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    Home / Recipes / Brownies & Bars

    Chocolate Buckwheat Brownies with Walnuts

    Mar 28, 2019 · Updated: Jun 22, 2025 by Dee Dine · Affliate links disclosure.

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    A stack of healthy brownies on a white table.

    These rich chocolate buckwheat brownies with walnuts, made with three creamy chocolate layers, are naturally gluten free and easy to make in under 30 minutes. An easy chocolate energizing treat.

    three buckwheat brownies stacked

    These easy chocolate buckwheat brownies with walnuts are no bake and are naturally gluten free thanks to healthy buckwheat! They are made of three layers, with the base being crunchy chocolate buckwheat, the middle containing chocolate coconut butter and a dark chocolate top. Just like my no bake peanut butter brownies and my peanut butter swirl brownies from scratch, these are a terrific energizing snack!

    Jump to:
    • Why You'll Love This
    • Ingredients
    • Substitutions
    • Step by Step Instructions
    • Recipe Tips
    • Storage
    • FAQS
    • More Brownie Recipes
    • 📖 Recipe

    Why You'll Love This

    • Quick to make. These buckwheat brownies can be made quickly in a food processer and they are no bake but don't require a long chill, so they are ready minutes after you've mixed the ingredients.
    • Nutritional snack. Thanks to buckwheat, these brownies are high in nutrition. Buckwheat is not a grain, so it is naturally gluten free. It's actually part of the rhubarb family, making it closer to a vegetable. It is good for heart health, lowering blood pressure, easy on the gut, contains disease-fighting antioxidants, and is high in fiber.
    • Good for vegan & gluten free diets. This creamy chocolate brownie is the perfect no bake snack no matter if you eat plant based or not.

    Ingredients

    ingredients for buckwheat brownies
    • buckwheat groats - a pseudo grain you can buy online or wherever you'd find rolled oats in the grocer. Or just use buckwheat flour or oat flour.
    • walnuts - these add nutty protein, or use more buckwheat groats.
    • cocoa powder
    • maple syrup - a refined sugar free sweetener.
    • coconut butter. Make it or buy it. The recipe to make it is below, just blend unsweetened shredded coconut, or follow my 'how to make coconut butter' blog post.
    • peanut butter - optional, but adding it to the chocolate makes it creamy.
    • chocolate - Use at least 60% chocolate chips or a chopped up bar.

    See the recipe card at the bottom for full information on ingredients and quantities.

    Substitutions

    Buckwheat groats. You can use buckwheat flour instead. It is easier to find, most grocery stores carry it. Just use a bit less, ½ cup instead of ⅔ cup. You can also use oat flour or even rolled oats in place of groats.

    Maple syrup. Any liquid sweetener that you prefer is fine. I have also used date paste, in the same amount.

    overhead of buckwheat brownies sliced

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    Step by Step Instructions

    For more detail, visit the complete and printable recipe at the bottom of this post, but here are general steps.

    Step 1: Line a loaf pan with parchment paper so it over hangs each side. Rinse the buckwheat groats until the slimy coating is gone, about a minute.

    Step 2: Make the chocolate base. Add the buckwheat groats to a food processor with other base ingredients and  process into a malleable texture. Press into the parchment lined pan.

    steps to make base of buckwheat brownies

    Step 3: Make the chocolate coconut middle layer. Make 1 cup coconut butter by blending 3 cups of fresh shredded coconut in a high speed blender or food processor. If using a blender, one with a small jar with a stirring lid works best such as Blendtec with its twister jar. Or melt a store-bought jar of coconut butter by sitting jar in a pot of boiled water, stirring until enough melts for you to measure off 1 cup.

    Step 4: To the coconut butter, add cocoa and maple syrup. Blend and spread it on the base.

    steps to make chocolate coconut butter

    Step 5: Make the chocolate top. Melt the chocolate with the milk and peanut butter, and pour on the top.

