I have a whole cabinet (yes an entire cabinet) of cookie cutters, at least half of them holiday themed, and it felt like a waste to use only one of the whole bunch this year. If I have to wait 11 months before those shapes are in style again, then I should at least use one more before Christmas.
But I am a little cookie-d out right now. The closer we get to Christmas, the more I think we need easy–stir, dump, bake style–recipes. So the cookie cutter will be playing brownie cutter today. Fruit-sweetened brownie cutter. Fruit-sweetened Christmas Tree Brownie cutter.
I always love reading your comments. But one particular comment I received last week on these Persimmon Thumbprint Cookies planted an idea in my head. That idea is apple juice. Replace the non-dairy milk I usually use as a wet ingredient with apple juice. It adds moisture and natural sugar at the same time. Genius!
The combination of dates and apple juice makes for a perfectly sweet Christmas Tree Brownie. No added sugar, but no one will know. Lost in chocolate tree devouring delight…
Evergreen, never-dyed frosting. Green smoothies have taught us that spinach works well as green dye. But I have an even easier, even tastier way: matcha! Whisk one teaspoon of high quality matcha powder into creamy coconut yogurt for gorgeous creamy green. Frosting with antioxidants? Yes please!
And I suggest using a sweetened yogurt unless you are really ready for a topping with some serious tang. Or if you don’t want the tangy taste at all, opt for whipped coconut cream in place of the yogurt.
And if you don’t have a tree shaped cookie brownie cutter, then you can use a paper stencil to cut around or just make very festive tree-inspired squares 🙂
And the video…
Vegan Christmas Tree Brownies
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients
Brownie
- 1 cup oat flour
- 1 1/2 cup apple juice (or white grape juice)
- 12 pitted Medjool dates
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 cup cacao powder
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup cacao nibs or vegan chocolate chips (optional)
Matcha Frosting
- 1 tsp matcha powder
- 6 oz dairy free yogurt (I used So Delicious Vanilla Greek Cultured Coconut Milk)
- Goji berries and hemp seeds to decorate
Instructions
- FOR THE BROWNIES: Preheat oven to 350F.
- Blend the dates and apple juice.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, cacao powder, baking powder, and vanilla. Add the date mixture. Mix.
- Fold in the cacao nibs/chocolate chips if using.
- Spread into an 8×8″ square baking pan that is lined with parchment paper or lightly oiled. Spread evenly.
- Bake for 20 mins at 350F.
- Cool or even chill before cutting into shapes.
- TO DECORATE: Whisk the matcha powder into the yogurt. Frost the brownies. Sprinkle on the goji berries and hemp seeds. Enjoy!
These are so beautiful Natalie!!!!! I love the Christmas tree shape. Such a perfect festive treat. The goji berries are so pretty on top too! <3
Thank you Harriet! Goji berries are the perfect color for Christmas, I’m going to have to remember that for next year 🙂
You know what’s super awkward? I only have like 4 of these big plastic Christmas cookie cutters……I actually only used them once (for my cinnamon ornaments last year). But I do think I have a tree one!!
The whole debate on real/fake trees? Now I say screw ’em both and I’ll just take EDIBLE!
Edible all the way! If only we had a 7 foot tall edible tree, both the real and fake tree businesses wouldn’t stand a chance 😉 I remember your ornaments, they were so cute! I’m amazed you only have 4 though, I am drowning in them over here. I don’t even really know where they all came from they’ve just always been there ha!
So cute! What a great idea! Love the ornaments and sprinkles! 🙂
Thanks Jenn! They were super fun to make 🙂
Oh, they’re beautiful!
Thanks Becky 🙂
So true about cookie cutters! I rarely use mine, since I’m a chocolate chip cookie girl. I enjoyed the video too. Great job!
I know, they are one of those things that you store 95% of the time and use 5% ha! Aside from the holidays, I’m with ya–drop cookies all the way though, so much easier 🙂
Can I replace the apple juice with almond milk or water? Thanks
Sure! They won’t be quite as sweet though.
These are so adorable! I love that you used matcha to color them. And I love love the goji berries!
Thanks Sophia! The Matcha worked so well, not quite christmas green, but still gets the point across and tastes yummy 🙂
These are sooo adorable Natalie, like everything you do! I’m in love with the tree cutouts! Haha, I have a billion cookie cutters too, but don’t use them nearly enough. I always go with boring round shapes, lol. And YES on the apple juice!! I do that with so many desserts. I’ve done it with molasses cake, ice cream and cheesecake! It gives such depth of flavor! It’s actually better than applesauce in my opinion, in terms of flavor, because I’ve tried applesauce in brownies before and it ruins the chocolate flavor to me, but apple juice is just straight sweet, so I can totally see how amazing it would be in these brownies!
Yes, I agree apple juice is SO much better than applesauce! Applesauce just makes things dull and gummy haha, I rarely use it anymore. And the juice is so much sweeter too, but you seriously can’t taste the apple flavor at all after baking! I don’t think I’ve ever noticed that in your recipes actually, I’m going to have to go look for those now (in cheesecake!?! wow!) You have all sorts of smart little baking tricks going on over there 🙂 Well I will definitely be using it again as well!
What a healthy, festive treat!!!! I love it! I totally remember those high sugar, baaaaad for you Christmas tree treats…I tried them back in the day ? Now I’ve got brownie blizzard on the brain…might need to make one soon! I agree with you, the not so smooth frosting job adds texture and makes them look like they’re covered in snow. So creative, Natalie!! And I love that you used apple juice instead of milk – never would have thought to do that! ?
