You’ll fall head over heels for these deliciously easy Olive Oil Brownies. Made without butter, these fudgy dairy-free brownies can ready to eat in under 1 hour. No electric mixer needed.
Quick Look Olive Oil Brownies
- ⏱ Prep time: 20 minutes
- 🔥 Cook time: 30 minutes
- ⏳ Total time: 50 minutes
- 🍪 Serving: 12 brownies
- 🍂 Flavour profile: Soft and fudgy with a rich chocolate flavour.
- 👌 Difficulty: Easy
- ❤️ Why we love them: No electric mixer, super fast to make, kids can help – and they stay moist for days.
SUMMARIZE & SAVE THIS CONTENT ON
Best. Brownies. Ever. You’re going to LOVE these amazing Olive Oil Brownies. Not only are they dairy-free, but they’re delicious, with a seriously fudgy centre.
Just like my favourite Olive Oil Chocolate Cake recipe, olive oil keeps these brownies soft and moist. Despite being made without butter or melted chocolate, they’re filled with cocoa powder and chocolate chips and are still full of chocolate flavour.
I love to make these when I’m craving something chocolatey but I don’t have a block of chocolate in the house and can’t make my classic Homemade Brownies. They’re chewy, gooey and all too sweet.
Why you will love this recipe
- Quick and easy: Made with just a bowl and spoon, this Olive Oil Brownie recipe is simplicity at its best. No electric mixer or fancy equipment needed.
- Basic ingredients: This recipe uses only pantry staples, including cocoa powder instead of a block of chocolate. Great for those days when you crave chocolate but don’t have any in the house – or butter either.
- Moist for days: Since these brownies have oil in them instead of butter, they stay moist and soft.
Excellent, have made them 3 times and they worked every time. Yum!
– Celia (reader)
Recipe testing
Sometime late last year I wrote on my recipe list, Olive Oil Brownies. And this week I decided to dive headfirst into the wonderful world of recipe testing brownies.
I was looking for a brownie that had all the key elements of a regular brownie – a crispy top, chewy edges and a fudgy centre. So I started by making my tried and true One Bowl Cocoa Brownies, but subbed in olive oil for butter.
The result (brownie 1) was too fudgy and oily. So next, I reduced the sugar and eggs slightly and subbed in more cocoa to create a drier brownie.
The result (brownie 2) was delicious but it moved over into the cake category. I lost my crinkly top and the fudgy centre was much more like a thick, rich cake. So for test 3, I added a little more sugar back in and reduced the cocoa powder.
Brownie 3 was very close to my perfect Olive Oil Brownie. It was fudgy, sweet with a moist (but not too wet) texture. However, there was one problem. I had lost my signature crispy, crackly top. It was then I realised I didn’t need to change the ingredients but rather the method.
So instead of adding all the ingredients into one bowl and mixing them together. I whisked the eggs briefly separately before adding them to the batter. And that’s when we landed on brownie 4. The Winner.
Ingredients
You only need a handful of pantry staples to make Olive Oil Brownies from scratch. Here’s a quick breakdown of everything you need, including any substitutions you can make.
- Olive oil: I recommend using a mild olive oil for this recipe. If you don’t have any olive oil, you can use other flavourless oil like vegetable oil, grapeseed oil or even coconut oil.
- Sugars: This recipe uses both caster sugar and brown sugar. If you don’t have caster sugar, you can use granulated sugar.
- Eggs: You will need three eggs to make these brownies. If you want an egg-free brownie recipe, try my Vegan Brownies.
- Plain flour: You will need plain flour or all purpose flour for this recipe. Because we want these brownies to be fudgy, they do not have any raising agent in them.
- Cocoa powder: These brownies rely on cocoa powder for their chocolate flavour. You can use natural cocoa powder or Dutch processed cocoa powder. I also love to dust the top with extra cocoa powder too.
- Chocolate chips: To make these brownies extra fudgy, I love to add in chocolate chips. You can use milk chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips or white chocolate chips.
See the recipe card below for the full list and quantities of ingredients.
How to make Olive Oil Brownies
Olive Oil Brownies couldn’t be easier to make. You only need to mix the ingredients together using a bowl and a whisk – so easy! See below my step-by-step photos and instructions for making brownies from scratch.
save this recipe
We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
Step 1: In a large mixing bowl, add olive oil, vanilla and sugars. Whisk together until combined.
