A few years ago, my little brother moved into the dorms to start college, just a few days before his birthday. Because very few kids from our high school were accepted, he barely knew anyone, and I felt really badly that he’d spend his birthday with strangers.
So the night before, I stayed up late and baked his favorite lemon bundt cake. After work the follow day, I drizzled it with icing, and once I carefully nestled it into the backseat of my car, my guy drove us 80 miles south to my brother’s university.
During move-in weekend a few days before, I had coordinated with one of his suite-mates. I explained my sneaky plan, we exchanged phone numbers, and he offered to let me in through the locked gate when I arrived.
We eased into the parking garage right across the street around 9 pm, late enough that the boys had finished dinner at the dining hall and were surfing the internet back in their suite. My brother’s roommate met me on the sidewalk and led me back through the winding dorm halls.
When he opened their door, we found my brother staring at his laptop screen with headphones on. His roommate tapped him on the shoulder, and when my brother turned, I popped my head into the room.
“Surprise! Happy birthday!”
After recovering from the momentary shock, my brother literally grinned from ear to ear—bigger than I’ve ever seen him smile! We exchanged hugs, sliced the cake, and passed pieces around the room to various new dorm friends who gathered to sing. When half of the cake had disappeared, I waved good-bye and headed back up to my own house.
That was one of the most priceless birthdays we’ve ever celebrated!
So this year, when we had to move on my brother’s birthday, I baked a batch of these Fudgy Lemon Brownies to send home with my parents instead. Moist, chewy and packed with citrus flavor, these healthier treats barely survived the car ride home. My parents were so tempted to sneak a few tastes! And no wonder… These skinny brownies are gluten-free, vegan and only 74 calories each!
Over the past year, my brother developed an allergy to both eggs and dairy, so I wanted to create a dessert he could still enjoy. I substituted silken tofu for the egg and soy milk for the cow’s, and nobody could taste the difference! The texture was still incredible moist and fudgy, just like my regular (and banana) brownies. Seriously irresistible!
For the lemon flavor, I turned to lemon instant pudding mix. I chose the sugar-free, fat-free variety to help lower the fat and calories. You only need the powder, so don’t actually prepare the pudding according to the package’s directions. The cornstarch in the mix also helps contribute to the fudgy chewy texture, so don’t skip it! To really amplify the flavor, add in the freshly grated zest from a lemon too. That little addition makes the citrus taste so bright and summery!
We’ll bake these fudgy bars low and slow, just like regular brownies: 300°F for 18-20 minutes. Watch the center; when it’s barely set and the edges aren’t quite golden, they’re done. Let the brownies cool completely in the pan, and for the fudgiest texture, let them rest overnight before slicing into squares.
Although not quite as shocked as a few years ago, my brother was still surprised when my parents brought out these Fudgy Lemon Brownies to give him! They even stuck candles in my homemade birthday desserts and snapped a picture to send me. So cute!
Happy belated birthday to my sweet brother! ♥
These lemon squares have the same fudgy texture as brownies! They’re so bright and fruity. Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Preheat the oven to 300°F, and lightly coat a 9”-square baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and zest (if using). In a separate bowl, beat the oil, tofu, and vanilla until mostly smooth. Add in the Splenda, pudding mix and ¾ cup of soy milk, mixing thoroughly. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and remaining soy milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and mixing just until incorporated. (For best results, add the flour mixture in 3 equal parts and the soy milk in 2 equal parts.)
- Spread the batter into the prepared pan, and bake at 300°F for 18-20 minutes. Cool completely to room temperature in the pan, and let the brownies rest for at least 2 hours before slicing into squares. (For the fudgiest texture, let them rest overnight.)
Notes: For the gluten-free flour, I used as follows: ¾ cup (90g) millet flour, ¼ cup (35g) brown rice flour, ¼ cup (30g) tapioca flour, 4 teaspoons (10g) coconut flour, and 1¼ teaspoons (4g) xanthan gum.
Granulated sugar may be substituted in place of the Splenda.
I have loyally followed all your recent posts (within the past 2 months) and so older posts, and I just have to say… you have the best guy ever! He seems so sweet, caring and generous!
I really am looking forward to making this, and mentally preparing a shopping list right now! Thank you so much for all your hard work to make desserts healthier, so we can enjoy them more!
Aww, thank you Emma! Your sweet comment completely made my day. I really hope you enjoy this recipe too! 🙂
Hello! I’m from Croatia and I’m not even sure I could buy silken tofu here, so I would like to use eggs in this recipe (I just HAVE to try this). How many eggs should I put in?
