Gooey Flourless Brownie Skillet {Vegan, No Eggs}

Name: Gooey Flourless Brownie Skillet
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: ¼ cup coconut oil (measured in solid form ); ⅓ cup dairy-free dark chocolate chips or chopped chocolate bar; ⅓ cup coconut sugar; ⅓ cup natural creamy almond butter ( (almonds + salt as only ingredients)); 2 tsp vanilla extract; ½ cup unsweetened applesauce (room temperature); ½ cup cocoa powder (spooned and leveled); 2 tbsp cornstarch or tapioca flour ((helps bind the batter)); ½ tsp baking soda; ¼ tsp salt; ¼ cup chocolate chips (plus extra for topping)

This flourless brownie skillet bakes in a cast iron pan in 30 minutes, no flour, no eggs, and no mixer. Melted dark chocolate and almond butter give it crackly edges and a spoonable center. It happens to be gluten-free and vegan.

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Gooey brownie skillet in a cast iron pan with two scoops of vanilla ice cream.

Flourless Brownie Skillet At A Glance

✅ Recipe Name: Gooey Flourless Brownie Skillet (Vegan, 30 Minutes)
🕒 Ready In: ~30 minutes (10 minutes prep + 20 minutes bake)
🍳 Pan: 8 or 9-inch cast iron skillet, or an 8x8 baking dish
👪 Serves: 6
🍽 Calories: ~318 per serving
🍫 Main Ingredients: Dark chocolate, almond butter, applesauce, cocoa powder, coconut sugar
📖 Dietary Info: Flourless, gluten-free, egg-free, dairy-free, and vegan with vegan chocolate
⭐ Why You'll Love It: No flour means it cannot bake up cakey, so you get crackly edges and a center you eat with a spoon. Almond butter and applesauce stand in for the eggs and most of the butter.

SUMMARIZE & SAVE THIS CONTENT ON

The skillet obsession started with my healthy gooey cookie skillet. One pan, no cutting, no waiting for anything to cool, just a spoon and whoever happened to be standing in my kitchen. Then came my flourless brownies, which are the recipe I get the most messages about from people who cannot believe there is no flour in them.

This one is what happens when those two collide. I first published it in October 2021, and it has been on repeat here ever since. I came back to it in 2025 to reshoot it and add step-by-step photos, because the original pictures did not do justice to how gooey the center actually is.

The thing I still love most is that nobody can tell. Someone left a comment on this post years ago saying he was shocked there was no flour in it and that it did not taste healthy. That is the whole goal!

Jump to:

Flourless Brownie Skillet At A Glance
Why This Cast Iron Brownie Skillet Works
Ingredients You'll Need
Substitutions and Variations
How to Make Brownies in a Cast Iron Skillet (Step-by-Step)
My Tips for the Gooiest Brownie Skillet
What to Serve With It
How to Store and Reheat
Brownie Skillet FAQs
More Brownie Recipes You'll Love
📖 Recipe
💬 Comments

Why This Cast Iron Brownie Skillet Works

No flour means it cannot go cakey. Gluten is what makes a brownie dry and cake-like, and there is none in here. Cocoa powder and a little cornstarch bind the batter instead.
Almond butter does the work eggs usually do. It binds everything together and adds the fat that keeps the texture dense and fudgy.
Applesauce adds moisture without extra oil. That is why there is only a quarter cup of coconut oil in the whole skillet.
Cast iron gives you crackly edges. It holds heat evenly, so the edges set into a crust while the center stays gooey. A Pyrex pie dish or 8x8 pan works too, just with softer edges.
No mixer needed. Melt, stir, pour, and bake. You eat it straight from the pan.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Best brownie ever. It is really gooey and does not taste healthy. Really shocked that there is no flour in this.

- Max

Ingredients You'll Need

This flourless brownie skillet uses ten simple ingredients, most of which you probably already have. Here is what each one does.

Labeled ingredients for a flourless brownie skillet including cocoa powder, almond butter, applesauce, coconut sugar, and chocolate chips.

Dark chocolate: Melts into the batter for a fudgy body, just as it does in my almond flour chocolate cake. Use dairy-free or vegan chocolate if you want to keep this vegan.
Cocoa powder: Where the deep chocolate flavor comes from. Spoon and level it rather than scooping straight from the container.
Coconut oil: Keeps the brownies moist and rich. Use refined coconut oil if you do not want any coconut flavor.
Almond butter: Binds the batter in place of eggs and adds a gooey texture. Look for one with just almonds and salt. It is the same trick I use in my fudgy chickpea brownies.
Applesauce: Adds moisture without more oil (the same trick I use in my healthy apple pie oatmeal cookies). Use unsweetened, and let it come to room temperature first.
Coconut sugar: Sweetens with a deeper, caramel-like flavor. Light brown sugar works 1:1 if that is what you have.
Cornstarch or tapioca flour: Thickens and binds since there is no flour. Do not skip it.
Baking soda: Gives the brownies a little lift so they are not solid fudge.
Vanilla extract and salt: Vanilla rounds out the flavor, and salt makes the chocolate taste more like chocolate.
Chocolate chips: Half go in the batter, and the rest go on top before baking.

