Healthy raw brownies – your no bake, naturally sweet treat made with just 3 ingredients! Make these raw vegan brownies anytime you want a chocolaty bite, without having to turn on your oven or bust out the white sugar. The brownie batter is made with healthy ingredients from nature – just dates, walnuts and cocoa powder!
3 Ingredient No Bake Raw Brownies with Dates – Vegan!
These raw brownies are dangerously good.
They are so dang good you’ll want to keep eating them (like I did)!
You’ll love that they’re made with simple ingredients and no added sugar.
Keep them around for a mid afternoon chocolate treat or bring them along for a special occasion.
Turns out this is the perfect treat to introduce healthy date-sweetened desserts to friends! It’s been loved by everyone that has tried it for their first time, and it couldn’t be easier to make!
What is in a no bake brownie?
The magic of no bake brownie comes from the dates.
They are sticky and sweet and the perfect pair with walnuts and cocoa powder.
You’ll be left with a brownie bite that has the perfect fudgy texture, and is super chocolaty.
Raw brownies are the easiest to make – there are no extra flours, sugars (or even maple syrup), coconut oil, or regular baking items to get out. The minimal ingredients make it an incredibly quick and easy recipe.
Wholesome ingredients for healthy no bake brownies
Scroll down to view the recipe card below for the full ingredients list, nutrition facts, and step-by-step instructions.
Dates – adds the sweetness + holds the brownies together
Raw walnuts – the perfect base for no bake brownies
Regular unsweetened cocoa powder – gives you that must have chocolate flavor for our brownies
Sea salt – just a touch of sea salt really makes these no bake brownies pop
How to make healthy brownies
Step 1: In a food processor bowl, add the pitted dates and pulse until the dates are broken into pieces and beginning to turn into a paste. You may need to scrape down the sides a few times if the dates get stuck.
Step 2: Add the walnuts to the date paste and pulse until the walnuts are broken down into small bits.
Step 3: Add the cocoa powder and sea salt and pulse until combined. If your mixture seems dry and isn’t coming together, add 2 tbsp of water and continue to pulse until the mixtures starts to mix fully together.
Step 4: Press the brownie mixture into a silicone loaf pan or a square pan or brownie pan lined with parchment paper. If you’d like, sprinkle some flaky sea salt on the top of the brownies. Chill your chewy brownies in the fridge for 1 hour. Cut into pieces and enjoy chilled or at room temperature!
TIP: When using dates for no-baking, if your dates seems a little dry (which can happen with deglet noor dates), soak them in water for 1 hour. After the hour drain them and you’ll be left with a softer date that is ready to blend into treats!
Watch me make these vegan brownies with dates
The full how to video can be watched below, or on my YouTube channel!
Have more chocolate cravings? Try these other brownie recipes!
- Black bean brownies
- 3 ingredient banana brownies
- Almond butter brownies
- Peanut butter swirl brownies
- Brownie baked oatmeal
What kind of dates to use
This may not be news to you, but I was surprised when I realized this – dates are not a dried fruit! They are actually a fresh fruit. Kind of crazy, right?
Their sweetness and texture resembles dried fruit.
Dates come in many forms and are a great natural sweetener. The two dates I most often use (because of availability) are deglet noor dates and medjool dates.
Deglet Noor Dates
Deglet noor dates are often called the common date.
When I purchase dates from bulk bins, they are most often deglet noor dates.
They are smaller in size (compared to medjool dates, maybe slightly smaller), are firmer and have great natural sweetness.
They are often semi-dry. If you find your dates are on the dryer soak, soak dates for 1 hour before making this recipe to soften them.
Medjool dates
Medjool dates, in contrast to deglet noor dates, are larger, softer and have a more caramel like flavor.
They are sweet and delicious and such a treat on their own!
They are not dry dates and are ready to be blended easily into treats.
Tools for making raw brownies
Raw brownies would be tricky to make by hand, but with a food processor – easy peasy! I love my food processor for making raw brownies and energy balls because it mixes everything together perfectly and quickly.
I recently upgraded my food processor to this 14 cup, more powerful food processor and I’m loving it.
In addition to a food processor, I like to use a silicone loaf pan to press my brownie mixture into.
The brownies comes out super easily without any sticking. After removing you can cut the raw brownies into bite size brownie bites!
If you don’t have a silicone pan on hand, no worries! Line a baking pan with parchment paper to make clean up a breeze.
How to store leftover brownies
These brownies keep well in the fridge or freezer.
Cut into individual pieces, and then add to an airtight container to store in the fridge for 1 week.
Freeze for up to 6 months too!
Substitutions
Below you’ll find a list of substitutions that will work well in this vegan brownies with dates recipe.
If you try something different out, please leave a comment below letting us all know how it turned out!
Dates – Any type of date will work in this recipe. If the dates you are using are a bit dryer, be sure to soak them for an hour in water before using. Try this recipe with other dried fruits too! Raisins, prunes, and dried cranberries will all work to add sweetness, but will change the flavor profile too.
Walnuts – Any nut or seed works! You can substitute walnuts for raw almonds, cashews, peanuts, sunflower seeds, or any combination of nuts and seeds.
Cocoa powder – Raw cacao powder will work here along with dutch-processed cocoa powder.
More healthy dessert recipes
- Patriotic fruit pizza
- Paleo almond butter fudge
- Carrot cake energy balls
- Peanut butter coconut no bake bars
- Naturally sweet banana cake
- Peanut butter and jelly fat bombs
- Rice krispie turkey legs
3 Ingredient No Bake Raw Brownies with Dates – Vegan!
Ingredients
- 3 cups dates pitted
- 3 cups walnuts
- ½ cup cocoa powder
- ½ tsp sea salt
Instructions
- In a food processor bowl, add the pitted dates and pulse until the dates are broken into pieces and beginning to turn into a paste. You may need to scrape down the sides a few times if the dates get stuck.
- Add the walnuts to the date paste and pulse until the walnuts are broken down into small bits.
- Add the cocoa powder and sea salt and pulse until combined. If your mixture seems dry and isn’t coming together, add 2 tbsp of water and continue to pulse until the mixtures starts to mix fully together.
- Press the brownie mixture into a silicone loaf pan or a square pan or brownie pan lined with parchment paper. If you’d like, sprinkle some flaky sea salt on the top of the brownies. Chill your chewy brownies in the fridge for 1 hour. Cut into pieces and enjoy chilled or at room temperature!
Nutrition
If you try this fudgy vegan date brownies recipe, I’d love it if you left a star rating and comment below letting me know how it turned out!
XO
Heather
Originally published December 2019. Updated October 2023.
2 comments
Our family loved this treat and it was so quick and easy to make and required very few ingredients! Your recipes are the best!
Thanks Tami! I’m so glad your family loved it so much 🙂