I really hope you like the recipe Zeljana! I think 2 eggs + 1 egg white should work as a substitution. If the batter seems too dry, not moist and thick like regular brownie batter, you can add a touch more milk a tablespoon or two at a time until the consistency improves. I can’t wait to hear what you think! 🙂 P.S. The father of the little boy I used to baby-sit in high school was born and raised in Croatia, so my family has wanted to go on vacation there for years!
AHH a 100% Brittany friendly recipe!! This looks so good, I LOVE using tofu in desserts. Your story earns you the title of BEST sister of the century.
Aww thank you Brittany!! 🙂 I hadn’t used tofu in a dessert in over a year, but I’m excited to try it more so I can share baked goodies with my brother!
What a sweet story!! And lemon brownies that are healthy? Sign me up!
Thanks Dorothy!! 🙂
Where can I find the lemon pudding mix? Is it easy to find? This looks super yummy and can’t wait to make !
Thanks Tabby! If you’re in the US, just about any grocery store or Walmart or Target will have the instant lemon pudding mix. It’s generally on the baking aisle, near the other pudding mixes and jell-o mixes. 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these!
Hello, i would really like to try this recipe but i have the same issue as Tabby in the previous comment , can’t find the lemon pudding mix where i live (in France we mostly have chocolate, vanilla and whipped cream kinds).
I searched all over the internet for the jell-o instant pudding mix but too expensive to order bc of the shipping costs.
How can I replace it? With real lemons maybe (juice ? zest?) or something else ?
A big Thank You for your blog, i’m obsessed i want to try every recipe 🙂
For now I made the chia latte muffins and dark chocolate frosted brownies and i really enjoyed both !!
(My boyfriend enjoyed the muffins too but couldnt resist to put some chocolate inside, i wasn’t mad, he loves chocolate haha).
I’m so honored that you’ve been making many of my recipes Eda! That really means a lot to me. I’m totally fine with adding chocolate to the chai latte muffins, as is my mom… We’re both huge chocoholics! 😉 If you have fat-free, sugar-free instant vanilla pudding mix in France, that would be the best substitute! Then double the amount of lemon zest (aim for about 1½ tablespoons of zest total), and replace ¼ cup of the soy milk with freshly squeezed lemon juice. 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these!
Thanks for the kind and quick reply, Amy!
I’m taking your advice and will try the brownies ASAP ! I’ll come back to give my opinion. 😉
It’s my pleasure Eda! I can’t wait to hear how they turn out! 🙂
I didn’t expect to find this recipe. I was looking for silken tofu dessert recipes because I have seen people make cheesecakes with them. Just out of curiosity I decided to do a search here and there it is!! Although I am skeptical about using tofu for making desserts I think I might give this a try. It is good to be adventurous with ingredients at times. Like yesterday I made an orange cake with whole oranges (pulp, pith and the skin). I was afraid it would become bitter but since I saw several videos of whole orange cakes, I decided to make it anyway and it was delicious. I will let you know how this recipe turns out after I make it.
That whole orange cake sounds really interesting! Good to hear it turned out sweet and delicious — I’ve often wondered the same thing! 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these lemon brownies Mita!
Would white whole wheat work instead of GF flour?
Thanks 🙂
Yes! I can’t wait to hear what you think of these! 🙂
Given the amount of subs I made (couldn’t find lemon pudding anywhere, used vanilla), it would be fair to say that these were *inspired* by your brownies :). Pretty tasty! I assume that if the toothpick came out clear it’s fully cooked? Because it has a wet, custard like texture that’s lovely.
I’m so glad your “inspired by” brownies turned out well! That means a lot! 🙂 Yes, if the toothpick came out clear, they should be fully cooked!
Even my bf, whose idea of breakfast is a pint of Haagen Dazs (of course he’s lean and healthy :p), said they were delicious! You have a talent for developing great recipes, and speaking of which, the scones and quick breads have caught my eye. For your scones, is the maple syrup for sweetening or binding? Always looking to cut down on added sugar where possible. Thanks again 😀
Oh my… I wish I could eat Haagen Dazs for breakfast and still be lean and healthy! I’m kind of jealous! 😉 But that’s such a HUGE compliment that he enjoyed them too — thanks for sharing that with me! 🙂 The maple syrup in my scones is for sweetness. If you leave a comment on the exact scone recipe of mine that you’d like to try and include your preferred no-calorie sweetener in your comment (brand name and product name is most helpful!), then we should be figure out a way to replace the maple syrup with that. 🙂