    Step 6: You can set the pan in the freezer for 5 minutes to allow the top chocolate to set. Then cut and enjoy!

    chocolate being spread by a spoon on a batter

    Recipe Tips

    1. You must use fresh and unsweetened shredded coconut to make coconut butter. And some brands are moister than others - Let's Do Organic works better than Whole Food's 365 brand.

    TIP: If your shredded coconut crumbles in the blender instead of turns creamy, add a few tablespoons of melted hot coconut oil. I melt it by setting the entire jar in a pot of boiling water and spooning out what I need as soon as it melts. You can let it re-harden at room-temperature and it is fine because coconut oil has natural preservatives.

    2. Rinse buckwheat groats well to remove the slimy coating before adding to the mixture. The coating is there to protect the plant from predators, but it has phytic acid and can negatively affect digestion, and it has bitter flavor so it's best to rinse it off. To rinse, add the groats to a strainer, and hold it under running water, while you use a hand to rustle the groats around until the slimy coating is gone.

    Storage

    Cut the bars, seal in a container, store in the refrigerator for about a week or up to three months in the freezer.

    FAQS

    How healthy is buckwheat?

    Buckwheat is naturally gluten-free, high in protein and fiber as folate, zinc and vitamin B6. One cup of groats has 24gms of protein, 5 gms of fiber and only 1 gm of fat. Studies show buckwheat groats are heart-healthy, balance blood sugar and show prebiotic and anti-inflammatory potential.

    Where to buy buckwheat groats

    You can buy them online, just search buckwheat groats, or in some grocery stores. Look where you'd find rolled oats.

    More Brownie Recipes

    • chocolate peanut butter Brownies with a swirl of pb.
      Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies from Scratch
    • three buckwheat brownies stacked
      Chocolate Buckwheat Brownies with Walnuts
    • pumpkin brownies in a stack with chocolate glaze.
      Healthy Pumpkin Brownies
    • stack of sweet potato brownies
      4-Ingredient Sweet Potato Brownies

    If you tried this recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 star rating, even a one-word review, and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!

    📖 Recipe

    three buckwheat brownies stacked

    Chocolate Buckwheat Brownies

    Created by Dee Dine
    These rich chocolate buckwheat brownies, made with three creamy chocolate layers, naturally gluten free and easy to make in under 30 minutes. An easy chocolate energizing treat.
    5 from 4 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe SaveSaved! Rate Recipe
    Prep Time 15 minutes mins
    Cook Time 1 hour hr
    Total Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins
    Course Dessert, Snack
    Cuisine American
    Servings 8
    Calories 274 kcal

    Equipment

    • Measuring cups & spoons
    • food processor or blender
    • strainer
    • 8-inch by 4-inch loaf pan
    • parchment paper to line loaf pan and over hang
    • spatula, knife

    Ingredients
     
     

    Buckwheat Base

    • ⅔ cup buckwheat groats or ½ cup buckwheat flour
    • ½ cup walnuts or more buckwheat
    • 2 tablespoon cocoa powder
    • ¼ cup maple syrup
    • 6 tablespoon water

    Chocolate coconut middle

    • 1 cup coconut butter buy it, or make it by blending 3 cups of fresh shredded coconut
    • ¼ cup maple syrup
    • 3 tablespoon cocoa powder

    Chocolate Top

    • 1 cup chocolate chips
    • 2 tablespoon milk
    • 1 tablespoon peanut butter
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    Instructions
     

    Prep

    • Line a loaf pan with parchment paper.
    • Pour the buckwheat groats into a strainer and rinse until the slippery coating is gone.
      ⅔ cup buckwheat groats
    • Make coconut butter by blending 2 cups of fresh shredded coconut in a high speed blender, or buy a jar of coconut manna butter. If you are using store-bought, set the jar in a pot of just boiled water to melt it so you can measure it out.

    Make Base

    • Into a food processor add the ingredients, and process until you achieve a putty texture. Add more water if it's crumbly. Taste-test to be sure it is sweet enough. Add up to 2 more tablespoons of maple syrup if needed.
      ⅔ cup buckwheat groats, ½ cup walnuts, 2 tablespoon cocoa powder, 6 tablespoon water, ¼ cup maple syrup
    • Press into the pan. And refrigerate while you make the middle layer.