Oh I ate my fair share of those brownies with the sprinkles ball things too, I remember they were the cool thing to have in your lunchbox this time of year haha 😀 But yeah, don’t want to know the ingredients yikes! I’m glad you agree the roughed up frosting looks more tree like, plus imperfect is so much easier to do 🙂
😀 I’m definitely on the “stir, dump, bake” loving team, especially around Christmas. And these trees are the cutes thing!!! Plus the matcha colored yogurt frosting is an amazing tip, all of the artificial colorings and butter based frosting are giving me the creeps
★★★★★
Oh I agree, when I finally realized that frosting was pretty much just butter and sugar it made sense why i always felt so awful after eating it :p Woohoo for team stir-dump-bake! I’m pretty much always looking for those sorts of recipes!
Sooo… where do I start… I love your new logo! I haven’t had much time for blog stuff so I only noticed now.. but I love it! And these Christmas tree brownies are adorable. The goji berries and the hemp seeds really do make them look super festive. What a brilliant idea with the cookie cutter. They turned out awesome 🙂
Where has time been hiding lately, I feel ya, but thanks! I did a little bit of blog renovating last week 🙂 And yes I managed to sneak the gojis into something festive too, your cookies reminded me just how perfectly Christmasy they are!
Another must make for me!!! I am obsessed with all your fruit sweetened recipes!!! My favorite type of baking. I love the use of apple juice in this. Who says brownies can’t be healthy!? And these ones are SO FESTIVE!!! A+ for using goji berries as ornaments!! I loooooove gojis. Basically I just am obsessed with your blog.
Goji berry garland, we’ll just dry them out and string them up 😉 But really they are the perfect color. Fruit-sweetened baking is the best kind, I’ve been using coconut sugar less and less lately because frankly I love being able to eat brownies for breakfast! That’s why I get so excited when I see dates in your recipes too <3
I LOVE YOUR BLOG and I LOVE THESE (some shouting is needed now)!! And also can’t help but love (I mean LOVE) that we both posted a brownie / cake recipe colored with green:) Your cute apple-date matcha trees would love my festive eggplant-date spirulina cake:) Hahaha our food sounds so good, right? All natural ingredients! ps I love cookie cutters too and I buy new ones every year (because I forget that I already have hundreds…).
Ah I love being able to comment back and forth with you on blogs now! (Oh and HUMONGOUS apology I just realized I’ve been spelling your name wrong, sorry! My silly American-ness I’m not used to amazing names like Tiinatuuli, but seriously you have the most beautiful name ever <3) Your gorgeous cake is like the momma cake to these little baby cakes. Like a little super healthy cake family hahahaha! I love it, so in sync. Thanks sweet Tiina (<- woo got it right!)
I was already super impressed with this dessert before even coming here, just from reading about it on IG, but I’m even more impressed now. Apple juice?! Antioxidant frosting?! This whole thing is just packed with one awesome surprise or another at every step 🙂 And I love the look of it — you nailed this tree beauty.
There’s something about cookie cutters that just flips on a creative cute-treat-ahead switch, your little acorns are a testament to that! And it was very un-Natalie like to use hemp seeds, but they worked so well…perhaps I will join your superfood decoration ways after all 🙂
These look so good! I thought it’s avocado on top, but this matcha frosting sounds so much more cooler!
Gonna give it a try, soonish, pinned 🙂
Happy holidays, Natalie!
★★★★★
It does look like avo now that you say it! Avocado frosting would be really festive too, I like that idea. Or just forget the brownie and make avocado toast in the shape of christmas trees…you are giving me ideas Evi 😉 haha Thank you and happy holidays to you too!
Perfect Christmas dessert!! Merry Christmas, Natalie!! Keep up with the delicious recipes and I will forever follow you 😀
Question: Almost 95% of your recipes uses oat flour. Can I substitute it 1:1 for regular All-Purpose Flour? I have a huge bag that my mom bought last year that we need to get rid of :p
Thank you!!
Yep go for it, the All Purpose should be just fine! Merry Christmas to you, thank YOU for the never-ending support 🙂
I’d like to try these! How many Deglet Noor dates would I need to use instead of the Medjool? Thank you!
Hi Hannah! I can’t tell you an exact number since the size of all dates varies so much, but it will be approximately 1 cup packed or better yet 200g if you have a scale. Hope they turn out perfect 🙂
Wow thank you so much Natalie, these look wonderful! Unfortunately dates tend to spike my blood sugars a bit too much though. ;( Would it be possible for me to perhaps use a little less dates (maybe 8?), sweeten with a little stevia/monk fruit extract if needed and just use some more of the other ingredients to replace the bulk? Also, would this be possible with your other amazing recipes? (I especially love the look of your vanilla cake and fudgy brownies, yum!). Thank you again and I am so sorry for the trouble!
You could certainly try decreasing the amount of dates and adding a different sweetener to make up for it. Or honestly with the fruit juice here you might not need it as long as you are okay with a more subtly sweet brownie. As for replacing the bulk, it’s hard to give an across the board answer that will work in all recipes but usually the best subs for date paste would be pumpkin puree or applesauce. Or nut butter actually, although a little thicker it will make for the best texture most of the time. Hope that helps and always feel free to comment on any recipe you have questions about 🙂
Great, thanks so much!