Healthy Mug Brownie Recipe (Paleo & Vegan)

This Healthy Mug Brownie recipe is ready in under 5 minutes! Irresistibly chocolatey, insanely fudgy, and made with nutritious ingredients! This microwave brownie is paleo, gluten-free, dairy-free, vegan & refined sugar free!

This single-serve healthy Mug Brownie is a recipe that took me a year to perfect. It’s not a mug cake - it is a gooey, fudgy paleo brownie that is ready in under 5 minutes and totally healthy!

Now when the chocolate craving hits and you don’t have time to bake brownies, you can make this healthy mug brownie, top it with your favorite paleo vanilla ice cream and have a delicious dessert in no time.

A slightly underbaked gooey ramekin of chocolate brownie can be yours whenever you want it. Plus, this mug brownie is  vegan, paleo, gluten-free, dairy-free and refined sugar free!

Microwave Mug Brownie: Ingredients & Substitutions 

As always I recommend that you make the recipe exactly as written. I went through so many trials and errors to get this healthy mug brownie just right...that I know it's best when the recipe is followed to a T. However, I know y'all will want to know what you can substitute, so here we go:

• Almond butter: you can use any nut/seed butter. I have had the best results with almond butter, cashew butter and peanut butter (not paleo).
• Coconut oil: Grass-fed butter or ghee can be used in place of coconut oil.
• Almond Milk: Any dairy or non-dairy milk, cream or even creamer will work as a substitution for almond milk.
• Coconut sugar: Any granulated sugar can be used without affecting the results. Honey or maple syrup are also a possible substitution, however I find that it makes this even more gooey and it tastes less like an actual brownie and more like brownie pudding if you use a liquid sweetener.
• Almond flour: The only substitutions that could potentially work here are: another nut flour, a gluten-free flour blend, or oat flour. Do not use coconut flour, it is not a 1:1 substitute for almond flour (or any flour).

Paleo Chocolate Chips & Bars

Sometimes it's hard to figure out which chocolate chips are Paleo, so I'll discuss some of my favorite healthier chocolate options!

• Hu Kitchen Chocolate Gems. This is my favorite paleo chocolate. These gems are delicious and easy to toss into cookies (no bar chopping required).
• Hu Kitchen Dark Chocolate Bars. You can also buy dark chocolate bars and chop them up to toss into these paleo chocolate chip cookies.
• Lily's Dark Chocolate. They make chips and bars that are stevia sweetened, low carb, keto, etc.
• Enjoy Life Foods Dark Chocolate Chips are a good option that are vegan, dairy-free but not fully paleo.

How to make a healthy mug brownie

Let's walk through this recipe step-by-step, and don't forget to watch the video.

To begin, melt together the coconut oil and almond butter.

Next, add the rest of the wet ingredients and whisk to combine. Then add the try ingredients.

Stir until the mixture is smooth and there are no lumps. Then, add chocolate chips and put the mixture into a greased ramekin or mug.

Microwave the mug brownie for 1 minute, then remove it and let sit until slightly cooled (it really needs to cool or you will destroy your mouth).

Note: If you look at the picture below, you will see that this little healthy treat is not the prettiest. Since it's not a cake I had to sacrifice the perfect, puffy top in order to make it irresistibly fudgy and gooey (so worth it). Top it with ice cream and you won't be able to tell!

Serve

Like I've said, I suggest serving this healthy mug brownie with a scoop of ice cream. Here are some of my favorite ice cream recipes:

• The best paleo vanilla ice cream - you'll love it.
• Paleo chocolate ice cream with sea salt is so good.
• Want something different? Try this matcha ice cream (paleo).
• This paleo cookie dough ice cream is so yummy!
• My favorite dairy free ice cream is this dairy-free chocolate peanut butter ice cream.

FAQs about this healthy mug brownie

More healthy dessert recipes

• Black Bean Brownies for your friends who enjoy healthy, gluten-free desserts that are low in calories. These are super fudgy and delicious with zero guilt! (They're also nut-free)!
• Fudgy Paleo Brownies are so delicious and only take 15 minutes to make (so still really quick).
• These Greek Yogurt Brownies are a reader favorite for a good reason - so yummy!
• Vegan Black Bean Brownies are for chocolate peanut butter veggie lovers everywhere. So delicious!
• We love these healthy peanut butter blondies (made with chickpeas)! Or try these paleo blondies.

If you make and love our recipes, it would mean so much to me if you would leave a comment and rating! And don't forget to follow along with us on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, and Youtube - be sure to tag @joyfoodsunshine and use the hashtag #joyfoodsunshine so we can your creations!

Note: I created this recipe to celebrate my blog's first birthday and wrote this: It so hard to believe that 1 year ago today I published the first recipe here in my little corner of the world-wide web! I am so grateful for how far we’ve come and for all of you wonderful readers who take the time to make my recipes!

I started this blog at a time when I felt like I was spending my days only doing things I had to do, and nothing I loved doing. Except for spending time with my family, I had lost a lot of the joy in my life and desperately needed a little bit of sunshine. 😉

We all have these seasons in our lives. My favorite bible verse when I am struggling is Hosea 6:1, "“Come, let us return to the Lord; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up." Everything, even our struggles are part of His ultimate design for our lives...and to me, that is beautiful. 

Plus, out of this difficult season JoyFoodSunshine was born! This blog has become my creative outlet! Something I love doing and have so much fun with! I’ve always had a passion for healthy living and eating, as well as being a support to other women (especially moms).

Through JoyFoodSunshine I have been able to share these passions and it’s all thanks to YOU! So really, I can’t thank you enough for all of your love, support and encouragement…..and I can’t wait to see what the next year of delicious food and fun has in store!

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