Frosted Raspberry Black Bean Brownies

No doubt this title sounds a little strange. I know it did to me when I first read about these. Black beans and brownies are never three words I would have put together without wincing. Probably what you are doing now.

But surprise! It works!

Over on Dr. Fuhrman's member site this is one recipe that everyone seems to love so I thought, hey! I love brownies so I'm game.

But why would anyone make brownies with black beans at all?

I hear ya. Well the benefits are many:

no processed sugar
no flour (aka gluten)
no dairy
no soy
vegan
no heavy amount of nuts like most raw desserts (although there is some nut butter)
plus lots of beneficial carbs and fiber from the black beans
chia!

Beans of all kinds are a dieters best friend as they fill you up, have great fiber and are a good source of calories when eating a high produce (and low calorie) diet.

I added raspberries because really what goes better with chocolate than raspberries?

I also decided to use a 12 individual cheesecake pan when I read that the serving size was 12. I cut the time down for mine because of the pan and frankly I could have cooked mine longer. They were not as fully cooked as they could have been. They came out more like a pudding cake, which was still quite good but for a crunchier outside, more time would have been better.

The frosting is optional and also vegan, sugar and nut free. Have you had "Chocomole" aka chocolate frosting made with avocados before? It's very good and even great as a pudding.

So let's get to it, shall we?

Raspberry Black Bean Brownies

Recipe adapted from Dr. Fuhrman's Black Bean Brownies from the website: DrFuhrman.com

Ingredients for Brownies:

2 cups of no or low salt black beans, drained and rinsed or home cooked
10 pitted medjool dates, soaked until soft
2 tablespoons raw almond butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder or cacao
1 tablespoon ground chia seeds
1 pint of raspberries, divided.

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F.

Combine black beans, dates, almond butter and vanilla in a food processor or high-speed blender. I used my Vitamix for this and while you can, you will get quite a workout with the plunger as this batter is really really quite thick. I had to add a couple of tablespoons of water to get it moving at all. Next time I will use a food processor.

Once well mixed, go ahead and add the cocoa powder and the ground chia seeds and blend again.

(Sorry, about the lighting here. I lost my sunlight unexpectedly- darn clouds!) 

Spread half the mixture into a lightly oiled pan (8x8) or muffin/ cheesecake pan. Mine was non-stick so I did not use any oil.

Mash up 3/4 cup of the raspberries in a cup and then spread over half the brownie batter. Then add the remaining batter over the raspberry layer to the.

Bake for 1 1/2 hours at 200 degrees.

Cool completely. Apply topping if desired. Cut into 12 pieces or remove from cups.

Can be stored in the refrigerator covered for up to a week. (I froze mine.)

Chocomole aka Chocolate Frosting (optional)

Ingredients:

1 ripe avocado

1/2 cup water

4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder or cacao

5 pitted medjool dates, soaked until soft.

splash of vanilla

Blend all ingredients until smooth.

Frost brownies if using and top with remaining raspberries.

 Eat!

Well are you game? I hope you give these a try. And if you do, please come back and tell me your verdict.

I'll be sharing this over at Healthy Vegan Fridays and also on Gluten Free Wednesdays over at the Gluten Free Homemaker's site.

Oh and one more thing:

When you have that blender all chocolateied (is that a word?) up after making the frosting use that left over goodness to whip up a smoothie.

Chocolate Raspberry Banana Smoothie:

  

Blender coated with chocomole

1 cup of almond milk

handful of raspberries

2 dates

2 frozen bananas

YUM!!

Until next time…

Find us on Facebook here, Follow on Pinterest here, and See what we're up to on Instagram here.

Mango Black Bean Salsa/ Salad

Few things are as tasty as a fresh salsa. Summer time produce makes this salsa extra special. It's a combo of ripe tangy mango, sweet corn, black beens, vine ripe tomatoes, bell pepper, lime and cilantro. Avocado is a nice bonus item as well. Serve with chips (low salt and baked) or lettuce leaf of choice or just toss it in a big salad as a dressing.

