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 1/3 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 1/2 cups (175.5 g) walnut pieces, divided
- 1 cup (112 g) almond flour
- 2/3 cup (121.33 g) Swerve brown
- 1/4 cup (59.15 g) collagen protein powder
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp (0.5 tsp) salt
- 1/3 cup (72.67 g) walnut oil, (or avocado oil)
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1/2 tsp (0.5 tsp) vanilla
- 3 ounces (85.05 g) 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.
Notes
Nutrition
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Carolyn –
A quick update. I made another recipe, your Cranberry Bliss Bars, and the same thing happened – there was a rim of melted butter around the edge of the pan. This time, though, I let the pan sit out on the stove for a couple of hours, and the oil soaked back into the cake, so I think that would work with this recipe as well. I don't know why it happened, but at least I know how to resolve the issue! 🙂
These look fab. I love the idea of baking with walnut oil. thanks for the recipe.
These sounds and look soooooo good! All the richness and flavor without the sugar crash. 🙂 Thanks for sharing – I love your style of baking Carolyn!
Donna, I hope you come back and let me know what happens. I am truly curious why your oil leached out and mine did not. One further thought…I removed mine from the pan before they were truly cooled. I don't know if that would make a difference?
I just made these again from your recipe in volume 1 of the Low-Carbing Among Friends book. That recipe is exactly the same except it calls for Almond Flour instead of Almond Meal, so I used a light, blanched almond flour similar to Honeyville (from Nuts.com). The only other thing I did differently was to use the same amount of Swerve for the sweetener, plus just a few drops of stevia.
I use parchment paper which absorbs a lot of oil, and let them sit, so I didn’t notice pooling, but mine are still soft and oily. This time I baked them a few minutes longer and used a bit less oil. They look like yours and are really good, except….they still TASTE oily to me.
When I think about it, a whole cup of oil seems like a lot, especially with 4 eggs, for an 8″ pan. Do you think the almond meal would make that big a difference? Or maybe this is the only one of your fabulous recipes that I might not make again… ?
I haven’t even thought about this recipe in a long long time. I might have to try it again and see if I can update it. I’ve come a long way since then.
NP, I didn’t pay attention to the date, just wanted to check online to see if it was different from the book. Obviously you are very busy coming up with wonderful new recipes, most of which I haven’t had time to try yet!
Thanks, Carolyn. When I bake a recipe for the first time, I always follow the recipe exactly as written. So the sweeteners were the same, and in the same proportions. My pan was not metal or glass, though – I use a silicone baking pan, which I really love both for ease of removing baked goods and for ease of cleanup. Maybe a metal pan would have worked better. I will give that a try.
Hi Donna – hmmm, I am not sure what happened there. Mine did not pool, although the sides of the pan were definitely oily after I'd removed the blondies. Did you use the same sweeteners as I did, in the same amounts? I've noticed that if I use xylitol in the same amount a regular recipe would use sugar (say 1 cup or so), that any oil or butter leaches out during baking.
Two possible solutions…cut back on the erythritol/xylitol if that's what you are using and add more stevia instead. Also, you might try lining the pan with parchment paper. I've noticed that my darker non-stick baking pans bake differently than lighter coloured metal, so it might be the baking pan and using parchment would help.
I made these today with the same ingredients as well. The oil pooled on my brownies also and the blondes themselves were very oily to the touch 🙁 I’m not sure what could have happened. Definitely gonna try again.
To get a gooey consistency, you will get some oil pooling. If you leave them and let them cool in the pan, it should re-absorb.
I made these, and the flavor is REALLY good. But I noticed that when I took the pan out of the oven, some the oil was pooling around the edges of the pan, and I had to blot it, so it clearly wasn't absorbed by the walnut and almond meal. I think they would have been much more moist if the oil hadn't separated/not been absorbed. Any ideas how to address this, or why it happened?
I'm always happy to find great gluten free recipes on your blog Carolyn! I feel I am not experimenting in this field enough yet and I'm not blogging about them. I should really get started. Thanks for sharing this one. Everybody loves blondies and everybody deserves them 🙂
yum! I love blondies! They look great!
These Blondies look fantastic! I'll be passing this onto my Gluten Intolerant Mum-In_Law.
I have a confession to make. I've never made blondies before. But, I love walnuts, too. As noted by the gigantic tin of fresh walnuts sitting in my kitchen just waiting for a good crackin'.
BTW, I loved your perspectives on the various nut varieties. I seriously laughed out loud. Thanks for the giggles. And awesome recipe!!
I love these! They look so chewy and nutty, yum.
Fabulous blog, Carolyn! I've added you to my favorite blogs. Hope you have a wonderful low-carb Thanksgiving! 🙂
I love love love blondies! These sound incredible!
Hi!
Just to let you know that little award is waiting for you at my blog!
These look great! My mom is on a low carb diet…I think I will make these for her Thanksgiving dessert! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
I love your comparisons of the nuts to people. I've always been somewhat of a walnut. I'll be trying these soon.
I think I may be a cross between an almond and a walnut! Haha, love these descriptions but digging the look of these fab blondies even more!
I appriciate that these are heart healthy! They look absolutely delicious! All chock full of goodies!
First of all, your use of fake expletives is always excused, especially when they do indeed look freaking good!