Delicious lemon brownie recipe uses just one bowl and NO butter
Looks like chocolate isn't the only way to get your brownie on! 🍋😋
Jonathan Maes
10.06.20

If there’s one dessert out there that everybody loves and adores, it has got to be a delicious brownie. Of course, when we think of brownies, chocolate is the first thing that comes to mind, right?

However, it turns out that there are a lot more delicious brownie flavors out there that don’t necessarily need to have chocolate in them, but they’re just as good.

This super simple lemon brownie recipe is a perfect example of a brownie treat without chocolate but with all the flavor!

There are a number of reasons why this simple recipe is adored by so many. The most important part, of course, is the taste and the texture of these lemon brownies. You’ll have to try it out for yourself, but otherwise, you can rest assured that these lemon treats are just absolutely amazing.

Additionally, this recipe is extremely simple to follow, and you don’t even need a lot of items.

You just need one bowl, and you can make these perfectly without a mixer.

Perhaps the best part? There’s not even butter involved!

We all know that adding a lot of butter is sometimes necessary, but it’s not exactly healthy either. For these brownies, you don’t even need to use butter and it’ll taste just as good.

The recipe is inspired by Jenny Can Cook, who shows us the full steps in a YouTube tutorial video. But first, let’s take a look at all the ingredients you’ll need.

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup of all-purpose white or wheat pastry flour (don’t worry about using wheat flour, it works extremely well in this recipe)
  • 3/4 cups of sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon of salt
  • 1/4 tsp. of baking soda
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/4 cup of plain Greek yogurt (make sure it has at least 2% fat) or sour cream
  • 3 tbsp. vegetable oil
  • The zest of 2 lemons + 2 tbsp. of fresh lemon juice

You’ll also need to gather these things for the glaze:

  • 1 heaping cup of powdered (confectioner’s) sugar
  • zest and juice of one large lemon

Steps

Didriks, Flickr
Source:
Didriks, Flickr

First up, we’re going to preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees Celsius) and get an 8 by 8-inch cake pan, filled with aluminum foil.

It’s best to leave a bit of excess foil above the sides of the cake pan, just a couple of inches. That’ll make it easier to lift them up after they’re fully done.

Alexi Ueltzen, Flickr
Source:
Alexi Ueltzen, Flickr

The next step is to zest your lemons.

You can use a zester of your choice, anything will work. If you don’t have a lemon zester, a standard box grater will also do the trick, but make sure that you use the side with tiny holes and teeth.

Jenny Can Cook, YouTube screenshot
Source:
Jenny Can Cook, YouTube screenshot

Mix up all the ingredients for the brownies in a regular bowl: flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, eggs, yogurt, and lemon zest.

Make sure to stir well, and cut open one of the lemons to squeeze out the juice. Be careful of any seeds that might fall into the bowl.

Stephanie Chapman, Flickr
Source:
Stephanie Chapman, Flickr

It’s time to start mixing!

You can use a mixer if you really want, but it’s definitely not necessary.

Grab a fork, a spatula, or anything else, and stir roughly again for about half a minute. When you notice the batter is getting creamy, you know it’s good enough. As promised, there’s no butter involved!

Go ahead and pour the mixture directly into the baking pan. The batter will be quite thick, so make sure to grab a spatula and spread things evenly.

Jenny Can Cook, YouTube screenshot
Source:
Jenny Can Cook, YouTube screenshot

It’s time to put the batter in the oven!

Set a timer for twenty minutes, and we can get started on the icing while the brownies are baking.

Grab another bowl, and add the powdered sugar as well as the two tablespoons of lemon juice. Stir well, and you’ll start to see the mixture transform into a shiny glaze form.

Jenny does warn that it’ll take you a while before it gets to have the traditional icing texture. Once you’ve got this texture, add the rest of the lemon zest and stir thoroughly once again.

Jenny Can Cook, YouTube screenshot
Source:
Jenny Can Cook, YouTube screenshot

After the 20 minutes in the oven, pull them out with the excess aluminum foil.

You can grab a piece of wax to gently get rid of the foil at the bottom and place the brownies bottom-side down on some parchment paper.

Jenny Can Cook, YouTube screenshot
Source:
Jenny Can Cook, YouTube screenshot

Just one more step! Pour the icing on top of the brownies, and definitely make sure to be generous.

These delicious and simple lemon brownies are now ready!

Jenny Can Cook, YouTube screenshot
Source:
Jenny Can Cook, YouTube screenshot

If you’d like to see a video of the whole process, be sure to check it out below.

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