It’s Easter, and chocolate bunnies abound in every grocery store. If you’re feeling tempted, consider instead treating yourself to this incredibly rich, dense chocolate brownie. I served them after Easter dinner last night to my extended family, and everybody raved over them.
One special thing about these brownies is that they are gluten-free (containing no grains of any sort), and lactose-free, making them a wonderful treat to serve your friends and family who are on restricted diets.
Brownies (makes 16 brownies):
What you need:
– a food processor
– a hand-held blender is also useful, but not strictly necessary, for making the icing
Brownie Ingredients:
– 3 cups whole walnuts
– 8 pitted dates (Medjool dates are wonderful – and try to use soft, fresh dates, not the rock-hard ones you can find in bags in the baking section of your grocery store)
– 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
– 1 tsp vanilla
– 1/4 cup dried, unsweetened coconut
– 1/3 cup dried, sweetened cranberries
Chocolate Frosting Ingredients:
– 1 avocado
– 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
– 1/4 cup agave (a sweet syrup from a cactus plant), or liquid honey
– 1/2 tsp vanilla
– 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions:
Place 2 cups of walnuts in food processor; process til finely ground. Add chopped dates; process til finely ground. Add cocoa and vanilla; process til mixed. Remove from food processor and place in mixing bowl. Chop remaining walnuts coarsely, and add to mixing bowl, along with coconut and cranberries. Combine. If this mixture is not dry enough to hold together when pressed into a ball, add a little water (a tablespoon or two). Press mixture firmly into glass 12″ square pan. Really firmly!
Combine frosting ingredients, and mix til smooth and creamy (I used a Bamix hand-held blender, and it worked wonderfully, but I can’t see why you wouldn’t be able to do it by hand, or with another, less-powerful blender. You did use ripe avocado, right? Not a rock-hard one?).
Taste, and add more agave/honey if you would like it to be sweeter. Or more cocoa powder if you want it more chocolatey.
Spread frosting on brownies, and refrigerate til after supper. Enjoy!
Nutritional breakdown (per frosted brownie) [nutritiondata.com]:
This food is very low in Cholesterol and Sodium. It is also a good source of Dietary Fiber and Copper, and a very good source of Manganese.
– glycemic load ~8 (very low – that’s good! Especially in a dessert – you won’t get that sugar-high afterward)
– calories 250
– fat 18 grams (primarily mono- and poly-unsaturated, with lots of Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids)
– protein 5 grams
– dietary fiber 7 grams
– Vitamin B6 10% DV
– Folate 9% DV
– Calcium 7% DV
– Iron 11% DV
– Magnesium 20% DV
– Phosphorus 14% DV
– Potassium 11% DV
– Zinc 8% DV
– Copper 33% DV
– Manganese 57% DV
– Phytosterols ~14mg
man. I love brownies so much. if you were to leave me alone with 24 brownies, they would be gone within the hour, I have no self control. The medjool dates and nuts are only an added bonus that would motivate me to eat more brownies.
I’m with you there – put a rich, chewy, dense chocolate brownie in front of me, and there’s no turning away. With these ones, though, I find they’re SO rich that I can stop after savoring each bite of just one brownie.
What a great recipe. this might be a good gift to your loved one during valentine. thinking of bring my wife with kind of chocolate stuff, she love chocolate snacks.
Chocolate brownie just looks awesome. It should taste great too. And its recipe is quite simple too. I intend to make it someday.
I have taken the chocolate brownie’s before and they were so yummy. I am thinking of preparing them this easter too.
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