11th November 2017

Super moist, low-fat, sugar-free, vegan chocolate brownie

This is the softest, moistest, and gooey-est dark chocolate brownie that I’ve ever made. I accidentally forgot to put in coconut oil which made it low-fat, but still surprisingly moist and healthily rich. The trick is to add mashed banana to mixture. Not only does my brownie get the natural sweetness and loads of additional vitamins, it also becomes airier and much much moister. In autumn, when pumpkin season is in full swing, I’d also like to use pumpkin puree, especially the sweeter type like kabocha for this recipe.

What is better than getting to eat chocolate brownie completely guilt-free?

To make this bad-boy, you’ll need:

Ingredient – 8 to 10 servings

140gr almond flour
60gr coconut flour
25gr cacao powder *
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp (~ 3gr) baking powder
1 tsp (~ 5gr) baking soda
1.5 tsp (~ 8gr) monk fruit extract as sweetener **
a pinch of salt
1 tsp apple cider vinegar or lime juice. This is a great tip (!) that I’ve learned: when interacts with baking soda and baking powder, the acid will give our cake an extra lift
200gr (about 2 medium) banana
150ml unsweetened almond milk OR any other plant-based milk
1 bar of Lindt 99% dark chocolate (50gr)
50gr of 80% dark chocolate chips
(Optional: 15gr coconut oil, melted)

THAT’S IT! How simpler can it get?

* Cacao powder is often confused with cocoa powder. Both come from the cocoa beans. Cacao powder is extracted by cold-pressing unroasted cocoa beans while cocoa undergoes an extra step of being roasted at high temperature. Cacao is therefore raw and retains all the living enzymes, higher in antioxidants and vitamins, while lower in fat and caloric content than the other sibling. Cacao is also more expensive!

** Monk fruit is also known as Luo Han – a fruit native to South East Asia where it is long used in medical remedies and in the kitchen as food additive. It contains an unusual high concentration of fructose, making it 150-200 sweeter than refined sugar but contain ZERO calorie, zero fat, and does NOT affect your blood sugar level. It also comes with antioxidant compounds and moderate amount of vitamin C, making it a healthy, vegan, diabete- and weight-control-friendly sweetener

Method

Break the Lindt bar in small pieces. Combine with half of the chocolate chip in a bowl
Place the bowl above boiling water until all the chocolate melts to a smooth consistency
In a large mixing bowl, combine all dry ingredients: almond flour, coconut flour, cacao powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, monk fruit extract
Place all wet ingredients in a blender or NutriBullet and pulse until smooth: banana cut into chunks, plant milk, vinegar/lime juice
Add melted chocolate and (optional) coconut oil into the blended wet mixture. Mix well
Mix wet into dry ingredients. Using folding method to incorporate the two
Pour the mixture onto a lined 20×20 baking tray
Let it rest for about 10mins while preheating oven to 175C or 350F
Bake for 20mins then take the tray out, sprinkle the remaining chocolate chips on top.
Bake for another 10 minutes
Use a toothpick to puncture into the cake. If it comes out clean, our brownie is ready. If not, bake for another 5 minutes
Take the tray out of the oven. Let it cool for 10 minutes.