eating some of the treats I had as a kid.
I finally came up with an adaptation that is very close to the brownies I remember, only these ones have healthier ingredients and are grain-free, paleo, and have a low carb version for those of you who are counting your carbs or sugars.
There is brewed coffee in the recipe, but you can swap that with water if you can't have coffee or decaf coffee, or if you don't want that subtle flavor in there.
I find it does enhance the chocolate experience and it was in the original recipe.
You can decide if you want to use regular coffee, strong coffee, decaf coffee, or plain water. My son ate it and did not notice the coffee.
These are thick, so feel free to cut smaller portions than I did, if you like. I cut into 12 portions but probably should have cut 16.
Make the brownie batter. After baking remove the brownies. Pour warm frosting on hot brownies. Cool completely and refrigerate until frosting thickens and sets.
Mixing and preparing the brownie batter.
Baking the brownies.
Mix and pour the chocolate ganache frosting over the brownies.
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Mom's Texas Brownies, Grain Free
📖 Printable Recipe Card
Mom's Texas Brownies
Ingredients
- BROWNIES:
- ½ cup coconut flour sifted, where to buy coconut flour
- ¾ cup sweetener of choice: coconut sugar for paleo or erythritol for low carb option.
- ½ cup butter ghee, or organic red palm oil
- ½ cup brewed organic coffee or decaf coffee or can use ½ cup water in place of this (if you can't have coffee)
- 2 tablespoon cocoa powder or cacao powder unsweetened
- 3 eggs
- 6 tablespoon unsweetened coconut milk or almond milk + 1 ¼ teaspoon apple cider vinegar mixed together in a separate bowl (this makes dairy free buttermilk and it will look curdled).
- 1 teaspoon organic GF vanilla extract.
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- FROSTING:
- ¼ cup butter
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder or cacao powder
- ½ cup powdered sweetener of choice: coconut sugar for paleo or for Low Carb use ½ cup powdered erythritol (pulse in blender or processor until powdered), I used Swerve. or to make this paleo by pulsing coconut sugar in blender or processor until powdered.
- 1 ½ tablespoon coconut milk or almond milk unsweetened
- ½ teaspoon organic GF vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 F and grease or oil an 8x8 pan well.
- In a large metal or ceramic mixing bowl, combine: ½ cup sifted coconut flour and ¾ cup coconut sugar, or low carb sweetener option. Mix together thoroughly. Set aside.
- In a medium-size saucepan, combine: ½ cup butter, ½ cup brewed coffee or water, and 2 tablespoon cocoa powder. Stir and heat to boiling on stovetop.
- Pour the boiling cocoa/coffee mixture over coconut flour sweetener mixture in bowl. Stir together.
- Add to mixture: 3 eggs, the premixed 6 tablespoon coconut milk or almond milk + 1 ¼ teaspoon apple cider vinegar mixture, baking powder and vanilla extract. Mix together well using a large spoon or electric mixer.
- Pour batter into well-greased pan.
- Bake at 400 F for 20 minutes or until toothpick comes out of center clean.
- While brownies are baking, prepare the frosting:
- In a small saucepan combine: ¼ cup butter, 1 tablespoon cocoa powder, and 1 ½ tablespoon coconut milk or almond milk. Stir and heat to a boil, and turn heat to low.
- Mix into the saucepan the powdered sweetener of choice (coconut sugar or low carb one) and vanilla extract. Stir until smooth. Leave saucepan on lowest heat.
- Pour warm frosting over the top of brownies as soon as you take them out of the oven. Try to cover entire surface with liquid frosting, can use a spoon to spread.
- Cool brownies and frosting completely before cutting or serving, as the frosting needs to set and thicken. You can put them in the fridge once cooled off enough, to speed up the process (I cooled on the counter for 15 minutes and then put in the fridge for about 45 minutes, but it could be ready sooner).
- Cut and serve once frosting is set. *Cover and store unused portions in the fridge.
Carla says
Hi there, sorry if it’s already posted but could I use almond flour? I’m allergic to coconut and if so would I have to change the measurements? Or do you know if hemp protein would work? Thank you, I’m excited to try!!
Stacey says
Hi Carla, you can use almond flour but use 4 times the amount as coconut flour. So about 2 cups almond flour.
