Turning beans, fruit, and nuts into brownies

Sweet, chocolaty goodness from….beans??!!  Brownies that fight aging, lower cholesterol, and love you back? What could be better for Valentine’s Day? 

Could you really make something good out of beans, fruit, nuts and a little flour? I saw this recipe and had to try my own version. I liked how they are sweetened with dates, which add fiber, minerals and antioxidants (to name a few benefits).

But how does it taste?? I decided to make a version of this and add an icing. My daughter needs all sweet things in pink or purple. I added a cherry almond nut butter icing (which turned out purple). Dense, rich, sweet and chocolately. We love these and need to keep more on hand (besides for just Valentine’s Day).

Black Bean Brownies with Cherry Almond Icing

(makes 12 servings)

½ cup dark cocoa powder

2 t. vanilla

1 t. baking soda

1 (15 oz.) can of salt-free black beans (drain liquid)

1/2 cup light coconut milk

1/2 cup unsweetened soy milk

2 small, very ripe bananas

1 1/2 – 2 cups pitted dates (I used about 18 medjool dates)

¾ cup whole wheat pastry flour

3/4 cup chopped walnuts

Icing

1/3 cup light coconut milk

1/3 cup chopped raw cashews

1/2 cup dates (about 5)

1 tsp almond extract

1/2 cup frozen dark sweet cherries, thawed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Add two ingredients at a time except walnuts to a food processor or blender. Turn it on and then gradually add each additional ingredient (except walnuts) until blended. Turn off the machine, remove the blade, and stir in the nuts. Spread into a 13” x 9” pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Let cool.

For icing:

Blend all ingredients to get thick icing consistency. Pour over cool brownies. Refrigerate to thicken icing (using less liquid would also help). We sprinkled on some sliced almonds.  Saige loved this lip cookie cutter so we had lip shaped brownies.

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 209

Fat: 8 g

Omega 3 fatty acids: 1 g

Cholesterol: 0 g

Saturated fat: 2 g

Carbohydrate: 31 g

Fiber: 7 g

Protein: 6 g

Thanks to the nuts and beans, these brownie lips are a great source of minerals, B vitamins, phytochemicals, antioxidants, fiber and protein.

Tagged as: beans, brownie, chocolate, fruit, heart health, valentines