I’ve been hearing and reading about healthy substitutions in baking lately and I have experimented here and there such as subbing eggs with bananas, using a gluten free flour or using sugar substitute for sugar.
I can say I have never used a bean in sweet baking..only in savory cooking.
So here is my take on a black bean brownie. It is not quite the fudgy brownie you are imagining but it really kicks that sweets craving and in a jiffy too. If someone didn’t know there were black beans in it, they wouldn’t know, well… they would know something was off. But the added benefits of fiber and protein are a plus! This is a gluten free and egg free brownie, nut free if you omit them and dairy free if you omit chocolate chips.
Black Bean Brownies
1 1/2 cups black beans (one 15-oz can, drained and rinsed well)
2 heaping tablespoon of cocoa powder
1/2 cup of oat flour (you can either purchase it or pulse rolled oats in a food processor)
1/3 cup strongly brewed coffee
3 tablespoons of sugar
1/4 cup of coconut or vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
½ Cup of mix ins like chocolate chips, nuts, candy, popcorn- optional
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- In a food processor, pulse black beans until they are smooth, or if you have a mediocre processor like mine, smooth-ish
- Add remaining ingredients in a separate bowl and mix well then add pureed black beans and mix again.
- If you have mix-ins you will fold them in at this point
- In a greased 8×8 pan, add batter and bake for 15-18 minutes (oven times vary, so pay close attention after 10 minutes). I used a mini muffin tin, if you do too, check your brownies after 8 minutes with a toothpick to be sure they aren’t over cooked
- Remove from oven and leave it for at least 10 minutes before cutting it or popping out of the muffin tin
I keep oat flour in a mason jar. This one time we went to costco and my husband thought he bought quick cook oats..nope, regular steel cut oats. However, its been a great flour substitute for many things. I buzz it up in my bullet blender, store in my mason jar with all my other flours in my pantry.
The nice thing about this batter is that, since it’s egg free, you can totally lick all of the bowl, ALL OF IT.
I chose no mix ins for my recipe but I can tell that chocolate chips would really take this into a next level chocolate state.
So this is how many the mini muffin brownies make. otherwise use an 8×8, haha. I used a mini ice cream scoop size in each cup. I love the roundy moundy tops on these!
Like I mentioned above, I have a mediocre food processor, so not all of the beans got pureed. you can see some of the bits here.
It is safe to say that these are pretty easy to eat. They just started popping in my mouth every five minutes. okay..it was on purpose.
So what’s with the ONE banner you ask? It’s actually a preview of what will be in Charlotte’s first birthday festivities (airing on Fresh Living, May 11 at 1 pm MST) I will be talking about my event planning side of things.
The topper is from a local ETSY shop, yes local! Taylor, owner of Minted Wreaths, created this adorable First Birthday Cake Topper. It is very well made, like not the flimsy paper straws and chintzy paper. It is of real quality and I can seeing it lasting through the wrath of a one year old. (small object, not a good idea- but just saying). The Pom Poms on the top are the icing on the cake, seriously, and not cause it is a cake topper and its on the top, it is a fun touch, great job Taylor! Don’t forget to see how I incorporate this topper in the Birthday segment on Fresh Living, May 11 at 1 pm MST. 😉
I hope you enjoy the brownies!
{Foodie + Cakes + Classes} 