I soaked a huge bag of black beans for soup - it made a LOT of soup! (I forgot to take notes, so I will do this recipe later. Seriously slacking in the blog department lately! I promise to do better!)
Since beans are so loaded with fiber & protein, and not to mention CHEAP! I got to thinking, what other foods can I make with them? It didn't hurt I was dying for something sweet, but after the holidays, I thought perhaps I should reel in the junk foods...
I experimented a bit and found a recipe that works. These are gluten free, low-sugar, high fiber, and delicious! The texture is similar to typical brownies when they come out of the oven - a little soft & chewy, though you don't get the crispy corners as much as flour based brownies.... As they cool, they become more like a fudge....amazing!
So, here is my recipe for healthier black bean brownies!
Ingredients
1 (15 oz.) can reduced-sodium black beans, rinsed & drained (or soak 1 cup of dry beans & then boil them until they are tender)
3 TBSP peanut butter
1 small carton (15ml) coconut cream (optional - I am a sucker for all things coconut, and I always have this on hand for whipped coconut cream! If you don't have it, you can use any kind of milk - approx. 1/4 cup - ooh or mayo would be good!)
1/4 cup honey
2 TBSP coconut sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup almond flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
2 TBSP ground flax meal
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
Instructions
1. Put black beans, peanut butter, cream, honey, and vanilla extract in the bowl of a food processor or blender. Process until completely smooth.
2. Meanwhile, whisk together almond flour, cocoa powder, flax meal, baking powder and salt (I did this in the bowl of my Kitchenaid mixer)
3. Add the black bean mixture to the flour mixture. Add in the egg, and mix well until completely combined.
4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a brownie pan for baking. (I used my 9 x 9 Pyrex pan, and they were fairly thick - you could use a larger, shallower pan for more typical brownies but watch your cooking time)
5. Pour brownie mixture into pan and bake for 20 - 25 minutes. Check with a toothpick - mine took an additional 10ish minutes, but I kept checking it every few minutes.
Let them cool, and enjoy!
(Note, since these are almond flour PLUS beans, they are surprisingly filling! Be prepared to have them around for a while - they last a long time in the refrigerator)
The whole recipe is about 2,122 calories. I got 18 servings out of it, making each brownie approx. 118 calories each - not bad!
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