Chocolate SPINACH BROWNIES with Peanut Butter Frosting recipe. This is a EASY way to get kids or adults to eat their vegetables. You won’t believe how delicious these brownies are! They’re also made with the best peanut butter frosting recipe ever!
The color green. What do you think of?
In many people’s minds, the color green isn’t something you usually think of when you think of sweet desserts. I hear that little kids fear their green vegetables so sneaky parents have to find ways to incorporate it into their meals. Well I don’t have a little kid, but I still like being sneaky, even if it means just being sneaky to myself.
Spinach Brownies.
Best Spinach Recipes
As soon as I picked the spinach in the garden I knew I wanted to bake with it! From past recipes I love adding vegetables to sweet treats! (see: avocado brownies, pumpkin brownies). So I decided to keep it simple and keep the brownie tradition alive. The brownie tradition should never end. Can you imagine a world without brownies? I surely cannot!
I have to admit I was unsure about how these spinach brownies were going to turn out. I was worried because of the amount of spinach that are in these brownies, 1 whole cup pureed, which equals about 4-5 cups raw. That is a large amount of spinach. But as soon as I poured the spinach puree, gave it a few twirls with my spoon then tasted it, worries were erased. 100%.
Can you taste the spinach? The short answer is sort of. The long answer is not really. I like spinach, I know what it tastes like, so I can pick up a slight spinach taste. But for those who are unaware there is spinach in them, or don’t often eat spinach, they will pass it off as “dark chocolate” tasting. I think that’s the best way to describe them, dark.
I decided to make my favorite peanut butter frosting to go on top of these spinach brownies! I’m in love with this decadent frosting! It’s the perfect sweet frosting to go with these dark brownies.
Spinach Brownies Recipe
Pretty Pretty Spinach. You are so pretty. How are you so pretty?
Into the food processor it goes. I did 2 batches. Add a tablespoon or 2 of water in with the spinach so it gets pureed.
You will need 1 full cup of spinach. This is about 4-5 cups raw. Whole lotta spinach going on…
But when you add it to the chocolate mixture, you can’t even tell. Magic!
The peanut butter frosting. It deserves “the” in front of it because it is amazing. I ate so many spoonfuls, don’t even ask.
Pat it down with a spatula and put it in the refrigerator for 1 hour to set..
Then cut those brownies up! Look at these gorgeous brownies!
Enjoy a healthy spinach salad, but don’t forget that spinach makes a great sweet treat too! Enjoy these chocolate spinach brownies!
Pin for later:
Chocolate Spinach Brownies
PrintIngredients
Spinach Brownies
- 1 cup pureed spinach
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup salted butter - melted
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips - melted
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
Peanut Butter Frosting
- 1/2 cup butter - melted
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1 1/2 cup confectioners powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons milk
Instructions
Spinach Brownies
- Preheat oven to 350 and spray 8x8 pan with nonstick spray.
- Take your spinach leaves and put them in the food processor with 1-2 tablespoons of water and pulse until it turns into a puree. Keep doing this until you get 1 full cup of spinach puree. This usually equals about 4-5 cups raw spinach leaves.
- Mix melted butter, brown sugar and sugar together in a bowl. Stir in melted chocolate chips, spinach puree and vanilla.
- In another bowl mix your flour, cocoa powder and baking powder together.
- A little at a time, add your dry flour mixture to your chocolate spinach mixture, stirring continuously until it's all smooth.
- Pour batter in 8x8 pan and bake for 30-35 minutes or until your toothpick comes out clean.
- Let cool.
Peanut Butter Frosting
- Put butter and peanut butter in a bowl and mix with electric mixer.
- Slowly pour in your powdered sugar a little at a time. When it starts to thicken, add your 2 tablespoons milk in and continue to mix. You should keep mixing for about 2-3 minutes until your frosting is fluffy. If it's still thick, add a additional tablespoon of milk if needed.
Chocolate Spinach Brownies with Peanut Butter Frosting
- Once brownies are cool, spread your peanut butter frosting across them.
- Pat the frosting down with a spatula so it becomes a smooth layer.
- Put in refrigerator for one hour to let the frosting set.
- Cut brownies into squares, enjoy!
Savannah says
This recipe came out rather nicely! I don’t own an 8×8 pan so I used a rectangular one (6×9?) and milk chocolate chips. The brownies themselves tasted rich and dark (not my preference, but they were a major hit with everyone else). Nobody in my family could taste the spinach!
My only complaint is the frosting. It was a very thick layer, and far too sweet for a dark brownie, so it was somewhat overwhelming (even our 11 y/o said it was too much!). I recommend either making half of what the recipe calls for, reducing the amount of powdered sugar, or omitting the frosting entirely since the brownies are great on their own.