Pam Martin says
I thank you for your low carb recipes. My husband is diabetic so I am always trying to find recipes for him to enjoy and not feel so left out while everyone else are enjoying sweets or food he cannot have. Thank you for your love of making recipes that are so much better for us and healthy for us. I just made your chocolate chip cookies and they are amazing and he loves them. He cannot stop saying how wonderful they are.
Stacey says
Thank you so much, Pam. Your kind words have made my day 🙂
Kari says
Is this cake like or brownie like? What size of pan do you use?
Stacey says
Kari, it is almost a "cake like" texture but tastes like brownies. I used a 8x8 or 9x9 pan.
Barb says
can i use coconut oil and ghee for 1/2 cup oil?
Stacey says
Yes, you can.
Lisa bondurant says
I just had a question. Is the coconut milk the type in the can?
Stacey says
Hi Lisa, you can use any coconut milk (canned or in the carton type) in this recipe.
Kathy Mc says
I'm going to try this recipe for "treat Sunday" this weekend. Two of my grandchildren will be here so I'm anxious to see how they like them.
Stacey says
I hope they enjoy them 🙂
Tina says
My family loves these brownies! We're usually not huge fans of coconut flour recipes, but these are fantastic! Thank you for sharing.
Stacey says
Thank you so much for your kind words, Tina. I am so happy your family loves them 🙂
Rebecca says
When using coconut oil.. should I melt first or use measurement in its regular form??
Stacey says
Rebecca, Measure it melted if possible. If I have too much, I just pour the excess back in the jar.
Yoli says
What happened to mine? The batter was so thin I could drink it LOL. I tried putting more coconut flour but it was still liquidly. Please help! I just took them out of the oven so hope they are ok.
Stacey says
Yoli, usually the batter thickens after stirring awhile or letting it sit a bit, as the coconut flour absorbs the liquids. The batter is not super thick but it is not normally liquid. But coconut flour can act different in different climates, so hopefully adding a little more coconut flour helped. Let me know how it went.
Yoli says
Hi Stacy, it came out pretty good even though the mixture was still really. I will be making this again. It was more cake like though. Is that normal?
Thanks for getting back to me.
Yoli
Stacey says
Hi Yoli,
Yes, they are Texas sheet cake style brownies, so did a good job. 🙂
Sara says
I made these tonight and they came out really moist! I was prepared for them to be dry because coconut flour tends to be really dry but it wasn't at all. I did swap cocoa butter for regular butter for the frosting just because I was itching to try baking with it. The frosting was sweet but could have used a bit more chocolate flavor for my liking. I may mix in a bit of unsweetened baking chocolate into the frosting next time just to see if I can make it a more rich chocolate flavor. But I still liked it.
Stacey says
Thank you Sara for trying the brownies! I think cocoa butter in the frosting would be awesome! I need to get some and experiment with it 🙂
Erin says
Do you think you could double this and put into a 9x13? Thanks for your recipes!!
Stacey says
Erin, yes you can double his and use the bigger pan. 🙂
Susan Claughton says
I made these yesterday and they are very good!! I too, used to make the traditional recipe. Every once in a while it is nice to have a treat! Thank you
Stacey says
Susan, Thank you for making the brownies and taking the time to comment. My kids love it when my Mom makes the traditional recipe as an occasional treat.
Laura says
My husband and I love these brownies! I make frozen chocolate cool whip to put on top Tastes just like brownies and ice cream, just not as sweet.
Stacey says
Laura, Thank you for trying the brownies and sharing the frozen whipped cream idea. That sounds like a great idea for a brownie sundae!
Judy says
One of my favorite recipes. I have been in search of more coconut flour recipes to get me Omega6:3 ratio more in balance. I was eating to many nuts and using almond flour regularly.
I plan on adding a little more cocoa powder to give me a richer chocolate taste the next time I make them. I like using coffee to enhance the chocolate.
Stacey says
Judy, Thank you for your very kind words! These are my favorite too, and I know what you mean about all the nut flours. I have to be careful not to use too much almond flour. It is harder to digest and best used in smaller amounts. I do sometimes go overboard with the nuts! Thanks for sharing the freezer information also 🙂
Judy says
Has anyone ever successfully frozen these brownies?
Judy says
I have frozen these brownies and they are fine once I defrost them in the refrigerator.
KatLov says
I am in love! I have the dreaded tree nut allergy, so anything using coconut flour that tastes yummy is for me! Thanks for this recipe, cannot wait to make it this a fternoon.
