Mexican-Inspired Vegan Brownies with a Kick

I have a confession to make: I’ve never been good at making brownies. Until now, that is. For some reason, I had a habit of burning them in the pan, no matter which recipe I followed. I always committed the same mistake: leaving them in the oven for too long.

These Mexican-inspired brownies have forever changed the way I feel about vegan brownies. They’re made with oil, not butter, and there are no eggs in this recipe. I used both cocoa powder and chocolate chips. But that’s not what makes them special. Chocolate ganache made with espresso powder, cinnamon, vanilla extract, and cayenne pepper topped with chopped pecans is what makes this recipe shine. 

Did you know that espresso powder deepens the flavor of chocolate? It’s almost magical. If you’ve never added espresso powder to your chocolate baked goods – try it and thank me later. It will kick your dessert up about a million notches.

These vegan brownies deviate from the classic brownie that most people are used to- but in a good way. Plus, isn’t it nice to try something new every once in a while? 

This brownie recipe came about the other night when I couldn’t overcome my craving for a nice big chocolatey brownie. I headed to the kitchen and started baking. Luckily, I usually always have flour, cocoa powder, and some chocolate chips in what I designated as my “baking station”.

This time, however, I didn’t make the mistake of over-cooking them. I took the brownie pan out of the oven after 25 minutes and I let them cool for over an hour. It worked! The brownies continue to bake because of the heated pan and this time they retained their moisture.

The brownies tasted great but I wasn’t content. I wanted more of a chocolatey taste and I also wanted to try something new. So, I decided to make a veganized chocolate ganache from scratch and I put some espresso powder and cayenne pepper in it to spice things up.

It might sound crazy to add pepper to a chocolate dessert, but the two distinct flavors blend very well together. They complement each other perfectly. As long as you don’t over do it with the pepper, the cholocate flavor still comes through…trust me!

I’m calling these brownies Mexican-inspired because when I think of Mexican cooking, I think of spice and bold flavors like cinnamon and espresso. Blending these ingredients together resulted in one of those pleasant surprises that doesn’t happen too often in baking. 

If you’re looking for a vegan brownie that doesn’t taste plain or predictable, you need to try this recipe. If you’re not vegan but love a little spice in your food, this one’s for you, too. Here’s the recipe!