Hannah Lindert says
This is DELICIOUS. My kids and grand-kids are snacking store-bought junk with chemicals and artificial additives and colorants. When I have a day off, I make either bread, or some other staple in a healthy way. This recipe rocks, and I’m sharing! I didn’t have the time to make the frosting. They love it as is. Thank you for creating and sharing this! Oh–I adjusted the recipe to use dark cocoa and 1/2 dark chocolate chips and 1/2 milk chocolate chips.
Karen says
I veganized this with vegan butter and oat milk–so delicious!! I recommend eating it at room temperature, straight out of the fridge makes it taste almost too sweet (which I guess actually helps keep me from eating too much! 😝)
Amy says
There are a lot of comments here but, most are just remarking about how good of an idea this is, only a couple are from people who have made it. Well, I made this recipe this weekend – and it turned out well. But there are some things I would change if I make it again- decrease total sugar from 1C to 1/2C (the sugar from the brownies plus frosting was a lot of sweet), add way less water to the spinach (i added too much to make it puree smoothly and it made the brownie too wet, fell apart, didn’t hold together well), increase flour from 1/2C to 3/4C (the fudge texture was to the point that it sticks to your teeth while chewing, would like it to be slightly more airy)……….it’s a good recipe as-is though. And a good way to use up substantial amount of spinach.
Cheryl T says
My grandson is on a special diet & he can’t have white or brown sugar but he can have honey, maple syrup or molasses. The spinach would be great for him & I don’t think he’d notice the taste. Is there a way to sub any of these in for the sugar? Btw, my father-in-law isn’t a spinach fan & I gave him one of these & he couldn’t tell the spinach was in it! Yay!!
Pamela says
Hey Cheryl, I would try substituting the white and brown sugar with 1/2 cup honey (total). You might need to play around with the honey amount and add a little bit more if you want it more sweet, but I’d start with 1/2 cup. Enjoy the brownies!
Cheryl T. says
Great, I’ll give it a whirl & let you know how it turns out. Thank you!
JP says
This recipe is delicious. I added 1 egg to help with binding. Thank you for sharing!
Pamela says
Thanks for commenting! I’m so happy to hear you liked these brownies!
Debra says
Pamela
I have a very picky 4 yr old grandson. If he even thinks it has spinach in it it’s all over! I have been teaching him to cook. The first thing he does is to try and figure out by taste what is in it. So I am going to be sneaky and make it ahead of time and then I will have him make it! What can he say when he tastes his own. Lol😈
Pamela says
Hey Debra, that’s so fun that you’re cooking your grandson how to bake! Hope he enjoys these sneaky brownies!
Jen says
I have a teenager who has never eaten a vegetable in his entire life. I mean never! He even rejected them as a toddler. He is extremely picky and can pick up in any “hidden” taste or texture. UNTIL NOW. A favourite in my house – I just have to do the spinach part when no one is looking. If my kids hear the blender, they think I’m making a smoothie for myself 😂. This secret recipe is going with me to the grave. Thank you thank you thank you!
JP says
I’ve made these several times. Everyone loves them. Genius. Thanks very much for developing this recipe!!
Pamela says
So happy you like them JP, thanks for letting me know!
Moira Buchanan says
Ok, so… could you make these using the black beans, too? How would that work? I’d love to pull a double-whammy on the veggie front.
Pamela says
Hey Moira, I’ve never combined the spinach with black beans but I’m sure it can be done. Here’s one of my favorite black bean brownie recipes if you want to get creative: https://brooklynfarmgirl.com/2014/02/09/fudgy-black-bean-brownies-2/ Enjoy!
Cassie says
You’re crazy genius!
Denise says
Do you have nutrition info so I can calculate points plus?
Pamela says
Hi Denise, I don’t. You’d have to manually calculate it with a online guide. Hope you enjoy!
raw chocolate says
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Sarah says
I made a double batch of these with fresh and frozen spinach mixed. They were delicious and so fudgy! Thank you for sharing the recipe. No one believed they had spinach and I had offers to bake them for Christmas as gifts. I’m making them again today. Can’t get enough of them!
Pamela says
That makes me so happy to hear Sarah! Glad you enjoyed them, I could use a few of these brownies right now! 😉
Jennilee says
Can you substitute wheat pastry flour for the flour in this you think?
Pamela says
I don’t see why not, so give it a shot. Let me know how they turn out!
Erika says
These look truly amazing. So brilliant to puree the spinach!! I want to make these right now!!!