    Make Middle

    • In a 2-cup measuring cup, stir together the melted or soft coconut butter, maple syrup and cocoa powder until evenly distributed. If you double the recipe, put all ingredients into a food processor.
      1 cup coconut butter, ¼ cup maple syrup, 3 tablespoon cocoa powder
    • Pour the mixture over the chilled base and return the pan to the refrigerator while you make the topping.

    Make Frosting

    • In a pyrex measuring cup, microwave the dark chocolate chips and peanut butter at 60-seconds and stir until melted. You can microwave another 15 seconds if needed.
      1 cup chocolate chips, 1 tablespoon peanut butter
    • Into the melted chocolate chips, stir in the milk and pour over the hardened middle layer and refrigerate until the top is hard enough to cut.
      2 tablespoon milk

    Storage

    • Cut the bars, store in the refrigerator for about a week or up to three months in the freezer.

    Video

    Notes

    1. Must use fresh and unsweetened shredded coconut. Let's Go Organic shredded coconut is moist, whereas Whole Food's 365 shredded coconut is dry and many need a few tablespoons of melted hot coconut oil to help it turn into coconut butter. 
    2. Rinse buckwheat groats to remove the slimy coating. Add the groats to a strainer, and hold it under running water until the slimy coating is gone.
    To replace buckwheat groats, you can use buckwheat flour or oat flour instead, just use less: ½ cup instead of ⅔ cup. Or replace buckwheat groats with the same amount of rolled oats.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 274kcalCarbohydrates: 31gProtein: 5gFat: 16gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 10mgPotassium: 190mgFiber: 6gSugar: 13gVitamin A: 1IUVitamin C: 0.5mgCalcium: 42mgIron: 2mg
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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    Comments

    1. Jenny says

      January 11, 2023 at 9:46 pm

      I am making these tomorrow and have the groats soaking. I'm using cranberries instead of dates but I'm also not sure why the dates are required? Is it a taste element? And will cranberries work as well?

      Reply
      • Dee Dine says

        January 12, 2023 at 4:58 pm

        Love that substitution! Dates or maple syrup are the binder, I'm sure cranberries will work well.

        Reply
    2. Izzy says

      July 17, 2019 at 5:59 am

      Hi Dee,

      These look lovely!! But I was wondering, how bitter the base bit is usuing walnuts and raw cocao powder (and with only 1 date)?

      Thank you,
      Izzy

      Reply
      • Dee Dine says

        July 17, 2019 at 6:02 am

        Hi Izzy, you can taste-test right after processing and add a bit of maple syrup at that point which is easier than soaking another date. But we don't find it bitter at all, and my teens love them this way. Thanks for stopping by! Dee xx

        Reply
    3. Bianca Zapatka says

      May 08, 2019 at 1:24 pm

      5 stars
      This looks so delicious! 😍
      Would love to try it! Great recipe, Dee! ❤️
      Lots of love,
      Bianca

      Reply
      • Dee Dine says

        May 09, 2019 at 11:33 am

        Thank you Bianca, we can't stop making them over here. They are so easy, they have replaced our old favorite! Take care, Dee

        Reply
    4. Ela says

      May 05, 2019 at 2:40 pm

      Wow, they look ultra fudgy! I am sure they taste very chocolaty and delicious. 🙂 Love that they are vegan and gluten-free. Going to pin them now! 🙂

      Reply
      • Dee Dine says

        May 06, 2019 at 6:33 pm

        That's terrific, glad you like them Ela!

        Reply
    5 from 4 votes (2 ratings without comment)

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    A stack of healthy brownies on a white table.
    dee dine

    My name is Dee Dine and I’m a two-time cookbook author and certified nutritionist. Here you’ll find clean healthy recipes made with few ingredients, dairy free, & gluten free. About Dee →

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