A friend recently sent me a recipe for brownies sans flour. I was skeptical to say the least. Not necessarily because of the lack of flour but rather the appearance of an entire can of black beans in the recipe. What the....?
Mike and Canaan immediately grossed the entire concept out, Ezra wasn't paying attention at all (neither was Otto) but I was intrigued.
On Friday night I made a batch and stuck them in the fridge to chill overnight. On Saturday night, after the boys were in bed and while Mike was gone to a guys night, I had a group of friends over for ice cream and brownies. I cut these little chocolaty black bean squares and put them neatly on a large white plate (presentation is everything, right?). The girls dove in. Building banana splits with all the fixins' and grabbing a brownie to boot. The verdict? Yummy. Really! Fudgy, chocolaty, without even the slightest hint of bean-y-ness. The gals and I determined these could easily be considered fiber bars for breakfast, which would allow us the freedom to eat chocolate in the morning without guilt. Brilliant, right?
I got the recipe here although I don't have a Vita-Mix (swoon)so I just used my handy 1960's blender. It worked just fine. Also, I personally wasn't crazy about the slight honey flavor. I'm not a huge fan of honey in baking though. Next time I think I'll try Agave Nectar or even just plain ol' sugar would be good.
Definitely refridge them overnight, would be my suggestion. They taste like a dense fudgy Starbucks brownie. Yummo.
Fudgy Rich Black Bean Brownies
•2 cups black beans, well drained (15 oz canned is fine)
•1/4 cup cocoa powder
•4 large eggs
•1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
•2 Tbsp. instant grain coffee substitute ** I used decaf espresso powder
•1/4 tsp. sea salt
•1 cup honey
•1/2 cup melted butter, coconut oil or combination
•1 cup chopped pecans, walnuts, almonds or nut of your choice **I omitted
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Oil or butter an 8x8 baking dish or cake pan (for thicker brownies) OR 11 by 18 inch baking pan (for thinner).
Combine the black beans, cocoa powder, eggs, vanilla, instant coffee, sea salt and honey into the Vita-Mix. Blend till smooth, the batter should be thick and will be kinda soupy.
Pour mixture into a bowl. Add butter/coconut oil and nuts. Mix well and pour into prepared dish or pan. Bake 30-45 minutes, or until the brownies are set. If you press your finger in the middle, it should make a little dent. Don't overbake!
Let it cool (and preferably refrigerated) in the pan completely before cutting and serving.
NOTE: I did not do this, but you can line your baking pan with parchment paper and lightly oil it for ease of use.
OPTIONAL: If you love the rich flavor and want to make it even more richer: add 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips.
