The heavenly combo of chocolate, espresso and buttercream in the best low carb brownie recipe! Over-the-top deliciousness that’s still healthy. This post is sponsored by KitchenAid and Organic Valley.
This is a very special recipe because it marries two of my greatest loves: coffee and butter. And no, it’s not a recipe for bulletproof coffee, that blended coffee butter drink that’s all the rage right now. This recipe is a little more complicated than that. And, I would wager, a little more tasty. Or a lot more tasty, depending on how you feel about butter in your coffee. The real question is, how do you feel about coffee and butter in your brownies? Chances are you feel pretty darn good about that. I feel good about it too, as did the guests we had over for dinner when I served these.
I created this recipe because I got the chance to partner with both KitchenAid and Organic Valley together, which just so happen to be two of my favourite brands. KitchenAid kindly sent me their Nespresso machine to test out and Organic Valley sent me coupons for their delectable Pasture Butter, the seasonally-available butter made from pastured cows. Needless to say, I was in over-caffeinated low carb heaven.
The KitchenAid Nespresso machine is an absolute dream and I wonder now how I ever lived without it. To have fresh espresso at the ready every morning without camping out overnight in your local Starbucks? Priceless. And it’s good espresso too, with a beautiful thick layer of crema on top. You can adjust the size of the shot to your liking, from very small and strong to almost-Americano size, perfect for your intense cappuccinos or your mellow lattes. The machine itself is of wonderful, sturdy quality. The design is slim and sleek and it doesn’t take up much space on your counter, but it’s mostly metal and very heavy. Simply put, it’s the kind of quality you’d expect from KitchenAid. And I am delighted to find that Nespresso has quite an extensive recycling program, with many retailers accepting used pods.
I also highly recommend the milk frother that comes with it. In all my time trying to get a decent froth with various home equipment, I’ve never even come close to this little thing. It’s so quiet, you barely know it’s working, but you take off the lid and you have the most beautifully frothed milk or cream. Since I don’t drink a lot of milk, I use half and half in mine and it works like a charm. I’ve tried heavy cream but it doesn’t get as much froth, although it does warm up nicely so that you can add it to your espresso without cooling the whole drink down. I also tried full fat coconut milk and it worked very well with that too, so you have a dairy-free option.
As for the Organic Valley Pasture Butter, well that is not new to me and hardly needs a “review”. I discovered it a year or two ago and have purchased it numerous times. Because it’s only seasonally available, when the pastured milk is at its peak, I’ve been known to stock up and keep several bricks in the freezer. Truth be told, I haven’t baked with it that much because I tend to hoard it for eating as is, spreading it on low carb muffins and bread. And, admittedly, sometimes just a chunk straight into my mouth. I think it is the best store-bought butter by far, for taste, for creaminess and for healthfulness. It actually contains a higher percentage of butter fat than most butter. No wonder I love it so much! I’ve recommended it many times to readers and friends. But of course, it also bakes up beautifully as well and made for some of the most divine espresso buttercream frosting in the world. I suspect that when I die, they will have to prise bricks of Pasture Butter out of my hands.
So these low carb brownies are the perfect marriage of two wonderful products that I recommend without reservation. And they were some of the most delicious brownies I’ve ever made, so I also recommend them without reservation. They were the hit of the party and I sent my guests home with some for later. I kind of regret that, actually. Hey, can I have them back?
Disclosure: This post is sponsored content. KitchenAid provided the Nespresso machine and Organic Valley compensated me for my recipe. All opinions truly are my own. I don’t effuse about products like this unless I truly love them!
- 1 1/3 cup almond flour
- 1 cup Swerve Sweetener (more if you like it sweeter)
- 1/3 cup cocoa powder
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup Organic Valley Pasture Butter
- 4 ounces unsweetened chocolate chopped
- 5 large eggs
- 3/4 cup espresso or strongly brewed coffee about 2 medium-sized Nespresso shots, cooled
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup Pasture Butter softened
- 2 cups powdered Swerve Sweetener
- 1/4 to 1/3 cup espresso or strongly brewed coffee (about 1 small Nespresso shot, cooled)
- 2 tsp Pasture Butter
- 1/4 cup sugar-free chocolate chips
- Preheat oven to 300F and grease a 9x13 inch baking pan well.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, sweetener, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt.
- In a medium saucepan, melt butter and unsweetened chocolate together over low heat, stirring until smooth. Add to almond flour mixture.
- Stir in eggs, cooled espresso and vanilla extract until well combined. Pour batter into prepared baking pan and smooth the top.
- Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until just set in the center. 25 minutes for more fudgy brownies, 30 minutes for more cakey brownies. Remove and let cool completely.
- In a large bowl, beat butter and sweetener together until well combined. Slowly pour in cooled espresso, beating until a spreadable consistency is achieved.
- Spread frosting over cooled brownies and refrigerate until set, about 1 hour.
- In a microwave safe bowl, combine butter and chocolate chips. Heat on high in 30 second increments, stirring in between, until smooth.
- Use a spoon to drizzle over frosted brownies.
Serves 20. Each serving has 5.3 g of carbs and 2.62 g of fiber. Total NET CARBS = 2.68 g.
Food energy: 216kcal
Total fat: 19.70g
Calories from fat: 177
Cholesterol: 78mg
Carbohydrate: 5.30g
Total dietary fiber: 2.62g
Protein: 4.51g
Sodium: 180mg
Paula - bell'alimento says
Holy cow those look amazing and they’re low carb? Um yeah!
Judy Morin says
Guessing that you mean Almond instead of amend in the instructions.
