Cottage Cheese Brownies
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These 4-ingredient cottage cheese brownies are super fudgy and gooey with crinkly tops. They bake in minutes and use good-for-you ingredients.
Is cottage cheese still having its moment? Let’s hope so, because I’m finding fun and creative ways to use it, and these brownies with cottage cheese have been such a hit.
Now, I know the thought of adding cottage cheese to brownies sounds odd, but it adds some extra moisture and richness, making the brownies much more fudgy. It’s also quite nifty that there is a little bit of extra protein.
Table of Contents
Why I love this recipe
- Cheap and easy. Like my Greek yogurt brownies, these brownies have no oil, no butter, and no milk whatsoever. Just four pantry staple ingredients.
- The BEST texture. The brownies are super fudgy and gooey, with those gorgeous crinkly tops.
- Ready in under 30 minutes. This is the kind of chocolate dessert you can whip up when the cravings strike.
If you love baking with cottage cheese, try my cottage cheese banana bread, cottage cheese cookies, cottage cheese muffins, cottage cheese chocolate mousse, or cottage cheese cheesecake next.
Key Ingredients
- Cottage cheese. I liked using whipped cottage cheese because it mixes easily into the batter. Full-fat cottage cheese is best as it adds richness, but low-fat cottage cheese works well.
- Sugar. White sugar or brown sugar.
- Almond butter. Smooth and creamy almond butter with no added sugar or salt. I like to make my own almond butter.
- Cocoa powder. Dutch-processed cocoa powder. If I want richer brownies, I sometimes use dark cocoa powder.
- Mix-ins. Optional, but I LOVE to fold through some chunks of chocolate chips for those gorgeous pools of chocolate.
How to make cottage cheese brownies
I’ve included step-by-step photos below to make this recipe easy to follow at home. For the full printable recipe instructions and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step 1- Make the batter. In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients and mix until smooth. Fold through any mix-ins.
Step 2- Assemble. Transfer the batter into a lined pan and cover with more chocolate.
Step 3- Bake the brownies for 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean from the center.
Arman’s recipe tips
- Don’t overbake the brownies. Like most baked goods, the brownies will continue to bake as they cool down. I recommend removing them from the oven once the edges firm up.
- For cakey brownies, bake an extra 5-6 minutes (minimum 30 minutes).
- Cool before slicing. I know it’s tempting, but wait until the brownies are baked before slicing and serving. If they are too warm, the brownies will be too gooey in the middle to enjoy.
- To make these healthier, swap out the sugar for allulose or your favorite sugar-free sweetener.
Storage instructions
To store: Leftover cottage cheese brownies will keep well at room temperature, covered, for up to three days. If you want to keep them longer, cover them and store them in the fridge for up to one week.
To freeze: Place the brownies in a ziplock bag and store them in the freezer for up to 6 months.
More healthy brownie recipes
Cottage Cheese Brownies
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups whipped cottage cheese See notes
- 1 cup almond butter
- 1 cup cocoa powder
- 2/3 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F. Line an 8 x 8-inch pan with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the whipped cottage cheese, cocoa powder, almond butter, and sugar until smooth and glossy. If adding chocolate or chocolate chips, fold them through.
- Transfer the brownie batter into the lined pan. Top with extra chocolate chips.
- Bake the brownies for 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean.
- Let the brownies cool in the pan completely before slicing.
amazing 10/10
Thanks so much for the lovely review and star rating, Ayla- I appreciate it 🙂
Can’t eat nuts, so what would be a good substitute?
Sunflower seed butter or tahini
Can I use peanut butter instead of the almond butter?
Hi Janet- yes, you can! The only reason I recommend almond butter over peanut butter is that peanut butter can be a little overpowering, but if you love peanut butter, its a non-issue 🙂 Let me know how you go!
Can I use your tofu cottage cheese in this recipe?
Hi Bretynn- I haven’t tried tofu cottage cheese before- But I did have a reader who used my dairy free cottage cheese recipe (blended tofu) and they loved it, so if it’s similar, I think it should work!
Super delicious. Couldn’t stop eating these everyday batter! Heads up it is SUPER thick!
Brownies are still cooking, but so far at 35 minutes, and still need more time- I love in a high altitude area so that’s often the case when I bake). I used pb and agree it wasn’t overpowering. I used ~1/2c brown coconut sugar and ~1/2c date paste- amazing! The paste helped thin the batter out, which could hardly stir prior to that! I think maple syrup would work well and you’d probably need only 1/2 the amount, or less. Next time I’ll use that or just date paste to cut down on sweetness and calories. Overall super delicious, ridiculously easy recipe that I’ll definitely be making again very soon! Thanks Arman!!
Thanks for the detailed review, Suns- I love that you used date paste 🙂
I used peanut butter instead of almond butter and they were delicious. The peanut butter did not overpower the chocolate.
Oh thanks for letting me know, Peggy. Some peanut butter brands can be super overpowering! 🙂
This is super fudgy and satisfies the cravings.
Thanks for your kind words, Turmeric!
Any idea how to make these if I have a nut allergy? Thanks!
Hello Patti- Sure do! Use sunflower seed butter or tahini, as these have an almost identical texture to nut butters 🙂
Can you add protien powder to this recipe? If so, how much?
Hi Lisa- I haven’t tried it myself, but you could try and see. I can’t see it not working, as it’s similar to my protein brownies.
Just made these ..they took longer to bake than recipe stated but they are delicious
Could I use granulated splenda in the brownies?
Hi Kimberly- I’m not a huge fan of splenda in baking, as there is a huge margin for error- drying out baked goods or leaving things gritty. I prefer allulose (if you’re looking for a sugar free sub) as it dissolves and bakes like white sugar 🙂
What is the 2/3 cup of?
Is it sugar in addition to the 2 tablespoons of sugar?
Yes, that is correct, Steve!