Man, I looooove these!
And I know – FINALLY, a recipe post! Well I think the wait has been worth it, chums, as this recipe is an absolute dream, if I do say so myself.
These are just so very very tasty.
It was one of those things that I didn’t mean to make. I was revising for my exams, I really was. Then this happened. I don’t even know how, but I’m jolly glad it did.
I was inspired by Deliciously Ella’s raw brownie recipe, but then I decided to take it up a notch or five. And I’m pretty darn pleased with my creation, it has to be said.
These brownies are super rich and chocolatey, with the most fabulous, squidgy, gorge texture thanks to the nuts and dates. And then when you get that little crunch of chocolate chunk - oof, that's the stuff.
I should probably point out that although I call them brownies, they’re not like traditional brownies. Traditional brownies are wonderful, I don’t deny that. But these babies are different. Equally wonderful, if not MORE wonderful thanks to their health benefits, but different.
They’re also gosh darn simple to make. I promise.
You can vary the Choc Shot you use (I went for coconut) as well as the nuts, which will result in slightly different flavours, but that’s all part of the fun, am I right? I used a mix of nuts that was predominantly cashews and peanuts which worked a treat, but I reckon almonds, hazelnuts and pecans would be just as good. Go wild!
And if you don’t have Sweet Freedom, substitute agave syrup or honey.
These brownies are vegan, gluten-free and refined sugar-free (depending on the chocolate you use). Yup, genuinely nourishing, full of natural goodness.
And oh my days, want to take these babies to another level? Spread them with chocolate-hazelnutty goodness! Because chocolate and nuts on top of chocolate and nuts has got to be a good thing, am I right? SO DELISH!
OK, they may be slightly less healthy as a result, but the texture combo here is insaaaanely good. Use Nutella if ya like. I went for Jimjam’s chocolate hazelnut spread which has no added sugar, don'tcha know. Beyond tasty.
Also: generously drizzling with peanut butter is a seriously good way to take these brownies from awesome to awesomer.
I made my brownies in my mini food-chopper (basically a mini food processor, and such a barg) which I absolutely adore, but a normal food processor would be fine, or you could try in a powerful blender.
Oh, and do use medjool dates rather than standard ones – the latter really are nothing like the former. Trust. And if you can't find raw cacao powder (I got mine at a local independent health food store), you can sub cocoa powder but the quantity won't be the same so I suggest adding 1 tbsp at a time and having a little taste.
These quantities make six lovely brownie squares, but you could easily scale up the recipe. My pictures show you what a ½ cup looks like, but don’t worry if you don’t have the right measuring cups – it doesn’t need to be too precise with this recipe.
Hope you love them as much as I do!
Ingredients
½ cup mixed nuts of you choice
½ cup medjool dates, pitted and halved (I used 5)
1 tbsp Choc Shot of your choice (I used coconut)
3 tbsp raw cacao powder
1 tbsp Sweet Freedom/honey/agave
4 squares good quality dark chocolate, roughly chopped
Method
1. Line a small baking tin with foil.
2. Pulse the nuts in a food processor until they turn into a fine powder.
3. Add the other ingredients except the chocolate one at a time and pulse after each one to combine until a very sticky dough forms.
4. Dollop the mixture into the tin and use your fingers to spread it out evenly, pressing down as you go – this gets a bit messy, but it’s the best way. Press the chocolate chunks on to the top of the brownies and pop the whole thing in the freezer for an hour to firm up.
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| Don't worry if you don't fill a whole tin - the mix won't spread. |
5. Remove the tray from the freezer and lift out the brownies by the foil. Cut into squares and enjoy! (Oh, and keep them in the fridge to stay firm.)
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