Vegan Peppermint Brownies (Gluten-Free)

JAMIE NOTE: Unless it specifically says "Jamie Note", all comments and notes are by the recipe author.

PLEASE READ the instructions so your brownies turn out correctly. The steps to adding the batter to the pan, as well as the cooling and chilling step are crucial to setting these.

Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C) and lightly grease an 8x8 square stone ceramic pan. I like stone here because it keeps the brownies really moist and the edges don't burn. But if you only have glass or metal, just keep an eye on the edges.

Make sure the edges are greased and any excess dripping oil is gently wiped off. Now cut off a square piece of parchment paper that will lie flat on the inside bottom of the pan. This will help prevent any sticking to the bottom of the pan and make for very easy removal later.

To a large bowl, add the almond butter, syrup and peppermint extract. Stir for a good minute or so until completely and thoroughly mixed. You want to make sure that extract is mixed through.

To a medium bowl, combine the flaxseed, cornstarch, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Whisk very well.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet. Add the chocolate chips and then stir the mixture together slowly with a large spoon until it comes together into a cohesive, very thick and sticky chocolate batter. It will be very thick like pictured, almost like a cookie batter, this is normal. It will not be pourable or runny.

Spoon the batter onto the prepared baking dish. It will be very thick and sticky and not easy to spread. Use your fingers to pat it down as best you can and then take a piece of parchment paper to flatten it out. Now the key next step, dip your fingers repeatedly in water to go around the brownie batter and smooth the top completely out and evenly across the top and along the edges, as pictured in the post. This step is important so the batter is even and spread out and bakes evenly. Having wet fingertips makes it much easier to spread out the batter.

Bake for 22 to possibly 25 minutes, depending on your oven. Mine were perfect at exactly 23 minutes. They will be puffed up, have a dry shiny top, but you will know they are done when you insert a toothpick in the middle and there may be a few sticky crumbs, not actual runny batter, on it. Do not overbake them. Check at 22 minutes. If it's a tad too wet with runny batter, go another minute until it's sticky crumbs or almost clean.

While the brownies are baking, get the crushed peppermints ready, as you will need to sprinkle them on the top as soon as you remove the brownies from the oven. To crush them, either blend them up in a Vitamix or food processor so they are very tiny pieces or a powder. I left some chunks for presentation purposes in photos, but they were a bit too big to eat like that, so I suggest making them very small. You can also add them to a ziplock bag and pound them.

As soon as the brownies come out of the oven, sprinkle the crushed peppermints on top all over and gently press them in. The heat will slightly melt them, making them stick as they cool.

Here are the cooling instructions you do not want to skip! Leave to cool in the pan for 30 minutes. Then place the whole pan in the fridge for just another 30 minutes. I don't care how hard it is to wait, it will create the most fudgy, perfectly dense and set texture that will make them easy to slice and remove. Remove from the fridge and use a sharp knife to slice into 16 brownies. Enjoy! You can keep them at room temperature for a softer brownie or the fridge for a firmer brownie, keeping in mind they harden and dry out quicker in the fridge. Now go make them and let me know after you make them!