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Easy Eggless Brownies using Brownie Mix and Flaxseed Meal
July 10th, 2008 Madhuram Posted in Brownies, Egg Free, Vegan Baking | 
| 70 Comments »
Ever since I started baking, I have used only bananas as a substitute for eggs. Bananas definitely give the moist texture for cakes and breads, but the drawback is the flavor of bananas is dominant in those baked goods. So whatever changes you make otherwise in the recipe, the end product tastes the same. For example my carrot cake and zucchini bread tasted similar. It was definitely very good, but we need some change right!
Brownie Mix of your choice (I used Duncan Hines Chocolate Lover’s Brownies Double Fudge. See My Notes for the reason)
Cold Water – 1/3 cup
Vegetable Oil – 3 tablespoons
Flax seed meal (ground flax seed) – 1 teaspoon
Water – 1/4 cup
Vanilla Extract – 1 teaspoon (not mentioned in the packet)
Walnuts – 1/2 cup (optional)
1. Preheat oven to 350F (325F for glass pans)
2. Empty brownie mix into bowl.
3. Add 1/3 cup cold water.
4. Add 3 tablespoons oil. (Actually 1/3 cup of oil was mentioned in the packet)
5. In a small cup add the flax seed meal and slowly add the water and whisk it with a fork and add it to the brownie mix.
6. I chose to add vanilla extract also.
7. Stir everything until well blended (about 40-50 strokes)
8. Now add the nuts and combine it once again.
9. Generously grease the brownie pan. I used a non stick 8″x8″ pan.
10. Spread the mixture in the pan.
11. Bake it anywhere between 30-38 minutes. (Check the instructions in the package for detailed baking time). I baked mine for 40 minutes. But I think I should have taken it around 38 minutes itself, because I had little cracks on the top. That was the only negative thing with these brownies, otherwise they were unbelievably moist and gooey. We did not taste the flax seed at all. Just be sure that the brownie cools out completely before you can cut into squares.
1. Buying the brownie mix – If you are a vegetarian, be sure to check the ingredients, because some brands contain lard, tallow (animal fat). The brand I chose did not have animal fat.
2. I bought the double fudge brownies, which had a chocolate syrup pack, which had to be added to the brownie batter. But I omitted it because this was the first time I was going to bake brownies and that too without eggs. So I did not want to experiment too much.
3. Egg substitute: I came across in many books and websites that ground flax seed is a good substitute for eggs while baking. But the ratio of flax seed meal to water was different in each and every place. I recently bought a vegan cook book and there were a lot of baking recipes using flax seed meal. So I decided to used the proportion given in that book. For every egg in a recipe, use 1 teaspoon of flax seed meal mixed with 1/4 cup of water.
4. Checking the doneness of brownies: I read in the same book that inserting a toothpick to check the doneness does not work for brownies. Instead “the touch test” was recommended. When you touch the top of the brownies, it should not leave an indentation. If it does, the batter is still soft, so you need to bake it for another couple of minutes.
This my entry for Egg Replacement Event – Flax Seed Meal, hosted by me.
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July 27th, 2010 at 3:10 pm
hi thank you very much for replying me back, ok i will definitely try that recipe with all purpose flour and i will let you know how did it turn out. and again i just love your website.
thanks rani
You’re welcome Rani.
July 23rd, 2010 at 4:39 pm
hi i love your website.
i try lots of recipe from your website it turns out very good. i have Question about this Eggless Brownies using Brownie Mix and Flaxseed Meal do i use 3 tablespoon oil or 1/3 cup of oil i am kind of confused with that. and also can u show me how make chocalate chip muffins plz.
thanks very much.
Thanks Rani. The quantity of oil mentioned in the pack was 1/3rd cup but I used only 3 tablespoons to cut back. The brownies were pretty good even with lesser quantity of oil, so I don’t think you need 1/3rd cup. I have a healthy chocolate chip muffin recipe here:http://www.egglesscooking.com/2009/07/15/whole-wheat-chocolate-chip-muffins/. If you don’t have whole wheat pastry flour you can simply used all purpose flour itself and you can also use unsweetened applesauce instead of prune puree.
July 20th, 2010 at 6:33 pm
hi love you’re website
just a question can you use silken tofu with ready made brownie mixes?
Thanks Jen. I think it would work. I once used silken tofu in readymade cake mix to make chewy chocolate cookies, so I think the brownies would turn out good as well. Check out the cookie recipe I’m talking about.
http://www.egglesscooking.com/2008/10/06/eggless-chewy-chocolate-chip-cookies/
April 12th, 2010 at 8:38 pm
Madhuram, Many thanks for quick reply and links/recipes! I now know I didn’t measure enough flax meal, so will be more careful next time. I forgot to thank you for links to egg replacements, very useful info.
You’re welcome Mary. Do feel free to shoot out any questions.
April 12th, 2010 at 7:19 pm
I love your site, and had not used a mix for any baking since I was forced to go red meat, dairy-free and egg-free (due to a digestive condition) 3 months ago. I had baked and cooked everything I ate from scratch, unless you count pastas. I’d done some baking, mostly cornbread and quick breads, usually used half small banana in those, sometimes tofu, with much success. However, these brownies were my first use of a mix and my first use baking w/ flaxseed. I’m afraid I did something wrong, they were, hmm, not too good. (used a Betty Crocker mix.)I also made a cornbread using them, and it was bad also! So, I’m not having any success with flaxseeds so far:cry: Should I go back to bananas and tofu?? Thanks for a great site, and I loved reading about your journey in baking. Wish I had more patience!!!
Thanks Mary. I’m sorry to hear about your food intolerance. I’m wondering why most of those who try this recipe don’t get it right! I have had a good deal of success using flax seed meal. Hope I can persuade you to give the following brownie cupcake recipe a try which uses flax seed meal.
http://www.egglesscooking.com/2008/11/05/vegan-brownie-cupcakes/ .I made these for my son’s class (he was 3 then) and I heard from the teachers that the kids loved it so much. Bonus, its fat free too.
You can try unsweetened applesauce too instead of the bananas. I have a couple of brownie recipes using applesauce as well.
http://www.egglesscooking.com/eggless-baking-recipes/eggless-bars-brownies/
March 11th, 2010 at 4:08 pm
Your links to the articles about egg substitutes were REALLY helpful!!! My roomie is fructose, lactose, and gluten intolerant and those tips helped with a GREAT brownie recipe from scratch. They turned out REALLY well. Thanks!
Hannah, I’m glad that the info was helpful.
December 30th, 2009 at 1:26 pm
no, i used pillsbury double fudge brownie mix.
December 29th, 2009 at 1:08 pm
hi
…. i think they needed a little bit of sugar………… after a couple of days i baked them again with additional sugar an they came out pretty good………… 
i baked these and they weren’t as good as i thought..
Thanks for the feedback Preet. The first time, did you use the same brownie mix which I have used or something else?
December 14th, 2009 at 6:30 pm
i’m planning on baking these. this will be my first time ever. recipe sounds goods i’m gone try it on christmas
December 14th, 2009 at 6:18 pm
i luv ur website!!!!!!
can u tell me wht is flax seed 
Thank you very much Preet. Flax seed is also called Lin Seed (in India and other European countries). It’s Alsi in Hindi. You can find it in Indian grocery stores as well as in the organic aisle of other grocery stores and health food shops. You could either buy the whole seeds (it comes in golden, yellow and brown and you can use anything) and powder it as and when you want or you can get the flax seed powder itself in stores.