These Dairy Free Soy Free Brownies are designed for those following MSPI Diet, but enjoyed by everyone. The oil gives them a chewy texture and keeps them moist. You will never believe these are missing dairy and soy!
When Ella was a month old, she had a very scary vomiting incident that resulted in us taking her to the pediatric ER. Thankfully, she just had severe acid reflux. Medicine helped a little, but the most dramatic change happened after I removed dairy and soy proteins from my diet.
I was happy to do what I could to help her while still nursing, but it was so difficult! Try finding prepared food that does not contain soybean oil or soy lecithin***(see note below). Even my favorite pasta sauce from Trader Joe's was off limits. My saving grace was stumbling across the blog called MSPI Mama.
What is MSPI?
MSPI stands for Milk Soy Protein Intolerance. This is not lactose intolerance, which is the inability to break down milk sugar, but rather an intolerance/allergy to milk proteins, which are closely mimicked by those in soy.
MSPI is actually pretty common in young babies, and they usually grow out of it and are able to tolerate dairy proteins just fine. I had to be dairy free / soy free for about 4 months before being able to introduce them in small quantities. For what it's worth, Ella is now completely tolerant of dairy and soy - one of her favorite foods is cheese!
Learning how to Cook MSPI
During those MSPI months, I had to completely overhaul how I cooked. Most of my recipes were off limits or had to be majorly revised. I never thought of myself as heavily dependent on dairy, but I guess I am.
I felt very overwhelmed at the beginning and finding MSPI Mama was the biggest help. She has so many recipes that are MSPI friendly - even desserts!
Once I identified a core group of recipes, I felt more in control and things became easier. Eating at restaurants, however, did not become easier and is one of the biggest challenges of MSPI. So many restaurants use soybean oil or butter (dairy) in things you wouldn't suspect.
This brownie recipes is one that I made quite often while following the MSPI diet. The sugar cravings while nursing are no joke and still being able to enjoy desserts was a must. I figured I needed to "pay it forward" to other moms out there, frantically Google-ing for MSPI-safe recipes (likely while their new babies scream in their arms).
I will be posting a handful of my favorite recipes - ones that are so good that they continue to be in our meal rotation despite the restrictions no longer being in place. These brownie are one of those recipes. They are so chocolatey and fudgey and have a nice crisp top on them. You certainly won't feel deprived eating these!
***Note: many people with a soy sensitivity can still eat soybean oil and soy lecithin but at the beginning I had to eliminate everything and then add things back.
Gluten Free Dairy Free Soy Free Brownies
Use a gluten free flour such as Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free 1 to 1 Baking Flour in place of all purpose flour.
Looking for more MSPI Recipes?
Check out these other recipes that contain no dairy and no soy:
DESSERTS:
MSPI Chocolate Chip Cookies
Daniel Tiger's Banana Swirl {dairy free banana ice cream, MSPI}
Raspberry Sorbet
Zucchini Bread (Chocolate option too)
Pineapple Carrot Bread
Double Chocolate Banana Bread (use Enjoy Life dairy free chocolate chips)
Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread (use Enjoy Life dairy free chocolate chips)
Easy Dalgona Whipped Coffee (made with coconut milk)
DINNERS:
MSPI Chicken Fried Rice
MSPI Spicy Honey Brushed Chicken Thighs
Turkey Tacos
Tomates Provencales {French Provencial Baked Tomatoes}
Red Curry Rice Noodles with Chicken
Coconut Curry Chicken
Simplified Chicken Tortilla Soup (no cheese on top)
Turkey Chili (follow keto recipe that uses cocoa powder)
Chilli Coconut Chicken Soup
Chicken Street Tacos - Costco Copycat (made without crema)
Garlic Braised Chicken Thighs with Roasted Carrots (MSPI)
Red Chili Chicken and Rice
I also highly recommend the blog MSPI Mama. She has a Quick Start guide with recipes for those moms suddenly finding themselves having to avoid milk and soy and not knowing where to begin! The site hasn't been updated in a long time, but all of the original recipes are there, and it's a great resource that got me through those stressful first few weeks of having to revamp the way I cooked.
📖 Recipe
Dairy Free Soy Free Brownies (MSPI Friendly)
Ingredients
- ½ cup Canola oil
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup all purpose flour
- ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 x 9-inch baking pan.
- In a medium bowl, mix together the oil, sugar and vanilla. Beat in the eggs.
- In a separate bowl, combine flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; gradually stir into the egg mixture until well blended.
- Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes, or until the brownies begin to pull away from the edges of the pan.
- Let cool completely on a wire rack then place in refrigerator to cool down even more. The brownies are best when they've had time to cool and develop their flavor.
Karen says
WOW, these are sooo moist and chewy! We all loved them, thanks for sharing!
Meghan says
So glad you liked them!
Anonymous says
Would coconut oil work?
Meghan says
I haven't tried it myself, but I can't see why not! I would stick with the same amount of oil (1/2 cup). You could use regular or butter flavored coconut oil.
Rachel says
Your recipes look amazing, I will definitely be trying a lot of them as my breastfed son also has a MSPI. Just curious, were all legumes off limits for you? It seems like soy isn’t the only legume that doesn’t agree with him.
Meghan says
Hi Rachel! I don't typically eat many legumes with my peanut allergy, so I'm not really sure if my daughter was sensitive to them other than soy. I hope you are able to pinpoint what works best for your son! It can be so difficult but also rewarding. To give you hope, I was eventually able to reintroduce dairy and soy as my daughter got a little older! Thank you for taking the time to comment and good luck to you! 🙂