The weather has been crazy this week. We've gone from rainstorms and getting completely drenched on the way to school to 34 degree heat. Sleeping with fans whirring through the night, baking has been pretty tough as it's been over 30 degrees in the kitchen without the ovens on. I was so glad to get a last minute celebration cake out of the door on Monday and relieved not to have any more until next week. Buttercream + fondant + crazy hot weather just don't mix well! But today has been a lot cooler and I was really keen to make us all a treat to enjoy, but one that was slightly healthier as well as totally delicious.
During our stay in New Zealand at easter, we had a baby shower for my niece who's expecting her first baby very soon now. One of the families brought some amazing gluten-free brownies and I told them I'd definitely be making them for the blog once I got home. But since hubby is currently dairy-free as well as gluten-free, I decided to play around with the recipe and make him a treat (as he's currently not indulging in anything vaguely unhealthy in his bid to stay away from gluten and dairy). You should have seen the look on his face when he heard they were a treat he could actually enjoy as he's been so dedicated to keeping to this *free from* diet!!
These little one-bite brownies are extremely squidgy and gooey in the middle. They're best kept in and eaten straight from the fridge. I like my brownies slightly under-baked but you can definitely bake them a little more if you prefer a firmer set brownie. The brownies pictured throughout hadn't been refrigerated so you can see quite a wet texture (and warm from the oven they're a little like a chocolate fondant), but when they've been in the fridge for an hour or so they firm up nicely. It's kind of up to you to decide how you like them, but my regular brownies have a similar texture and are kept in the fridge too so I'm really happy that I've been able to create a treat that has the same kind of consistency.
These go so perfectly with strawberries and ice cream. I love fruit with brownies as it cuts through the sweetness and balances them so well. And I found some vegan ice cream in our local shop yesterday so I got that as a treat for the boys. I promise you, the three things together is like heaven on a plate :) They're also a one-bowl brownie mix which is always a win as there's a lot less washing up at the end!!
So these brownies are gluten-free, dairy-free and a lot healthier than my regular brownies. And you know that this all adds up in the quest to get bikini-ready four our summer hols. But you want to know the other MASSIVE attraction of these brownies?
They're also a one-bowl mix which is always a win as there's a lot less washing up at the end!! :)
one-bite brownies (gf & df)
makes 24 mini brownies bites
ingredients
- 260g dark chocolate
- 200g coconut oil
- 350g brown rice malt syrup
- 150g coconut sugar
- 4 eggs
- 70g ground almonds
- 3 tbsp raw cacao
you will also need a rectangular tin, around 26cm x 18cm
method
- grease and line your tin
- preheat the oven to 160 degrees (fan)
- melt the chocolate and coconut oil over a bain-marie
- add the malt syrup and coconut sugar and stir until combined, then remove from the heat
- add the eggs one by one, whisking them into the mixture
- finally add the almonds and cacao and stir until smooth
- pour the chocolate mixture into the tin
- bake for around 35 minutes until set (this will give you the squidgy centre so you may want to bake them for longer - around 40-45 minutes - if you prefer a firmer set brownie)
- allow to cool and remove from the tin
- either enjoy warm from the tin of for firmer set brownies, refrigerate for around an hour
- and enjoy :)