Heart healthy walnuts and dark chocolate chunks abound in these gooey, sweet keto blondies. They’re dairy-free and full of healthy fats. With only 2.7g net carbs per serving.
Once upon a time, about a billion years ago, I took a stab at making keto-friendly blondies. They turned out really well, and I was delighted to have such a healthy, low carb sweet treat that didn’t spike my blood sugar.
Then I went on to create many more Keto Brownies and Bars, and I forgot about the walnut blondies altogether. But I recently happened upon them again and thought they looked delicious. In the intervening billion years (okay, 12 years, but close enough), I have expanded my keto baking skills and thought I might make them even better.
Did I pull it off? Well let me just say that these keto walnut blondies FAR exceeded my expectations. They are so delectable, and have the ideal texture. Tender, a little gooey, and with a slight chewiness. The chunks of sugar-free chocolate don’t hurt either!
Why you need to try these walnut blondies
Not only are these blondies keto and sugar-free, but they are also completely dairy-free. And I honestly think that makes them even more gooey and appealing.
Following my original recipe, I used ground walnuts are part of the flour. I also used walnut oil rather than butter, to bring out more flavor. The results were spectacular.
Walnuts are an incredibly healthy choice for keto baked goods. They have a much higher ratio of Omega 3 fatty acids than other nuts, offering our bodies more heart healthy fats.
And they add wonderful crunch and flavor to keto dinners and baked goods. I have so many wonderful recipes that use these healthy nuts to advantage, like Walnut Chicken and Keto Coffee Cake. And I love adding some to my Keto Chocolate Chip Cookies.
Ingredients
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- Walnuts: Walnuts make up the bulk of this recipe. Chop half a cup of the walnuts coarsely and grind the rest to a flour.
- Almond flour: You need a little more flour for the blondies and I recommend blanched almond flour for a finer texture.
- Swerve Brown: This brown sugar replacement gives the blondies a deeper flavor than granular sweetener.
- Collagen: You don’t have to use collagen but it does give the blondies a chewier, richer texture. I love Perfect Keto Collagen.
- Walnut oil: Walnut oil in walnut blondies just makes sense! However, I know not everyone can get hold of it, so you can use any neutral tasting oil, like avocado or even light olive oil.
- Eggs: You need one whole egg and one egg yolk. The yolk makes the blondies more gooey.
- Sugar free dark chocolate: I used dark chocolate for this recipe, because it goes so well with walnuts. You can use ChocZero, Lily’s, or your favorite brand.
- Pantry staples: Baking powder, salt, vanilla
Step by Step Directions
1. Chop and grind the nuts: Coarsely chop half a cup of the walnuts and set aside. Place the remaining 1 cup of walnuts in a food processor and process until finely ground. Do not let them become walnut butter!
2. Combine the dry ingredients: Transfer to a large bowl and add the almond flour, sweetener, collagen, baking powder, and salt. Stir to combine well.
3. Stir in the wet ingredients: Add the oil, egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract and stir until the dough comes together. Stir in the chopped walnuts and the chopped chocolate.
4. Bake the blondies: Press the dough evenly into the prepared baking pan and bake 15 to 20 minutes, until the edges are golden and the center is just barely set. They will still be very soft.
Expert tips
Don’t grind too much! If you keep grinding the walnuts past the point where they become finely ground, you will end up with walnut butter.
If you prefer, you can use butter in this recipe. Just melt ⅓ cup of butter and stir it in along with the other wet ingredients.
Don’t over-bake! Make sure you keep your eyes on them and take them out when the edges are set and brown but the top is still a little soft. They will continue to firm up as they cool.
Frequently Asked Questions
Walnuts are low in carbs and high in healthy fats, so they are great choice for keto dieters. Eat them plain as a snack, add them to salads, or cook and bake with them. They add plenty of nutrition to all your meals.
Blondies become crumbly when they are over-baked or don’t have enough fats and eggs to hold them together. For these keto blondies, make sure to let them cool completely before trying to cut them into bars.
Store these walnut blondies on the counter in a covered container for up to 5 days, or in the fridge for up to 10 days. Make sure they are tightly wrapped up so that they don’t dry out. You can also freeze them for up to 2 months.
More recipes you might enjoy
Walnut Blondies Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups walnut pieces divided
- 1 cup almond flour
- ⅔ cup Swerve brown
- ¼ cup collagen protein powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup walnut oil (or avocado oil)
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- 3 ounces sugar free dark chocolate chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325ºF and grease an 8×8 inch metal baking pan.
- Coarsely chop half a cup of the walnuts and set aside. Place the remaining 1 cup of walnuts in a food processor and process until finely ground. Do not let them become walnut butter!
- Transfer to a large bowl and add the almond flour, sweetener, collagen, baking powder, and salt. Stir to combine well.
- Add the oil, egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract and stir until the dough comes together. Stir in the chopped walnuts and the chopped chocolate.
- Press the dough evenly into the prepared baking pan and bake 15 to 20 minutes, until the edges are golden and the center is just barely set. They will still be very soft.
- Remove and let cool completely before cutting into bars.
Pam Axell says
These are absolutely amazing! I make them, cut them into one inch squares, and freeze them. Every night I have two! So yummy!