Carolyn says
Haha, probably! Darn autocorrect!
janet says
Oh man, those look delish. I have been working on a similar thing over the last few weeks, a brownie like Starbucks serves with the ground espresso right in it. My problem is that the Swerve tends to settle to the bottom and create a separate layer. Any suggestions as to what I can do?
Thanks for any input you can give!
Martha @ A Family Feast says
Oh my gosh – these brownies look incredible! Love espresso and chocolate together!
nicole says
heavenly! thank you, you genius, you…..
Tasha @thatssoyummy says
The fact that your telling me these beauties are low carb means I could eat three instead of just one.. right?
claire @the realistic nutritionist says
This is just the pick me up I need this afternoon!
brenda@sugarfreemom says
What a fantastic machine and my kind of recipe! I too love coffee and Butter!
The Food Hunter says
I was wow over the dessert and then I saw that Nepresso machine…holy wow! 🙂
Lori @ Foxes Love Lemons says
I’m actually in the market for an espresso machine right now, and haven’t been sure which one to buy. But wow, that crema on top of that cup of espresso makes me think Nespresso should be a front runner!
Liz @ The Lemon Bowl says
I want these in the worst way!!
Kim says
Omg, if only you knew how badly I want these brownies right now.
Jennie @onesweetmess says
I’m all for coffee and butter combined. These bars look amazing! Pinned.
Heather | girlichef says
Hold the boat! There is a KitchenAid Nespresso machine? Awesome! I neeeeed (yes, need) one of those. These brownies look insanely delicious, and I’m all about the butter and coffee.
Lauren @ Healthy Delicious says
I’ve been using my Nespresso every morning for about a year now and I still love it. Their coffee is soooo good. And the new KitchenAid machine is so cute!!
These brownies look awesome. Way better than bulletproof coffee. 😉
tiffany says
I made these and they are super good!
I have a question though, is it really 2 cups of powdered Swerve? I only put in 1 and it’s plenty sweet to me. I’m not criticizing your recipe at all, I’m just wondering if I’m doing sonething wrong because I always have this problem with the powdered Swerve.
Carolyn says
Yes, the way I made the butter cream it was 2 cups of Swerve. But if you liked it with less, that’s great. It didn’t seem like the frosting would have enough structure with just 1.
tiffany says
I don’t know if anybody else is having the same problem but just in case, someone online suggested cutting the powdered sweetener with sugar free coffee creamer and I tried it in a gooey butter cake recipe and it worked great.
Diane (Created by Diane) says
What a super delicious looking brownie, and low carb….big bonus!!! love it 🙂
Monique @ Ambitious Kitchen says
Now I want a Nespresso. 🙂 But really, your brownies look amazing and you’ve introduced me to some new products too. 🙂 Thanks! Always looking for low carb treats.
Gina @ Running to the Kitchen says
I’m all about bulletproof coffee but these definitely look way tastier 🙂
Larissa says
Hi! I really want to try this. But, I don’t really like using these sweeteners. I prefer using the drops ones. Plus, I’ve never found swerve around here in Brazil, and the few powdered sweeteners I’ve found are loaded with carbs (although they swear they’re sugar-free).
So… I was think about doing this with heavy cream to give some more consistency. Do you think that would work?
Carolyn says
You won’t be able to get a very good buttercream frosting with a non-bulk sweetener. I think you’d be better off using half butter, half cream cheese to get a decent frosting with a liquid sweetener.
Bernadette Wheeler says
Do you think these would freeze ok?
I have made them a couple of times and get raves from everyone, even people who don’t do the gluten and sugar free thing. They’re also quite pretty.
Carolyn says
I think they would freeze well enough. The frosting might change consistency a bit upon thawing.
Maria Rivera says
what can I use for Almond Flour substitute?
Carolyn says
Sunflower seed flour http://amzn.to/2j5dKYq
Mel says
I followed this recipe to a “T” and the taste is good but the texture is terrible, dust like. I used coconut flour. Would this create a problem? Not enough liquid in recipe,had to pat batter into pan.
Carolyn says
You did not follow the recipe to a T if you used coconut flour. This recipe is for almond flour only and it states almond flour in the ingredient list. They are VERY different and cannot be substituted for each other one for one. Please read my posts on baking with almond flour and baking with coconut flour and you will begin to understand why. https://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/2013/04/low-carb-basics-baking-with-coconut-flour.html
https://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/2013/02/low-carb-basics-baking-with-almond-flour.html
Mel says
Thanks. Next time I use the recipe, I’ll be sure to use almond flour.
Cindy says
The batter I made seemed thin, more like a cake batter than a brownie batter. Is that right? Unfortunately my Pyrex exploded coming out of the oven and I couldn’t taste these. When I remake should I use less espresso so that the batter is thicker?
Carolyn says
It should be pourable but still quite thick. Hope that helps!
Cindy says
Thanks. They turned out beautifully. I ran out of confectioners sugar so I used the German chocolate brownie topping. So yummy.
Stephanie Deal says
I made these tonight for our football tailgate tomorrow and they are AMAZING. 🙂
I didn’t put the chocolate ganache on top — I just simply sprinkled cocoa powder lightly on the top and they are so pretty and taste fabulous. Thx for another great recipe!!
Brad says
This recipe came out very nicely for me. It was just sweet enough. However, I did find the brownie to be less dense or brownie-like than I would have liked. Is this because of the almond flour? Any way to get more substance to almond flour cakes in general?
Carolyn says
What kind of almond flour did you use?