Pamela says
It’s such a delicious way to get your daily greens in! 😉
laurasmess says
I can’t get my head around these Pam. Spinach, in a brownie?!?! And you can’t taste it? Hm. Still not convinced. I think that means that I need to make these, super quick, and eat as many as possible just to test the spinach ratio. After all, it’s for the good of future recipe users, right? I get a whole truckload of green veg goodness. Yes. Making these. Soon! xx
Pamela says
I agree Laura. I think you should make a entire batch and eat them, then let me know. And then afterwards you can invite me over and we can make a 2nd batch and eat them all! 🙂 🙂
Shashi @ http://runninsrilankan.com says
I don’t beleive I missed this one! Peanut butter and chocolate brownies! ahhhhhhhh!!!!!! so fantabulously scrumptious! My two fav flavors! Oohh – and you healthed it up with spinach – which means only one thing – these are healthy and therefore can be consumed in pairs 😉
Pamela says
Absolutely! These are as healthy as you can get… 😉
Karly says
How very sneaky to add spinach into brownies! Thanks for linking up with What’s Cookin’ Wednesday!
Pamela says
Thanks for stopping by Karly! I love being sneaky! 🙂
Sunnie@ModernGirlNutrition says
Amazing job! (as always)! If I don’t tell my dad there’s spinach in there, he’ll go crazy over these 😉
Pamela says
A great idea Sunnie! I did this to my dad once with black bean brownies, he had no idea.. and then he said how good they were.. then I spilled the beans. 🙂
Stacy | Wicked Good Kitchen says
I don’t think there is a better way to sneak veggies into a treat than with these yummy brownies and peanut butter frosting! Thanks so much for sharing. I’m glad I am caught up with your posts. You amaze me, Pamela!
Pamela says
Stacy, you’re so nice, thank you! And I agree, what doesn’t say I love vegetables like biting into a chocolate brownie filled with them? 🙂
Sophie33 says
Oooh waw, Pamela! Thee beauties rock!!! They look so beautiful to gaze at,…Now, I would like to eat at least 3! Oooh yes!
MMMMMM!
Pamela says
I know, it’s hard to just eat 1… it’s also very hard not to swipe your finger on the top of the frosting and want to eat it all. 🙂
The Café Sucre Farine says
Who’d ever have thought of spinach in brownie except YOU! They look delicious and I think they’re very fun!!
Pamela says
Haha, thank you! 😉 I made them last week for some friends and they were gone in 3 minutes!
Abbie @ Needs Salt says
Wow! These brownies look amazing! I love how you put so much spinach in them; and they look so dark chocolatey and delicious!
I love mixing greens into desserts, especially when they involve chocolate. <3 And your peanut butter frosting is gorgeous! I want a bowl of it, please. haha!
Your photos are gorgeous, and so are these brownies. Pinning!
-Abbie
p.s. Thank you so much for stopping by my blog! 🙂
Pamela says
Thanks Abbie! I need a bowl of that frosting too, it’s pure dangerous and delicious! 🙂 Let me know if you make these brownies.. enjoy!
[email protected] says
Looks tasty and divine!
Pure Complex says
You’ve just combined two of my favorite things.. I LOVE chocolate and I adore spinach. I have to give this a try when I have time this weekend. Thanks for the recipe
Pamela says
Have one great weekend then! 🙂
Cate @ Chez CateyLou says
When I saw the title of this post, I had to click on it! I can’t believe there is so much spinach in these brownies!! What a great idea. I can’t wait to try this recipe out. They look amazing! Pinning this 🙂
Pamela says
Thanks Cate! It’s a great way to use a large amount of spinach in such a yummy way!
Koko says
Grandpas LOL. What!? There is spinach in these….amazing, lady! They look amazing and totally ‘normal’. I’ve gotta give this one a go!
Pamela says
The Grandpas are 2 cool guys! 🙂 Hope you try these, I love that they look so normal, taste great and there’s so much spinach inside!
Ashley says
I’ve never used spinach in baking, but I’m thinking I really need to give it a try! I love using avocado with chocolate, but never thought about spinach. These look awesome – and I love being sneaky too : ) And let’s be honest, I could never turn down peanut butter frosting!
Pamela says
I hope you try them Ashley, they are really quite something special! 🙂
Kim (Feed Me, Seymour) says
I adore recipes like this! I’m always a little nervous about incorporating veggies into sweets but seriously, is there a better way to get my veggie intake? I’ll gladly heap that spinach into a brownie if it means I get to eat a brownie. And better, a brownie with peanut butter frosting. I’m usually an “as is” gal too but this? It’s insanity! Delicious insanity.
Pamela says
I totally agree Kim! Is there a better way to get our daily vegetables, but inside a chocolate brownie? Sign me up for all this vegetable eating! 😉