Happy weekend to you all! What a better time to make some chocolate brownies. Brownies have traditionally been a favourite sweet for many and are usually based on butter eggs and sugar. So for vegans who want to indulge in a rich chocolate treat this recipe is for you. This recipe contains no artificial sugar either and I use it sometimes as a base on my raw cheesecakes. It obviously doesn’t make the whole cake raw anymore but it is a lovely difference to the usual date base and complements the raw topping really nicely. You can make this in your usual slice pan (10cm x 25cm ) or make cupcakes as shown in the picture up top.

Ingredients

• 1 cup almond meal
• 1/2 cup raw cacao powder
• 1 coconut sugar
• 3/4 cup spelt four or gluten free flour. ( I find the spelt flour makes it more cake like compared to the gluten free flour which has more of a denser consistency like brownies)
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• pinch sea salt

Mix all these ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.

• whisk together 1 1/2 tablespoons of flaxseed meal with 4 tablespoons of water and let it stand for 5 minutes
• 1/4 cup coconut sugar
• 1/2 cup vegan chocolate melted
• 1/3 cup & 1/2 tablespoon vegan butter melted
• 1/3 cup & 1/2 tablespoon coconut milk or plant based milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix all these wet ingredients together until they are well combined and pour into the dry ingredients. Slowly beat together for a minute until combined, be careful not to over beat the mixture. Then mix through 1/3 cup chopped up vegan chocolate and if you like a 1/3 cup of mixed nuts/ seeds.

Pour batter into cupcake moulds and bake at 175 degree for around 18-20 minutes or until the skewer comes out clean. If you are baking it in a tin it will need an extra 10 minutes. Also half way through the baking time I place alfoil over the top, but is not necessary just keep an eye on them that they aren’t getting too crispy on top, but if you enjoy a crispy topped brownie you can just reduce the temperature a little half way and leave them uncovered, they may just need an extra 5 minutes in the oven. Allow the brownies to cool down then enjoy, they will keep in an air tight container for 4-5 days if they last that long!!