Like any medley, this salsa benefits from time to mingle, so make ahead if you like to let the flavors marry, just omit the mango until ready to serve. When you're ready to eat, add in the chopped mango and a squeeze of lime to awaken the flavors.

Mango Black Bean Salsa

This recipe adapted from Dr. Fuhrman's Immersion Excursion Recipe Book found here.

Ingredients

1 cup sweet corn, organic frozen is fine (fresh is approximately 3 ears, husk and silk removed)

2 mangoes, peeled pitted and diced

4 green onions, sliced

2 vine ripe tomatoes, seeded and diced

1 bell pepper (red or orange suggested)

2 cups cooked black beans (or 2 15 ounce cans, low sodium and well rinsed)

3 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro

4 tablespoons fresh lime juice (about 1 1/2 limes- reserve extra slices for serving)

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1-2 cloves minced fresh garlic

1 pinch chili powder

1 avocado, diced (optional)

Directions:

Defrost corn by running in a bag under hot water or if using fresh decided if you prefer to cook it first. It's not necessary. Raw corn is quite good. Frozen corn is flash cooked before frozen so not a raw food. Either way, prepare your corn.

Add all the ingredients to a medium sized bowl and toss well. Let sit a minimum of 15 minutes for flavors to mingle. Remember to leave out the mango and avocado if not using right away. 

I always think these taste better the next day so don't be afraid to make this the night before and stir occasionally.

For a salad, chop up some romaine to serve as a bed or go ahead and toss it all together. If you expect leftovers, keep the salsa separate until ready to eat. Same goes for the avocado.

This is one of our favorite salads so I'm sure you will see a lot more variations on salsa coming up.

This was my submission over at Gluten Free Cat for Raw Thursdays (even though the beans are cooked, it's easy to just leave them out for a tasty salsa/ salad!) Also submitted on Healthy Vegan Fridays. 

Happy Summer! Hope you enjoy!

Find us on Facebook here, Follow on Pinterest here, and See what we're up to on Instagram here.

Quick Black Bean Salad

This is one of those recipes to squirrel away for when you need something quick and amazing to bring out for a get together, potluck or Summer BBQ. It's a crowd pleaser for sure and also handy to keep in the fridge to eat as a salad or pair it up with chips as a salsa. I also like to load these kind of salads up into a romaine or endive leaf as well and skip the chips. So versatile!

Lime and cilantro are two of the key flavors with a simple drizzling of balsamic vinegar over a diced vegetable medley of corn, tomatoes, onions, water chestnuts and black beans. No salt or fats and very easy to like so even those that are not watching their health will enjoy this. Just don't tell them it's good for them.

Quick Black Bean Salad

This recipe is adapted from Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease by Dr. Caldwell B. Essselstyn, Jr.

Ingredients:

2 15 ounce cans of black beans, drained and rinsed well
1 large tomato or 2 medium tomatoes (I added some small heirlooms for color as well.)
1 16 oz package of frozen corn or fresh is even better if you have the chance!
1/2 Vidalia sweet onion, chopped
1 6 ounce can of sliced water chestnuts, drained and chopped
1/2 a bunch of cilantro, chopped
1/2 lime, juiced and zested
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Add all but the lime, cilantro and balsamic to a bowl and mix well.

Add the rest and then mix it all again.

Serve on a bed of lettuce as a salad….

Or pair it up with some salt free organic chips for a dip.

It's one of those things that gets better once the flavors marinade so you can make it ahead and keep in the fridge. Just know that the water chestnuts will turn a little brownish from the balsamic vinegar once it sits together a bit.

So there you have it. A simple versatile recipe to please a crowd or just one. I hope you give this a try.  I have a feeling this will be in our regular salad rotation from now on.

This will be my submission for Healthy Vegan Fridays, which if you haven't checked out by now, is a great assortment of recipes.

I hope you are enjoying some of these simple yet healthy dishes. Drop me a comment and let me know if I'm on the right track. I'd love to hear from you.

Until next time….

Find us on Facebook here, Follow on Pinterest here, and See what we're up to on Instagram here.