3-Ingredient Nutella Brownies Recipe (dairy-free/vegan option) (2024)

3-ingredient Nutella brownies recipe – probably the easiest, simplest and quickest way to gooey, fudgy brownies that you’d never know were gluten-free! These are also easy to make dairy-free too.

3-ingredient Nutella brownies recipe – yep, you can actually make delicious brownies without tons of ingredients, or tons of washing up left over afterwards. And no – the ingredients aren’t weird or hard to find either!

I’m a sucker for an easy recipe because first of all, I’m often so disorganised that planning to bake something and getting all the ingredients ahead of time, somehow seems to evade me.

I’m definitely a ‘spur of the moment’ type baker, who just suddenly feels like making brownies, only to open the cupboard and find I’m missing everything I need.

But with my 3-ingredient Nutella brownies recipe… there is a very high likelihood that I’ll permanently have these ingredients in my cupboards at all times. Which is both handy and very dangerous!!

Why make my 3-ingredient Nutella brownies recipe?

• Simply mix up your 3 ingredients in a bowl, whack it into a baking tin and bake. That’s it!
• No xanthan gum required.
• These need a third of the ingredients you’d need to make ‘proper’ brownies.
• They taste AMAZING – just like my ‘proper’ brownies, but take a third of the time to make.
• You’d never know they’re gluten-free (or dairy-free) by tasting them AT ALL. Everyone will love these!
• You probably have all the ingredients you’ll need for this recipe already.
• The chocolate hazelnut flavour in a brownie is to die for… maybe even better tasting than my ‘real deal’ brownies!

So what’s the difference between these and a brownie that involves more than double the amount of ingredients?

Well… not a lot to be honest! Of course, my classic gluten-free brownies are a lot thicker, but taste and texture wise, I think I’d struggle to tell the difference if I’m honest.

Obviously these have more of a Nutella, chocolate hazelnut-type flavour, but omg… it just works so well in a brownie.

Every bite is gooey, fudgy, packed with rich, chocolatey flavour and one slice never seems to be enough. You can also optionally add chocolate chips to these if you fancy, but it’s not mandatory.

So I’m sure you’re wondering by now… what are these magical three ingredients? Here’s everything you’ll need for my 3-ingredient Nutella brownies recipe. Keep scrolling until you see the recipe card below if you’re looking for the method ??

3-ingredient Nutella brownies recipe: Ingredients

• 450g Nutella + 2 tbsp extra to swirl on top (or dairy-free alternative)
• 3 eggs
• 120g gluten free plain flour
• 70g chocolate chips (optional)

So I thought I’d kick things off with a little frequently asked questions section – if you just want the recipe, then keep scrolling.

But I’ve thrown in some tips here that will be really helpful if this is your first time baking this, or you want to adapt it. So here they are!

3-ingredient Nutella brownies recipe: Frequently asked questions

Can I make this recipe gluten free? Is it suitable for Coeliacs?

It is gluten free, though nobody would know just by tasting it – trust me!

Bear in mind that minimising cross-contamination is hugely important if you’re Coeliac or making this for someone who is. Here’s some tips from Coeliac UK on minimising the risk of cross contamination:

Also, make sure that all ingredients used don’t have any gluten-containing ingredients. Then make that that they also don’t have a ‘may contain’ warning for gluten, wheat, rye, barley, oats (which aren’t gf), spelt and khorasan wheat (aka Kamut).

Here’s some more info from Coeliac UK on identifying safe gluten free products.

Can I make your 3-ingredient Nutella brownies recipe dairy free?

Yes you can! Whilst Nutella definitely is NOT dairy-free, there are dairy-free alternatives to Nutella available out there.

But please beware – most vegan alternatives to Nutella may have no dairy-containing ingredients, but the one commonly available in the free from aisle comes with a nasty ‘may contain traces of dairy’ warning. So please double check the labels first.

This particular chocolate hazelnut spread in particular is dairy-free. However, the jarred version by the same brand has a ‘may contain dairy’ warning, so please be careful! Remember, you’ll need 450g of it, so you’ll need more than the one bottle.

Can I make your 3-ingredient Nutella brownies recipe vegan?

Yep! If you follow the instructions above to make this recipe dairy free,then all you’ve got left to contend with is the eggs.

Here’s a few ideas you can use as egg replacements, so each of these = 1 egg.

• 3 tablespoons of aquafaba – water from a can of chickpeas. Keep the chickpeas for a future dinner!
• Egg replacement powder – I’d recommend using Orgran as it’s gluten free.
• 1 tablespoon of chia/flax seeds mixed with 2 tablespoons of water and left for 10 minutes in the fridge.
• 3 tablespoons of applesauce.

I haven’t tested all of these egg alternatives so let me know how you get on in the comments below ??

Can I make this recipe low FODMAP?

Nutella contains lactose which isn’t low FODMAP, but if you use this vegan alternative instead then this recipe will be lactose-free and therefore, low FODMAP. That would make this recipe suitable for the elimination phase of the diet.