Full measurements are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

Substitutions and Variations

Make it nut-free: Swap the almond butter for sunflower seed butter or tahini.
Swap the coconut sugar: Light brown sugar works 1:1.
Swap the cornstarch: Tapioca flour or arrowroot powder both work.
Swap the coconut oil: Melted butter or vegan butter, if you are not keeping it dairy-free.
Use a chocolate bar instead of chips: Chop it up for melty pockets of chocolate rather than whole chips.
Bake it in a pan instead: An 8x8 baking dish or a Pyrex pie dish both work. The edges come out softer than they do in cast iron.
Swirl in peanut butter or caramel: Warm two tablespoons until it is pourable, drop it in spoonfuls over the batter, and drag a knife through in a few S shapes before baking.
Make mini skillet brownies: Divide the batter among smaller cast-iron skillets and start checking them early.

How to Make Brownies in a Cast Iron Skillet (Step-by-Step)

Here is how to make a flourless brownie skillet in a cast iron pan, step by step. Full measurements and instructions are in the recipe card below.

Melted dark chocolate and coconut oil in a glass measuring cup.

Step 1: Melt the chocolate. Microwave the coconut oil and dark chocolate in 15- to 20-second intervals until smooth. Let it cool for 5 minutes.

Cocoa powder, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt whisked together in a glass bowl.

Step 2: Mix the dry ingredients. Whisk together the cocoa powder, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt.

Thick flourless brownie batter in a glass bowl before going into the skillet.

Step 3: Make the batter. Stir the coconut sugar, almond butter, applesauce, and vanilla into the cooled chocolate, then gently fold in the dry ingredients. The batter will be thick.

Brownie batter spread into a greased cast iron skillet and topped with chocolate chips.

Step 4: Fill the skillet. Pour the batter into a greased 8 or 9-inch cast iron skillet and spread it into an even layer. Sprinkle extra chocolate chips over the top.

Baked flourless brownie skillet with a crackly top and melted chocolate chips.

Step 5: Bake. Bake at 350°F for 20 to 25 minutes, until the top has a crackly crust and the center is still gooey.

Baked flourless brownie skillet with a crackly top and two ice cream scoops on top.

Step 6: Serve. Let it rest for 5 minutes, add a scoop of ice cream, and eat it straight from the skillet.

My Tips for the Gooiest Brownie Skillet

Let the applesauce come to room temperature. Cold applesauce firms the melted chocolate back up, and the batter turns grainy on you.
Grease the skillet more than you think you need to. There is no flour in this batter, so it wants to stick to the sides.
Let the melted chocolate cool for a full 5 minutes. Going in hot changes the batter's texture, and five minutes is enough to fix it.
Pull it while the middle still looks underdone. The edges should be set with a crackly top, and the center should look soft. Cast iron holds heat, so it keeps cooking for a few minutes after it comes out of the oven.

Baked flourless brownie skillet with a crackly top and melted chocolate chips and ice cream.

What to Serve With It

Warm from the skillet with a scoop of ice cream is the way this is meant to be eaten. My cottage cheese ice cream is what I usually reach for, but any vanilla works. A drizzle of warm peanut butter is good too, or a pinch of flaky sea salt over the top right when it comes out of the oven.

How to Store and Reheat

To store: Cover the skillet tightly or move the leftovers to an airtight container. They keep in the fridge for up to 7 days or the freezer for up to 3 months.

To reheat: Microwave a portion in 15-second bursts until it is warm and gooey again, or put the whole skillet back in a 300°F oven for about 10 minutes. Thaw frozen brownies in the fridge overnight first.

Brownie Skillet FAQs

Can you make brownies in a cast iron skillet?

Yes, and it is the best pan for them. Cast iron holds heat evenly, so the edges set into a crackly crust while the center stays soft and gooey. Grease it well first, since there is no flour in this batter to keep it from sticking.

Do you need a cast iron skillet to make this?

No. An 8x8 baking dish or a Pyrex pie dish both work with the same temperature and bake time. The edges just come out softer than they do in cast iron.

Can you make brownies on the stove?

Not this recipe. The batter needs the oven's dry heat to set the top into that crackly crust. On the stovetop, the bottom would burn before the middle cooked through.

Why is my brownie skillet raw in the middle?

Some softness in the center is exactly what you want here, since it keeps cooking in the hot skillet for a few minutes after it comes out. If it is genuinely wet rather than soft, the skillet was probably larger than 9 inches or the oven runs cool. Give it another 3 to 5 minutes and check again.

Can you use boxed brownie mix in a cast iron skillet?

You can, but you will need to adjust the baking time, and the result will be thinner and cakier than this one. The whole point of making it from scratch is the fudgy center.

Is this brownie skillet actually gluten-free?

Yes, there is no flour in it at all. Cocoa powder and a little cornstarch do the binding. Check that your cornstarch and chocolate are certified gluten-free if you are baking for someone with celiac.

Inside gooey and rich cast iron brownie skillet.

More Brownie Recipes You'll Love

If you loved this gooey skillet brownie, here are a few more rich and fudgy brownie recipes to try next:

Did you make this recipe?

If you make this recipe, be sure to comment and rate it down below. Also, don't forget to tag me @healthfulblondie on Instagram and use the hashtag #healthfulblondie so I can see your delicious creation and share it with my followers!

📖 Recipe

Recipe tested and developed by Tati Chermayeff, creator of Healthful Blondie. A former Division I rower, Ironman triathlete, and recipe developer based in Austin, TX, Tati creates high-protein and healthy recipes that actually taste like the real thing.

Comments

5 from 3 votes (1 rating without comment)