I’ll be the first to admit that the first time I heard of Black Bean Brownies, my first thought was “Ewww, why would you do that to a perfectly good brownie?” After all, black beans sound like something meant for soup or stuffed inside of a Chipotle burrito.

A couple of years ago, I decided to try a vegan diet for a while and found myself limited on food options and recipes. My sweet tooth was calling out for something to satisfy it, and I stumbled across a recipe for Black Bean Brownies from Chocolate Covered Katie. After reading the comments and reviews, 99 percent of which were raving about them, I decided that the worst that could happen was that I would bake them and throw them out if they were not edible. Having all of the ingredients on hand, I began mixing up the ingredients and popped the concoction in the oven.

When they came out of the oven, my impatience won over, as it so often does with new recipes. They made it all of five minutes before I was cutting into the hot, gooey brownies and testing them. They…were…amazing. So good even, that I contemplated on whether or not I should tell my husband how good they were. Guilt won over, and I did have him try them…before telling him what was in them. He too thought that they were incredible.

Although I no longer follow a vegan diet (I do try to do vegetarian most of the time), this is a recipe that I still bake up today when we are craving something sweet without all of the added sugar. It is just sweet enough, fudgy, and most all of the ingredients are healthy so you can indulge without the guilt. Upon hubby’s request, I made these up again today, and the pan is already just about half-gone.

*I will add that the recipe recommends using a food processor. Because I do not own one, I always use my Ninja blender and it does an okay job for me in mixing the ingredients.

If you are looking for something new to try, I would definitely recommend giving these a try. I truly feel that you will not be disappointed.

Black Bean Brownies
Makes 9-12 brownies
Recipe from Chocolate Covered Katie

Ingredients 

1 1/2 cups black beans (1 15-oz can, drained and rinsed very well) (250g after draining)
2 tbsp cocoa powder (10g)
1/2 cup quick oats (40g) (See nutrition link below for substitutions)
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup pure maple syrup or agave (or honey, but not for strict vegans.) (75g)
pinch uncut stevia OR 2 tbsp sugar (or omit and increase maple syrup to 1/2 cup)
1/4 cup coconut or vegetable oil (40g) (See nutrition link for substitution notes)
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup to 2/3 cup chocolate chips (115-140g) (Not optional. Omit at your own risk.)
Optional: more chips, for presentation

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Combine all ingredients except chips in a good food processor, and blend until completely smooth. Really blend well. (A blender can work if you absolutely must, but the texture—and even the taste—will be much better in a food processor.)

Stir in the chips, then pour into a greased 8×8 pan. Optional: sprinkle extra chocolate chips over the top. 

Cook the black bean brownies 15-18 minutes, then let cool at least 10 minutes before trying to cut. If they still look a bit undercooked, you can place them in the fridge overnight and they will magically firm up!

Rating: