Blueberry Brownies

These Blueberry Brownies are brownies in all the ways that matter – crackly top, fudgy middle, and edges you start picking at way before they’ve cooled. They shouldn’t really be called brownies, at least not in the traditional sense, because they taste exactly like a pile of blueberries, with no chocolate flavor in sight.

This recipe started with the idea of “what if something looked and acted like a brownie, but was packed with a completely different flavor?” Enter scene: this fever dream of a berry-flavored cake that has the exact crackly top and fudgey center of a brownie.

We’re using white chocolate here instead of dark or milk, but still leaning on a classic brownie move: the double boiler. That’s where things start, with blueberries joining the melt so they become the star of the batter. The result is sweet and a little unexpected, with blueberries doing way more than just “adding flavor.” It still lands exactly where a brownie should, just in a brighter, fruitier, more colorful way.

The best part is how you eat them: slightly warm, ideally with a scoop of cold gelato melting right on top, which is really always the ideal situation.

Read on for all my tips/tricks on how to make these blueberry brownies!

Why these are still “brownies” even without dark or milk chocolate

These blueberry “brownies” do not contain any dark chocolate, cocoa powder, or milk chocolate, but they still have everything that makes a brownie feel like a brownie: a dense, fudgy texture, chewy edges, and that signature glossy, crackly top. Instead of cocoa carrying the flavor, blueberries are doing all the heavy lifting, giving these bars a bright, jammy flavor while white chocolate adds richness and structure.

The method for this recipe is also true to classic brownies. Similar to traditional recipes, this recipe uses the double boiler method to melt down the white chocolate, butter, and frozen blueberries. This creates a smooth base and helps set up that thin, shiny brownie crust in the oven. Even without the cocoa, we get something that eats like a brownie, just with a blueberry-forward flavor instead of chocolate.

Ingredients you’ll need for these blueberry brownies

• 3/4 bar (84g) white chocolate, divided
• 2 cups (226g) frozen blueberries, divided
• 3/4 cup (170g) unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup (28g) freeze-dried berries, crushed
• 1 large lemon, for zest and juice
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1/2 cup (70g) almond flour
• 1/2 cup (70g) all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon turbinado sugar
• 1 teaspoon grated ginger

Why the color of these brownies can vary

The color of these brownies comes from blueberries doing their thing in the oven. As they bake down, they bleed into the white chocolate batter and can range from deep purple to soft blue depending on the batch.

A little lemon juice helps keep the color more purple and a bit more vibrant, but it’s not exact science. It depends on the variety, ripeness, and honestly just the mood of the berries that day.

For the best color payoff, I recommend using frozen blueberries. You can definitely use fresh blueberries but they usually give a softer color.

Ingredient substitutions

This recipe is truly delicious as is but it is very flexible, nearly every ingredient can be customized to better fit your needs. Here are some substitution suggestions:

• White chocolate: Can be swapped with white chocolate chips or vegan white chocolate (I like the one from Pascha). You could use dark or milk chocolate but the color would be brown instead of blue/purple and the flavor would be much more chocolate-forward.
• Frozen blueberries: Can be swapped for fresh blueberries, just note that the color payoff won’t be as vibrant!
• Butter: You can swap it for vegan butter.
• Eggs: Can be swapped for two flax eggs. Using flax eggs along with vegan butter would give you an entirely vegan banana bread!
• All-purpose flour: Can be swapped for King Arthur’s 1:1 Gluten-Free Baking Flour if needed.

How to make these brownies

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F convection or 375°F standard.
2. In a large bowl, add 57 grams of chopped white chocolate, 113 grams of blueberries, and 170 grams of butter. Place this bowl over a medium pot with a few inches of water in it. Bring the pot to a simmer and use the double boiler method to melt all of the ingredients together. It will be a bit broken, but that’s totally fine, mash the berries lightly as you go.
3. In another bowl, add 150 grams of sugar, 28 grams of crushed freeze-dried berries and zest from half a lemon. Mix together until fragrant. Add the egg and egg yolk and mix for 1-2 minutes, or until smooth and fluffy.
4. Add the blueberry chocolate mixture, 70 grams of almond flour, 70 grams of all-purpose flour and 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt. Mix to form a batter. It might look brown, but don’t worry.
5. Blend the remaining 113 grams of frozen blueberries with the juice from 1/2 of the lemon (about 2 tablespoons). This works best in a small blender like a Bullet or Ninja.
6. Add the blueberry puree to the batter and mix to combine. Pour the batter into a parchment-lined 9-inch cake or 9×9 square baking tin.
7. You’ll have a bit of blueberry puree stuck in the bottom and sides of the blender. Swirl that on top of the batter and scatter the remaining 27 grams of white chocolate on top.
8. Bake at 350°F convection for 40-45 minutes. It will bubble quite a bit but don’t stress, there’s a lot of moisture going on there! It will have browning edges and crinkly sides like a brownie and be slightly cracked on top.
9. Remove from the oven and set aside.
10. Mix together the turbinado sugar and grated ginger and scatter on top.

Let cool completely before slicing either into slices or squares, depending on the pan you used. Serve with a scoop of vanilla gelato and drizzle with ice cream.

Serving suggestions

You can absolutely eat these straight from the pan, but honestly they get a whole lot more fun with something cold on top.

A scoop of Talenti Tahitian Vanilla Bean Gelato is my go-to topping and pretty perfect here. It’s creamy and melts right into the crackly top so you get that hot–cold, fudgy–creamy situation in every bite. It also makes the blueberries taste even brighter, which is really the whole point.

Storage tips

Here’s the best way to store these brownies, based on each method:

Room Temperature: Allow to cool then store in an airtight container in cool, dry place like a pantry or a cool part of your kitchen for up to 3 days.

Refrigerator: These will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. I like to wrap each brownie in a layer of wax paper to prevent them from sticking to each other.

Freezer: These will freeze well for up to 3 months. I like to wrap them with wax paper so they don’t stick to each other, then place them in a freezer gallon bag. To thaw, remove the brownies from the bag and let them sit at room temperature for 3-4 hours. Then they should be ready to eat!

Why is this recipe in grams?

Grams is always my preference for baking, and I hope it will be yours, too. The only way to ensure complete accuracy is through measuring by weight, not volume. One cup of flour can weigh all the way from 120 grams to 160 grams, depending on how it was packed. This ends up causing some volatility and mismatched results.

I want to ensure you get the best results with this recipe (and I want to keep this recipe foolproof!) so I highly recommend getting a small affordable kitchen scale if you want to move forward with this particular recipe.

Looking for similar recipes?

And that’s everything for these Blueberry Brownies!

If you make it, please tag me on Pinterest or Instagram so I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you all are making.

You can also shop this video if you’re looking for the exact pieces I use – I’ve linked everything on my ShopMy! *some links may contain affiliate commissions

And, of course, feel free to leave any questions, comments, or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you <3