Hi everyone, Halle here! Welcome to our second food post! This week, due to our super busy schedules, I tackled our second food recipe solo, while Sophie tried out an exercise class to share with you all. Stay tuned for that in a couple of days, but for now I have an AMAZING “healthy” brownie recipe to share. I hope you enjoy!
THE BASICS
PREP TIME: 30 MINUTES
BAKE TIME: 30 MINUTES
TOTAL TIME: 1 HOUR
DIFFICULTY LEVEL: EASY/MEDIUM
OVERALL GRADE: A+
I have a huge sweet tooth--especially for anything chocolate--so from the get go finding healthier alternatives to classic desserts was at the top of my to-do list. After surfing the web and filing through countless recipes, I finally came across a recipe that caught my attention: “The Best Healthier Brownies” by Chelsea’s Messy Apron.
I really like that Chelsea, whose recipe I found through Pinterest, described her brownie creation as healthier rather than claiming they are healthy; there is a big difference, and I have found that bloggers often mislabel their treats as “healthy” when they simply are not. After all, let’s be honest, a brownie is still dessert no matter what type of sugar you use, or what bad ingredients you substitute with a slightly healthier option. And that’s okay! One of our goals in starting this blog is to learn how to satisfy our unhealthy cravings with slightly better alternatives, without completely cutting out everything we love to eat. That’s why I chose this recipe over other brownie recipes, which were made with strange ingredients such as “Black Bean Brownies” or “Secret Spinach and Carrot Brownies”; I wanted my “healthy” brownies to still resemble the brownie we all know and love. And, I’m happy to report that this recipe definitely accomplished this feat! The brownies were sweet, fudgy, and totally addicting. Not to mention, they are made of completely guilt-free ingredients that add a little twist on the classic treat. If you want to know how to make these delicious sweets, keep reading!
PREP TIME: 30 MINUTES
BAKE TIME: 30 MINUTES
TOTAL TIME: 1 HOUR
DIFFICULTY LEVEL: EASY/MEDIUM
OVERALL GRADE: A+
I have a huge sweet tooth--especially for anything chocolate--so from the get go finding healthier alternatives to classic desserts was at the top of my to-do list. After surfing the web and filing through countless recipes, I finally came across a recipe that caught my attention: “The Best Healthier Brownies” by Chelsea’s Messy Apron.
I really like that Chelsea, whose recipe I found through Pinterest, described her brownie creation as healthier rather than claiming they are healthy; there is a big difference, and I have found that bloggers often mislabel their treats as “healthy” when they simply are not. After all, let’s be honest, a brownie is still dessert no matter what type of sugar you use, or what bad ingredients you substitute with a slightly healthier option. And that’s okay! One of our goals in starting this blog is to learn how to satisfy our unhealthy cravings with slightly better alternatives, without completely cutting out everything we love to eat. That’s why I chose this recipe over other brownie recipes, which were made with strange ingredients such as “Black Bean Brownies” or “Secret Spinach and Carrot Brownies”; I wanted my “healthy” brownies to still resemble the brownie we all know and love. And, I’m happy to report that this recipe definitely accomplished this feat! The brownies were sweet, fudgy, and totally addicting. Not to mention, they are made of completely guilt-free ingredients that add a little twist on the classic treat. If you want to know how to make these delicious sweets, keep reading!
The original recipe (link down below) claims that the prep time for these brownies is 10 minutes. However, I would like to refute this statement right off the bat. On the contrary, I would say this recipe could take anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour, depending on how much you rush. The recipe is definitely not simple, and it requires a variety of tools and ingredients, but it could be done by anyone with a little baking experience. First, I preheated my oven to 350 degrees, and prepared an 8x8 pan as instructed on the recipe’s webpage. Next, I microwaved 1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons of coconut oil with 1 cup of dark chocolate chips, stirring together to combine (the original recipe says to pour microwaved coconut oil over the chocolate chips to melt, but I found that the coconut oil cooled too fast to fully melt the chocolate chips). Coconut oil is lauded as a “superfood” by many, as it is said to promote weight loss and good digestion, as well as prevent heart disease and cancer. Because of this, many nutritionists recommend using coconut oil as a substitute for butter or vegetable oil, which are traditionally used in brownie recipes. Although the recipe calls for LouAna coconut oil, I used Whole Foods brand, and it worked great! In addition, dark chocolate is rich in antioxidants, and can help lower blood pressure. For chocolate lovers like me this is incredible news, and I love knowing that the chocolate in these brownies is filled with important health benefits. Plus, the dark chocolate in this recipe adds an extra richness to the final product. So good! Next, I mixed in 1 cup of nonfat vanilla greek yogurt (around 2 small containers, for those who have single servings in their fridge like I do). This helps to pack in some protein, and to form a desirable consistency for the brownies. I made sure to pour out the liquid at the top of the container in order to thicken the yogurt. Rather than dumping in unhealthy white sugar, the recipe instead calls for 1/2 cup of coconut sugar. You can find coconut sugar at most health food stores (I got mine at Whole Foods), and it contains many vitamins and minerals such as Zinc, Calcium, and Potassium. Although it is no miracle food, as it still contains a good amount of fructose, coconut sugar is a slightly healthier, and much more natural, alternative to regular sugar. |
After mixing in 1 teaspoon of vanilla, a few pinches of salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda, it’s time to make your own oat flour. Oats are inarguably amazing for you: they are rich in fiber, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals such as manganese and phosphorus. Studies show that oats can help lower cholesterol, reduce the risk of diabetes, and boost your immune system, to name of few benefits. Because of this, substituting regular white flour with homemade oat flour is an extremely wise choice--admittedly, I could slightly taste the oats in the final product, but the taste did not bother me at all. In fact, after a few bites I really started to enjoy it! Plus, oat flour is super easy to make; all I did was blend up some old fashioned oats, and voila! The oats will immediately transform into the texture of flour. After stirring in 3/4 cup of my concoction, as well as an additional 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips, my brownie mixture was ready for the oven!
You should notice that this brownie batter is very thick, and slightly difficult to spread. This is exactly what you want, so stick ‘em in the oven! I was able to take mine out after 30 minutes, and they were the perfect consistency.
You should notice that this brownie batter is very thick, and slightly difficult to spread. This is exactly what you want, so stick ‘em in the oven! I was able to take mine out after 30 minutes, and they were the perfect consistency.
After allowing my brownies to cool completely, I finally tasted my creation. I was a bit apprehensive at first since they weren’t the most visually appealing, but they were absolutely delicious. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the brownies were very sweet and chocolatey, albeit slightly coconutty. I also decided to put some in the fridge (per recommendation of Chelsea), and this batch turned out equally delicious. If you enjoy super-rich desserts, I definitely recommend refrigerating!
All in all, I highly recommend this recipe to anyone with a sweet tooth. The brownies turned out great (no, really--I gave some brownies to friends and family and everybody loved them!), and they are MUCH better for you than typical recipes. After all, these brownies have actual health benefits, which is much more than you can say about your Betty Crocker boxed mix. I could definitely see myself getting together with friends to make another batch of these in the future. So yeah, if someone wants to invite me over for a baking party anytime soon, I won't object. Bon appetit!
Original recipe: http://www.chelseasmessyapron.com/the-best-healthy-brownie-no-flour-refined-sugar-butter-or-eggs-video/
Original recipe: http://www.chelseasmessyapron.com/the-best-healthy-brownie-no-flour-refined-sugar-butter-or-eggs-video/