Stacey says
KatLov, Thank you for trying the recipe and I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.
Kim says
I made these for a dinner party and everyone loved them!! I used powdered erythritol in the frosting and thought it had a weird gritty feel to it. Anyone else notice that? And the cooling effect of it was different. Other than that they were Great!!!
Stacey says
Hi Kim, I'm thrilled that your guests loved them. Sometimes the frosting can be slightly gritty, so I usually grind up the powdered sweetener as fine as I can get it in a magic bullet type blender. I believe that most low carb sweeteners have that cooling effect you speak of. I have not found one that doesn't yet.
Kim says
Thanks Stacey. I did blend the sweetener until very powdery but still gritty. Oh well, they were a hit anyway!! 🙂
Tammie says
Can you substitute coconut oil for the butter/Palm oil in the brownie mix?
Stacey says
Tammie, Yes coconut oil Works too.
Bird says
Hello! Thank you for the keto friendly version! What are the stats without the icing? I tried figuring it out myself but I don't think my math is working out correctly! 😉 Thank you!
Stacey says
Bird, no worries, I sent you the data for the non-frosted version to your email. I have a software that does the data and the math, as I can't entirely be trusted with the math when I'm tired, lol.
Jenny D. says
The BEST birthday present ever!!
THANK YOU for figuring out and posting this recipe! My b-day's next week, and my mom always used to make me her old TX sheetcake recipe for my birthday. Since I've gone grain- and sugar-free, I've gone without. I just asked her last week if she could try to adjust the recipe for me as my b-day gift, but she said it would be impossible. She'll make it for me now that she has a recipe with which to work. Can't thank you enough!!
- Jenny
Stacey says
Jenny, I am so glad. Thank you for letting me know. My mom came over with her Texas sheet cake brownie recipe and said "make this healthy", lol. I said "mom those are almost 100% powdered sugar!" So, it was a challenge.
~ Stacey
Kathy says
This TX gal loves to make TX sheetcake, but my recipe doesn't include coffee ... Going to sub the water and add cinnamon and Mexican vanilla like I'm used to and pecans in the frosting. Thanks for posting!
Stacey says
Hi Kathy, I like all the idea of cinnamon, and Mexican Vanilla in the brownies. They are great without the coffee. I make them without the coffee sometimes. Thanks for your ideas and feedback.
~Stacey
Mariska says
Hi,
This recipe looks mjammie and I will try it this evening to make it. I have only one question can I use whipped cream instead of coconutmilk or almondmilk?
Stacey says
Mariska, yes you can use heavy cream. I do use that too and I thought that option was in the recipe but it is missing. So thank you for asking me that, or I would not have noticed.
~ Stacey
Vicki says
All I can say is..... I have been waiting for this recipe! I have eaten and baked so many Texas sheet cakes, and really miss them. Thank You!!!
Stacey says
Vicki, you are most welcome and I hope you enjoy them.
~ Stacey
veronica says
Hi Stacey,
Can't wait to try this! Are all your recipes paleo (both grain free and dairy free)? I noticed some of your recipes had cream cheese or uses heavy cream, and I was bummed I couldn't make some of them. My naturopath wants me off the dairy. Really like your website!
Veronica
Stacey says
Veronica,
All the recipes are grain free and either Primal (which is the paleo diet with organic dairy) or Paleo (dairy free). I do have paleo and dairy free recipes, and try to have dairy free substitutions when there is one . A few recipes do have dairy until I can find a dairy free substitution that works. Most of the time heavy cream will be replaced with coconut milk, and I believe cream cheese can be replaced with cashew cheese, but I have not been able to find cashew cheese where I live. Also I replace butter with coconut oil.
Sincerely,
Stacey
Monika says
I just made this yesterday: the frosting + cake and I must say WOW. It's delicious! It's absolutely wonderful. It's fluffy light, not too sweet, not bland. I used Swerve . The proportions of the ingredients are just perfect. The only change I had to make was baking time. I had to bake it for 30 minutes. At 20mins. it was still raw in the middle. 5-star recipe. I will bake this again.
Oh and 1 more thing: I am allergic to cocoa unless it's baked. So, I used cocoa powder for the cake and Carob powder for the frosting. The frosting came out perfect.