Carolyn says
Great idea!
Jen says
Is there any reason not to use butter in place of the walnut oil? (Ie will it ruin the taste/texture)
Carolyn says
I already suggest it as an option in the blog post. Not as walnutty, of course.
Debbie says
These are just superb! Perfect amount of gooeyness and texture. Made exactly as written except I used avocado oil as I didn’t have walnut. No one would have a clue they were low carb and sugar free!! Thanks for another winner!
Susan says
It is an exercise in willpower to cut myself off at just one of these! They kind of remind me of eating cookie dough or brownie batter. Yum!
My blondies were veering toward brownies because I only had chocolate collagen. I also had to replace some of the Swerve brown with granular because I ran out. I used avocado oil instead of walnut. Even with these substitutions, they are the best thing ever.
Thanks for another amazing recipe!
Daughter oftheKing says
These are perfect!!
I used butter instead of oil, only had 1 egg, sf chocolate chips and round glass pan baked 25 minutes at 325. Moist, not too sweet and just the right crunch! Thank you!
Ally says
Holy moly these are good! I am guilty of not waiting for them to completely cool, so the middle was extra gooey. The flavor was perfect and the edged were crispy. These were amazing and I’d totally make them again.
Carolyn says
I love them extra gooey like that!
Coby says
Do you have to use the protein powder? What could I use instead?
Carolyn says
Please read the blog post. I already addressed this question.
Donna says
These look amazing. I’m part of a study (to prevent Alzheimer’s Disease- based on successes of Dale Bredeson, MD) in which eating a keto diet is a cornerstone to brain health. We try to avoid dairy (goat ok so i can usually substitute) and most artificial sweeteners except stevia and I believe Alluose. Would either of those work in this recipe (or your recipes in general)?
Carolyn says
You need to read this: https://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/best-keto-sweeteners/
Patrice says
Amazing! Best keto dessert ever! I used sukrin gold for the brown sugar but only had 1/3 c left, so the other 1/3 cup I used a monk fruit blend I have on hand and added 1 tsp of molasses. Seriously, these are gooey, yummy, and I had to stop myself from eating the whole pan! Thank you Carolyn!
Jessica says
We recently figured out that my husband needs to be dairy free, so im excited to have an ooey-gooey dessert for him! Up til now, his all time favorite dessert is your coconut cream pie
Celeste Johnson says
These are delicious! Have you ever tried them with pecans instead of walnuts?
AmyJO says
Excellent! Thanks for another amazing recipe. The texture is spot on for a gooey oatmeal type bar. I will be making these again 🙂
Ron says
Hi, thanks for the great recipe. I was wondering which perfect Keto Collagen you used. I noticed there were several options as well as flavored options. does the butter replace some or all of the oil or ground walnuts?
Carolyn says
Well, in this one I used the plain but the salted caramel is my favorite and I often use it in baking. Butter would replace the walnut oil.
Michelle Baker says
These are probably the best low-glycemic recipe I have ever made in 5 1/2 years of eating low-glycemic! They are just what I was craving! My daughter and husband and parents all loved them just as much as I did, and they usually are wary of my sugar-free creations, lol. Thank you so much, Carolyn! I’m off to make them again because they didn’t last long and I miss them!
Carolyn says
I am so glad!
Susie says
Can this bar be made without the collagen? Or a substitute? I use your recipes mostly for sugar free baking for type 2 diabetes. Such good recipes!!!
Carolyn says
Hi, I already talk about that in the blog post! 🙂
Nadia says
I am new to living a low carb lifestyle and I really appreciate your explanations of different ingredients and the time you to take to create and make recipes! Thanks to your blog I got Honeyville almond flour instead of the Bob’s Mill and it has made a world of difference in the recipes I make. I was wondering if I could use almond flour in this recipe or would it not work? Thank you again!
Carolyn says
Well, it would work but it would be as walnutty! 🙂
Mary says
I know this is an old post but I have to say I am going to make to make these again because they are so good. They do not raise my husband’s blood sugar so they are a good healthy snack. Thanks so much for these yummy recipes.
Beverly says
I love chewy Blondies and this recipe looks like my kind of Blondie. Carolyn, your recipes are outstanding. Please forgive me if I tinker with this recipe just a bit by using half browned butter and half toasted walnut oil and using English Toffee Stevia. Would it be overkill to put a drizzle of Sugar Free Caramel sauce on the plate when serving? 🙂
Carolyn says
Your version sounds fabulous!
Edith Patchan says
So when you said walnut meal in the beginning you meant almond meal like the recipe indicates? I was bummed out for a minute since walnut meal is hard to make! lol
Catherine H. says
I love these! I made a batch with a few substitutions–some Splenda (because I'm running low on my sugar alcohols) and plain walnut oil rather than toasted–which I really regret because I'm sure the added layer of flavor would have been excellent. Neverthless, these were fantastic. I would say for me there was still a tiny bit of a cakey texture, but not at all unpleasant–very good mouthfeel, in fact. I also used a Ghirardelli 72% dark chocolate bar for the chocolate chunks. I got the same pooling oil issue that Donna did, but I just let the blondies sit for a time and it re-absorbed just fine. These will remain a favorite for sure!