Black Bean Brownies

The concept of making brownies from black beans seemed ludicrous; not to mention unappetizing. I would have thought the guilty party who established this idea was insane. Who and why on earth would anyone want to mix in beans with an all-time favorite treat? My general rule is not to rule anything out until I try it for myself (pardon the pun). In other words, be the judge for yourself before you come to your own conclusions which I eventually did. The bizzarity behind the concept of black bean brownies did not turn me away from wanting to try it out for myself. I am constantly being vanquished by curiosity. Black bean brownies does sound intriguing as well and once I set my mind on something, I am annoyingly unstoppable. I came across a myriad of recipes for black  bean brownies and it never occurred to try until the suspension was nearly tormenting me to the point of insanity.

Not a huge fan of beans, I would have laughed you out of my kitchen if you would have dared to suggest I put beans in my dessert. My perspective of black beans have somewhat changed ever since hubby made his fabulous black bean burritos for dinner one night.  Being a notorious lover of brownies, I was one a quest to search for a flourless brownies and vegan brownies idea that didn’t require heavy amounts of soy nor margarine/oil.  I settled for a black bean brownie recipe that resulted a chocolatey, fudgy, and chewy texture without the need for flour, lots of oil, and sugar. Once you take a bite into these deep dark chocolate rich goodness, you’ll forget that there are black beans in them. You may not even miss the flour version any longer.

I am not at a point of replacing flour with beans yet but I am all in favor of knocking down the carbs. Did I mention how easy they are to make? This black bean brownie recipe is also more nutritious than the flour version as it contains more fiber and omega-3. The recipe requires a handful of ingredients that you are likely to have in your pantry.  Let your food processor do all the work for you but don’t blow out your motor. If you don’t like this black bean brownie recipe, I promise not to share anymore dessert recipes with beans in them.

For this recipe, you will need:

1. 1 1/2 cup of cooked black beans or 15 oz. can of black beans rinsed and drained
2. 2 tablespoons of flaxseed meal dissolved in 6 tablespoons of water
3. 1/4 cup of coconut butter or trans-fat free margarine melted (you can use oil)
4. 2/3 cup of unsweetened sifted cocoa powder (Hershey’s cocoa powder is my favorite)
5. 1/4 teaspoon of sea salt
6. 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
7. 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
8. 1/2 cup of raw sugar, honey, maple syrup, or agave nectar
9. Crushed walnuts or semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine all ingredients except for walnuts and chocolate chips in a food processor. Blend really well till smooth. Fold in chocolate chips or walnuts Transfer mixture into a greased 8×8 pan. Sprinkle additional chocolate chips and walnuts on top if you like. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Allow brownies to cool before cutting them into squares. Store in airlight container for a few days or refrigerate to keep longer.

Yields approximately 12 brownies