Stacey says
Monika, I think my oven is quite bit faster than most. Even though I don't use the convection bake, it is still rather speedy. I would have thought the cocoa powder raw allergy was odd, except I am sensitive to roasted almonds, but I can have them raw. So that makes sense to me. Baking it must change it enough to not give you a reaction. Thank you for trying the recipe and your kind words. Also thanks for sharing the carob option as some people can't have cocoa or chocolate. 🙂
Sincerely,
Stacey
Monika says
Hi Stacey
Thank you for your reply to my comment. I have a regular Frigidaire gas oven and my baking times are usually a little longer than what recipes call for. Your oven must be pretty speedy indeed! 🙂
About my food allergies - and this is what I know: a certain food is allergenic in its' raw form or when only minimally processed, but when it's baked or exposed to very high temperatures for a time (even 10mins. in the oven is enough), the heat breaks down the proteins and renders the food safe to eat. This, however, doesn't apply to tree nuts - they keep being allergenic even after baking... So I pretty much can have brownies or chocolate chip cookies, but not chocolate...
Thank you again for posting your fabulous brownie recipe. It's super easy and super tasty. I am keeping it in my recipe book.
Happy baking!
Monika
Stacey says
Monika,
I think my electric oven is somehow always on the convection cycle. It is so temperamental that If I have it worked on, it might stop working completely. Next time I will get one that is gas and simple without all the high tech gadgets that malfunction. Impressed with your allergy information! Thank you for sharing that. Maybe it is whatever oil that the almonds are roasted in and not the almonds that make my throat itch and swell a bit. Will figure it out eventually.
Sincerely,
Stacey
Barb says
I made these last night for my coworkers today (as a test run for a bbq on Saturday). They are so incredibly moist. I did have to bake them for about 26 minutes though. But they were really quick to whip up and so delicious. I'd have to say I'd probably modify and not do the topping because I did find that quite sweet. I'd love to make this into a cake with a cream cheese frosting (something I'm considering doing this weekend for the bbq on Saturday).
Oh and I also used a product called Lakanto in the place of erythritol. It's a natural sweetener that uses monk fruit extract in combination with erythritol and is a one-for-one sugar substitute. It worked quite well. (I wasn't able to find just erythritol and wanted to keep it low carb and low sugar)
Thanks for the recipe!
Stacey says
Barb,
I'm so glad you tried these! I have used the monk fruit sweetener before and it works well, just think it is hard to find in some areas. The cream cheese frosting idea sounds really good! Thanks for sharing that idea with us. I may need to make a batch with that variation.
Sincerely,
Stacey
Annie says
Amazon has the Lakanto.....in white and golden.
Halina says
Can i say "I love you?" Lol.
I have dairy, soy and gluten allergies. Plus need low carbs food due to reactive hypoglycemia. That recipe: wow,..just wow.... I will make that today. I beke and try to make my own stuff and most oif the time is OK, but so far I have not made OK brownies.
Stacey says
Halina, you are too kind. Thank you for the wonderful feedback, it really made my day! I, have Celiac and a few food allergies, so I try whenever possible to have options in my recipes. I have to cook a lot, because of my food restrictions make it difficult to eat out or buy pre-made food.
Sincerely,
Stacey
Terra says
I made these two days ago. They are so good! The frosting really makes it so good, absorbing all that chocolate flavor, melded together. Love them! I made the low carb version with coconut flour, it's what's for breakfast. Thanks for sharing and converting a family recipe, love it!
Stacey says
Terra, thank you for trying these and your kind words! I'm a fan of the frosting too. Trying to find other things to put it on.
Sincerely,
Stacey
Angela says
Thank you for this recipe. My son has a nut allergy. So any recipe that has coconut flour I love!! Plus, another thing I love that you do...is put alternatives in the listings. That is so helpful!!! I'm not good at doing conversions. Especially the recipes that call for almond flour:( Thanks again!!
Stacey says
Angela, Thank you for your kind words! I try to put in alternatives if there is one that works. I have a slight sensitivity to almond flour but not other nuts, yet..
Sincerely,
Stacey
Happy Momma says
Thank you! Made these for my kiddo's bday party - HUGE success!! Even got requests for the recipe. Emailing your blog site to a host of new fans. 🙂
Stacey says
Happy Momma, Thank you for the wonderful feedback and kind words. I appreciate the referrals so much, thank you! So happy you and the kiddos enjoyed it.
Sincerely,
Stacey