This brownie is full of surprises. It is dense and chocolatey without being too gooey, its not over sweet, and the ribbons of dark chocolate through it tie everything together beautifully. The surprises come in the form of the ingredients. Not only does it happen to be vegan and gluten free, but it uses black beans as a base. If you would like to keep it refined sugar free, skip the chocolate and up the cocoa content. I was as sceptical as anyone when I came across a similar recipe, but was pleasantly surprised. The beans in it give it a lovely dense texture, and make it a teensy bit more guilt free (who are we kidding here, nobody makes brownies with this in mind). I love it with some greek yoghurt, or it is also amazing with some whipped coconut cream.
A few wee notes:
This makes a fairly small amount of brownie - I often double it, and bake it in a 9" tin for about 25-30 minutes.
It will look kind of under cooked when it is done - you want it to be just set! It will firm up nicely in the fridge.
You can also make this in 4" cake pans - it makes about 4 layers.
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A note on salt and oven temperature
It is important to note the type of salt that is called for in a recipe. I use Diamond Crystal salt throughout my recipes - if you use a different sort of kosher salt or regular table salt you will need to adjust accordingly as some salt is 'saltier' than others. Morton's salt is twice as salty, so you will need half the quantity. Same goes for a regular table salt. I am working to get gram measurements throughout my recipes for salt but still getting there.
All oven temperatures are conventional unless otherwise stated. If you are baking on fan / convection, you will need to adjust the temperature. An oven thermometer is a great investment to ensure that your oven is the correct temperature.
Using the double / triple function in the recipe card
You will notice that there is a '1X' '2X' '3X' button in my recipe card. This can be used for doubling or tripling a recipe. However, please note that this only doubles the ingredient quantities in the ingredients list and NOT in the method. If there are quantities or pan sizes in the method of the recipe (for example weigh out 150g brown butter), you will need to scale this number manually. It will also not change the baking time in the recipe so you will need to adjust this yourself too. It is always a good idea to read through a recipe fully before doubling it just to check this. If you would like to scale this recipe or convert for another pan size, use my calculator!
Tools and equipment
For a list of my go-to tools and equipment, I have a post you can refer to here.
Why is this recipe in grams?
I post my recipes in grams as it is the most accurate way to bake. Cups are not only inaccurate but they vary in volume worldwide. There is no way for me to provide one cup measure that works for everyone. However, posting in weight fixes this issue. If you would like the recipe in cups you are welcome to convert it yourself via google, but please do not ask me to do it for you as I am not comfortable providing a recipe using a method that I have not tested. Baking with a scale is easy, accurate, and also makes cleanup super simple. Here is the scale that I use if you would like a recommendation! Here's to accurate baking!
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Black Bean Brownie
- Yield: Makes 8-10 brownies 1x
Description
Black Bean Brownie
Ingredients
- ½ cup rolled oats (choose gluten free oats here if required)
- 1 ½ cups of cooked black beans, or one 15oz / 425g can, drained and rinsed
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- ¼ cup coconut oil
- ⅔ cup dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
- 3 Tbsp good quality Dark Cocoa powder
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp baking powder
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F/180c. Line a loaf tin with baking paper.
- Blitz the oats in the food processor until they resemble a coarse powder. Add the beans, maple syrup, and the coconut oil and pulse until a smooth paste is reached.
- Melt the chocolate in 30 second increments in the microwave, stirring after each 30 seconds, until smooth. Add and mix well. Add remaining ingredients, and blend until smooth.
- Scrape the mixture into the prepared tin. Bake for 20 minutes, or until the brownie is just starting to set. Cool in the tin. The brownie will firm up nicely if left a few hours or overnight in the fridge. Serve with Greek yoghurt or whipped coconut cream, either by the slice, or stacked into baby cakes!
I made a cute wee video of this which you can find on my instagram!
Made these last night! I melted half the chocolate and left the other half as chips. So amazingly delicious, chocolately, and fudgy. And so quick and easy to make! Such a great recipe that I will make over and over again. Thank you for sharing!
Hi!! MY GOODNESS this makes me so excited! (My first comment and review!!) So so great to hear! xx
Hi Erin
Lovely recipe! Just wondering .. I know you say this recipe says it makes 2 mini tins.. Do you mean 6inch tins which would also be about 4-5 4 inch tins
Hi! My mini cake tins are 4 inches in diameter, so this recipe would make six 4-inch cakes, so two mini cakes each comprised of three layers each.
I hope this helps! xx