recipe: black bean brownies

you may not think that black bean brownies are particularly fashionable, but i will vehemently disagree.  it's often trendy to be vegetarian/vegan (mostly as represented by celebrity culture). i've been both in my life, and i simply could not stick to it. serious props to all of my life-long vegetarian and vegan friends. i still don't eat a ton of red meat and other carnivore heavy foods, but i do enjoy myself a good burger every now and again. but, i digress...

brownies are supposed to be delicious and guilty delectable treats. right? right? these brownies really are an amazing invention. i'm always on the lookout for ways to enjoy sweet treats without all of the added bad stuff (butter, loads of refined sugar, calories, etc.). these brownies do just that! the black beans replace the flour, so friends with gluten allergies can still enjoy these babies! and with only eggs, the animal products are limited.

ingredients:
1 (15.5 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained

3 eggs

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1/4 cup cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking powder*

1 pinch salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup white sugar

*i added the baking powder based on some of the reviews of the recipe, to make the brownies more cake-like. i also omitted chocolate chips and instant coffee from the original recipe.

instructions:

preheat oven to 350

lightly grease 8x8 square baking dish with non-stick cooking spray

combine black beans, eggs, oil, cocoa powder, salt, vanilla extract, sugar, and baking powder into a blender (i used my food processor)

bake in preheated oven until the top is dry and the edges start to pull away from the sides of the pan, approximately 30 minutes.

nutrition information: calories: 126 | fat: 5.3g | cholesterol: 40mg

enjoy!