Step 2: In a separate bowl, adds the eggs. Whisk the eggs briefly with a fork or hand whisk.
Step 3: Add eggs to olive oil mixture and whisk until combined and smooth.
Step 4: Add cocoa, flour and salt. Whisk or stir until smooth and combined.
Step 5: Stir through chocolate chips.
Step 6: Pour brownie batter into prepared pan and gently smooth it out into one even layer.
Step 7: Bake brownie for 28-30 minutes until it no longer wobbles in the middle. Dust cooled brownie with cocoa powder.
See recipe card below for full method and baking instructions.
Storage instructions
Storage: You can keep Olive Oil Brownies in an airtight container at room temperature or in the fridge. To enjoy them warm, reheat brownies in the microwave for 10-15 seconds.
Freezer instructions: You can also freeze brownies. Simply cover them tightly in plastic wrap and place them in an airtight container or ziplock bag. To serve, thaw them at room temperature or reheat in the microwave in short bursts until warm and fudgy again.
Olive Oil Brownie FAQs
Yes! You can use this recipe but use any mild or flavourless oil you like. I like to use a mild olive oil or grapeseed oil which are fairly tasteless. Vegetable oil will work as well. You could also try my Coconut Oil Brownies.
Yes you can. I find they add a little more chocolate flavour and moistness, but the brownies are still lovely without.
Yes. These brownies don’t have any butter in them. Just be sure to use dairy-free chocolate chips to make them truly dairy-free. If you are looking for an egg-free brownie, try my Vegan Brownie recipe.
Unlike cake, my brownies are designed to be dense and fudgy. To achieve this texture. I don’t use any raising agents like baking soda or baking powder in my Olive Oil Brownie recipe.
Jessica’s EXPERT tips
Try not to over-bake your brownie. The more you bake it, the less fudgy it will be. You’ll know it’s ready when it no longer wobbles or appears wet. If you insert a skewer into the centre and it has a few moist crumbs attached, it’s ready.
More brownie recipes to try
Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave a comment below. Hungry for more? Join me on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok for more amazing recipe ideas.
Let’s Bake
Olive Oil Brownies
Fudgy Olive Oil Brownies that are also dairy free.
Ingredients
- 120 ml (1/2 cup) mild olive oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 150 grams (3/4 cup) caster sugar or granulated sugar
- 90 grams (1/2 cup) brown sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 40 grams (1/2 cup) cocoa powder, sifted, plus extra for decorating
- 70 grams (1/2 cup) plain flour or all purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 80 grams (1/2 cup) chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F) standard / 160 C (320 F) fan-forced. Line an 8-inch square pan with baking or parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the olive oil, vanilla, caster sugar and brown sugar until combined.
- In a separate bowl, add the eggs. Whisk with a fork or a hand whisk for approximately 30 seconds, just to break up the yolks.
- Add the eggs to the sugar mixture and briefly whisk to combine. Then add the cocoa powder, flour and salt. Finally, stir through the chocolate chips.
- Transfer brownie batter into prepared tin. Bake for approximately 28-30 minutes or until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- Leave brownies to cool slightly before gently removing from the pan. They will firm up as they cool.
- Dust brownies with cocoa powder. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream.
Notes
Olive oil: I recommend using a mild olive oil for this recipe. If you don’t have any olive oil, you can use other flavourless oil like vegetable oil, grapeseed oil or even coconut oil.
Cocoa powder: You can use natural cocoa powder or Dutch processed cocoa powder for this recipe.
Chocolate chips: Use dairy free chocolate chips if you want to make this recipe dairy free.
Storage: You can keep Olive Oil Brownies in an airtight container at room temperature or in the fridge. To enjoy them warm, reheat brownies in the microwave for 10-15 seconds.
Freezer instructions: You can also freeze brownies. Simply cover them tightly in plastic wrap and place them in an airtight container or ziplock bag. To serve, thaw them at room temperature or reheat in the microwave in short bursts until warm and fudgy again.
Nutrition Information
Serving Size: 1 brownie Calories: 178 Sugar: 17.6 g Sodium: 15.6 mg Fat: 9.7 g Carbohydrates: 22.8 g Protein: 2.4 g Cholesterol: 34.9 mg
Randee says
Hi! Can I freeze the brownies?
