Gluten Free Vegan Teff Brownies Made With Teff Flour

This past year I was diagnosed with a gluten allergy. While it did make me a little sad, I have been experimenting with teff flour the past few years.

I already knew that I could make gluten-free teff oat rolls, teff crepes with a sweet or savory filling, and even pizzelles.

If you are someone in your family can’t have gluten, tell me in the comments what you miss the most. I’ll see if I can come up with a gluten-free option for you!

What is Teff?

It’s a tiny whole grain that originates from Ethiopia. If you’ve ever had Ethiopian food, you ate teff in the spongy sourdough flatbread called injera.

While teff is used in that bread, it’s the fermentation process that gives it the traditional sour taste. You won’t find any of that in these gluten-free vegan teff brownies or other baked goods made with teff flour.

I think the fine grind of the teff flour really makes it easy to bake with. It doesn’t have the bits of bran that you expect from whole wheat flour. It feels a little like extra-fine ground cornmeal.

It’s also a good source of protein, calcium, and vitamin C.

The Different Kinds of Teff: Ivory and Brown

Brown can be found in bread or used for cereal, while ivory is mostly used for the sweet, spongy Ethiopian bread called injera.

The grain can be a tricky one to cook with because it’s so small. If you don’t have the right equipment, it can be almost impossible.

The brown teff flour has a flavor that’s a little earthy and nutty. It’s perfect for anything chocolate. The ivory flout has a milder taste and does well in recipes where a lighter color and flavor matters.

Why use teff flour?

Teff is gluten-free, which makes it easier to digest than whole wheat or other types of flour.

In these vegan brownies, teff flour works perfectly in place of the normal whole wheat pastry flour that I usually use.

That’s because teff is high in protein. It creates a moist brownie that you would never guess is gluten-free!

Can You Taste That These Brownies are Gluten-Free?

I was amazed at how well teff flour worked in these brownies. They turned out fudgy and moist in the middle and slightly crispy on top, just the way I like them.

You really can’t tell these moist brownies are gluten-free.

Can I Make Gluten-Free Vegan Teff Brownies in My Instant Pot?

You can and they will be extra fudgey! I cook them in egg bite molds or mini-muffin silicone pans that fit into my 6-quart Instant Pot.

I get about 10 to 12 (2 tablespoon-sized) mini brownie bite out of this recipe.

You will need to use spray oil to easily remove the bites. Add 2 tablespoons of batter to each bite, then cover the mold with foil.

Also, you will put the egg bite molds on a rack over about 1 1/2 cups water for a 6-quart Instant Pot.

Cook on high pressure for 20 minutes, release the pressure manually. Remove the molds and rack, let the brownies cool until you can touch them.

Normally I bake them in the oven in a 9-inch brownie pan.

Is Teff Flour Like Wheat Flour?

It is a gluten-free flour, but I think it behaves closer to wheat because it is a high-protein flour.

In most recipes, you will still not be able to substitute teff for wheat flour 1 to 1, but it works with these gluten-free vegan teff brownies.

You can see in the photo below that teff is grainier than regular wheat flour.

What you need to make these vegan brownies

In addition to brown teff flour and cocoa powder, you’ll need ground flax seeds, coconut sugar and other vegan sugar, avocado or coconut oil, vanilla, and salt.

You can add in any add-ins that you like. Cheryl insists on walnuts, but you could add any nut, chocolate chips, cocoa nibs, or even dried fruit if you wanted to.

How to make teff brownies?

Line a brownie pan with parchment paper to make the brownies easy to lift out of the pan after they are baked.

Just mix the wet ingredients together in one bowl and the dry ingredients in another one. Then mix the two together.

The batter is very thick, so I suggest that you scrape it out of the bowl into a pan and spread it as evenly as possible.

Top with add-ins and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.