Just bear in mind that the product linked above is not dairy-free, so whilst it’s low FODMAP, it’s not suitable for milk allergy sufferers.

Is your 3-ingredient Nutella brownies recipe nut free?

Sadly not as Nutella isn’t nut-free. If you know of any suitable nut-free alternatives to Nutella then let me know in the comments below and I’ll link it here.

Is Nutella gluten-free?

Yes, in the UK, Nutella is gluten-free! But don’t take my word for it (you never know when things might change after all), here’s a link to it so you can check it for yourself.

According to Coeliac UK, if a product has no gluten-containing ingredients and no ‘may contain’ warning for gluten, wheat etc. then that makes it safe for Coeliacs and those on a gluten-free diet.

Can I make your 3-ingredient Nutella brownies in a food processor or standing mixer?

You definitely can and it’ll probably help to soften up the Nutella initially! If using a food processor, just make sure you keep scraping down the sides periodically to ensure everything gets mixed in evenly.

However, you certainly don’t need either for this recipe.

Can I make your 3-ingredient Nutella brownies recipe by hand?

You can of course, bake this without any assistance from any appliance – just a good ol’ fashioned silicone spatula will do. Just make sure you give it a lot of welly, otherwise your mixture won’t be consistent and might not bake properly.

I actually made this recipe by hand as there’s so few ingredients that using a mixer seemed a little overkill.

Do I need any special equipment to bake your 3-ingredient Nutella brownies recipe?

Certainly not! You will need a good quality 8 inch x 8 inch square though, so here’s a link to the one I use.

Can I bake this in a 9 inch square baking tin?

I wouldn’t recommend it because your brownies will come out really thin! If it’s all you have, then needs must, but make sure you don’t cook them for quite as long.

Due to being much thinner, they won’t need as long in the oven.

Does this recipe need xanthan gum?

You’ll see xanthan gum in a lot of my recipes as it’s an essential ingredient in gluten free baking. But not with this one, it’s not required!

Can I make this recipe using other gluten free flours like buckwheat flour or coconut flour?

There’s a big difference between ‘gluten free plain/self-raising flour’ and a *singular* type gluten free flour. When I say ‘gluten free plain or self-raising flour’ in a recipe, I mean a BLEND of gluten free flours, not just one, singular flour.

Most gluten free flour you buy in the supermarket typically contains a blend of rice flour, potato flour, maize flour, tapioca flour AND buckwheat flour. That’s a lot of different flours!

In gluten free self-raising flour, there’s usually even a little baking powder and xanthan gum in it too which always helps. So to replace it with just one specific type of flour… that’s not going to cut it at all. Definitely go for a gluten free flour blend.

Do I need weighing scales to bake your 3-ingredient Nutella brownies recipe?

In short… yes, yes and yes! And I wouldn’t advise attempting any my recipes without them. One of the worst things you can do in any baking recipe is alter the quantities by mistake or on purpose.

(unless you know what you’re doing of course)

Why? Well, you’re sort of just gambling with the recipe and praying that it turns out ok, don’t you think? And I’ve generally already done the hard work there for you, so you don’t have to do the guesswork with measurements!

A lot of work went into fine tuning ratios and quantities so I wouldn’t mess around with them unless you really know your stuff.

I’d recommending using digital cooking scales like these so you know you’re getting an accurate measurement.

Can I bake your 3-ingredient Nutella brownies recipe with less sugar / without sugar?

There’s actually no added sugar in this recipe, all the sweetness comes from the Nutella. So no need to add any extra!

How long can I keep your 3-ingredient Nutella brownies for?

I’ve kept these for 3-5 days in an air-tight container with no problems.

Can I freeze your 3-ingredient Nutella brownies?

Of course! I’ve frozen it for up to 2-3 months no problem. Make sure you slice them up before freezing, then, you can easily defrost a few slices at a time instead of the entire thing.

When you want to enjoy one, each slice should take around 3 hours to defrost at room temperature.

How can I tell when my 3-ingredient Nutella brownies aredone?

Grab a skewer and give it a poke in the centre. If it comes out clean, then it’s done! You might get a little chocolatey residue on there, but that’s ok too.

You just don’t want tons of gooey chocolate coating your skewer.

Can I print your 3-ingredient Nutella brownies recipe?

Yes! Just hit the print button located on the recipe below ?? (otherwise you might end up printing this entire post which would probably make your printer go into early retirement)

Ok, so here’s a printable version of my 3-ingredient Nutella brownies recipe. Please remember to give it 5 stars if you tried it and enjoyed it as it helps people know it’s worth trying too! ⭐️ Feel free to leave your written reviews in the comments below this post.

Thanks for reading all about my 3-ingredient Nutella brownies recipe! If you make it, I’d love to see how it turned out so don’t forget to take a snap of your creations and tag me on Instagram!

Any questions about the recipe? Please do let me know by following me onInstagram and leaving me a comment on a recent photo!

Thanks for reading,

Becky xxx

Don’t forget to pin this for later!