Jessica Holmes says
Absolutely!
Cathrine LONG says
Absolute heaven to taste and eat!
Crunchy on top, gooey inside…..I LOVE them!
Jessica Holmes says
Yay! Love hearing that Cathrine!
Eli says
You don’t need another brownie recipe! This is the best one! The first time I made it, I made a mistake by using extra virgin olive oil which had a very strong taste and ruined the brownie (my mistake, nothing to do with the recipe). Second time I used vegetable oil and it turned out brilliant! My favourite brownie recipe 🙂
Jessica Holmes says
Hooray! So glad to hear that Eli! And yes a flavourless oil is key. I find grapeseed oil works well too or a very light or mild tasting olive oi.
Jill says
Thank you for the recipe. Can I use less sugar or a sweetener.
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Jill, I haven’t tried this one with an alternative sweetener. I think you could get away with reducing the sugar by 1/4 cup, but anymore than that and you’ll start to lose the lovely fudgy texture.
Kat pug says
Doubled the recipe! And used a 9×13 pan. If you do this following the recipe perfectly, you will need to bake for 45 minutes. Also, your brownies will be more cake-like. To acheive fudge, chewy brownies, I’d recommend using 5 eggs instead of 6, and using a little less flour. I added walnuts and the brownies are absolutely delicious, but they’d be even better if I had added dark chocolate chunks! Thanks for the recipe, it was so easy and came out great. 🙂
Jessica Holmes says
That’s so good to hear Kat! Thanks for the lovely feedback.
Neil says
I’ve made this now a few times using normal vegetable oil instead of olive oil; a really good easy recipe to follow. I usually reduce the cooking time a little bit as I like gooey brownies. This week I added three mashed up baked sweet potatoes for added nutrition. Delicious.
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you enjoyed them Neil!
Ally says
Can I do this one gluten free?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Ally, I haven’t tried this one with a gluten free flour so I’m not sure. But you might like to try my Gluten Free Brownie recipe.
Eric Dover says
Not my cup of tea. Dry with funky taste.
Jessica Holmes says
Sorry to hear that Eric! The ‘funky taste’ could be from the olive oil you used. I recommend trying a mild or light tasting olive oil if you can. Also, if the brownies were dry, it usually comes down to over-measuring the flour and/or cocoa or simply over-baking them. I hope that helps!
Jennifer says
Wow, wow, wow! These brownies were delicious! My only modification was that I used my immersion blender on the eggs, rather than whipping them by hand. So darn good. No way to know that there was no butter in them.
Jessica Holmes says
Wow! Love that Jennifer!
C.Calder says
This is a great recipe! My go to brownie recipe. Thanks!
Jessica Holmes says
YAY! Love hearing that!
Melisa Dumas says
Hi! I made these tonight with freshly milled einkorn flour and they turned out great! I might try cutting down on the sugar a bit next time because I’m not a huge sugarholic. I also threw in a small handful of chopped walnuts. So good! Thank you for the recipe!
Jessica Holmes says
Love hearing that Melissa!
Dolores says
I love these! The perfect brownie, crinckly top, chewy inside, everyone in my house loves them! <3
Jessica Holmes says
Yay! So happy to hear that Dolores!
Jen says
hi jess! i absolutely love the brownies, thank you! just that the height of my brownie was a little low although i used an 8 inch square pan. If i want to increase the height, do I just multiply according? Looking to increase by 1/3 the height or 1/2. Is there anything i should take note? thank you!
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Jen, I’m so glad you enjoyed these! You could definitely play around with the quantities, although I can’t guarantee the results.
JEN says
Thank you! If I want a bigger batch, can I just double/ triple the portions? Thanks!
Jessica Holmes says
Yes that should work Jen!
Celia Perez Mourin says
Excellent, have made them 3 times and they worked every time. Yummm
Jessica Holmes says
That’s so wonderful to hear Celia!
anwesha says
i made the brownies and they were wee really good i cut down the sugar a bit and used an egg alternative as i was giving it to someone who couldnt have dairy oreggs the texture was a bit sticky but i think it is because i used an egg alternative -thanks for the recipe<3
Jessica Holmes says
I’m so glad they worked well for you! Thank you for the feedback re: the egg alternative also!