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I am making chocolate brownies without sugar using the following ingredients:

  • cocoa nibs, 1 & 1/4 cups
  • carob powder, 1/4 cup
  • margarine, 125 g
  • flour, 50 g
  • stevia, 1 tablespoon
  • vanilla essence, 2 teaspoon
  • baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon
  • 2 eggs

How can I make the brownie less dry and have more flavor? I don't want to add sugar as it aggravates my skin.

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  • What do these taste like compared to typical brownies? I love brownies but don't want the sugar either.
    – user1477388
    Commented Jun 18, 2015 at 17:08

4 Answers 4

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That 1/4th cup margarine and the 2 eggs are not enough to give those brownies the moisture they need.

I suspect you want something low in sugar and fat. Evelyn Tribole, MS, RD created two books that talk about substitutions for fat and sugar in recipes. One technique to replace fat (like butter) in a recipe is to use baby food prunes or applesauce.

Does it work? I made her brownies that substituted baby food prunes for traditional butter. The brownies were super moist and I couldn't taste anything "prunes". This recipe is in her first Healthy Homestyle Cooking cookbook.

For right now, substitute cup for cup baby food prunes or applesauce for the butter/margarine. I suggest half margarine and half the chosen substitute. That way you get the flavor of margarine but without the fat.

Or, if you don't mind the fat just add more margarine. The average brownie recipe usually calls for nearly a full stick (or more) of butter or margarine. It's the margarine that adds moisture to brownie crumb. Or oil, or any kind of fat you prefer.

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    Note that both prunes and applesauce are themselves high in natural sugars.
    – Air
    Commented Jun 16, 2015 at 23:32
  • Mashed bananas are another good replacement for oil to add moisture, but has that problem that Air mentioned,
    – Joe
    Commented Jun 17, 2015 at 1:25
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    I find it highly unlikely that the OP has a problem with all sugars. After all, she is using "stevia" in cups, which is almost certainly not the plant, but the sweetener sold in the supermarket. That is almost pure dextrose with some stevia extract. If that works for her, trying fruits is a good choice.
    – rumtscho ♦
    Commented Jun 18, 2015 at 6:20
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    Any form of sugar is inevitable. Natural sugar (directly from fruit) is healthier than refined sugar (table sugar, high fructose corn syrup). The only other option is sucralose or aspartame which are man-made and not natural like dextrose (glucose from corn) and stevia (from the stevia plant).
    – Tarak'ha
    Commented Jun 20, 2015 at 12:44
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First, I agree with Tarak'ha's suggestions because it looks like you're trying to keep things somewhat healthy.

Since it looks like you're trying to make healthier brownies, I just wanted to mention yet another less heard of healthy fat replacement in baking: Finely shredded / pureed beetroot. I learned this trick from a show called "Cook Yourself Thin" for their chocolate cake. In the show they talk about how the moisture from the beetroot replaces most of the moisture and fat that is usually added by vegetable oil. It's just another alternative to consider.

Here is a brownie recipe that uses beets & coconut oil for the "fat" component. It uses coconut sugar, but you can substitute for your stevia if you'd like. http://www.theroastedroot.net/fudgy-paleo-beetroot-brownies/

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Hi I use dates for sugar. I use only 4 ingredients and they are bakeless. You put the ingredients in the food processor and then just press into pan and cut into squares. They are really good and you don't get that sugar rush feeling. I think I found the recipe on Pinterest.

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you could use shredded zucchini, about a 1/4 cup---you will never taste any of it, but it will add moistness to your brownies and not the sugar.

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