Vegan Black Bean Brownies
These Vegan Black Bean Brownies are so incredibly fudgy, dense and intensely chocolate-y, yet they are made from nothing but healthy, wholesome ingredients! Serve them at your next party and don’t say a thing: I can guarantee you that not a single soul will be able to tell…
Don’t think it’s even possible to make a decent brownie while leaving out the oil, butter, eggs and sugar? Well, I don’t blame you because I was pretty much in that exact same boat, until just a few days ago…
But then I did get a major craving for a good brownie, so I was left with no other option than to try my chances! I spent a couple of hours studying many recipes and from that, elaborated one that I thought would fit meet my needs. Or well, crossed my fingers that it would, anyway.
Well, guys, not only did these brownies meet my expectations, they totally blew them out of the water! I kid you not: these black bean brownies, they are probably the best brownies I’ve ever had! They really ARE super fudgy and dense, and so intensely chocolate-y, I swear, you can’t even tell that there are actually black beans in there. You’d swear they were the absolute real deal!
Take my word for it… next time you too get a craving for a good brownie, whip up a batch of these. I swear, they will totally BLOW YOUR MIND!
The first thing you’re gonna want to do is make your flax eggs. To do that, simply combine 2 tablespoons of ground flax seeds and 6 tablespoons of water. Put that in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes to thicken.
Next, preheat your oven to 350°F and grease a 9″ x 9″ baking dish with coconut oil then line it with parchment paper, leaving a bit of an overhang on either side for easier removal of the finished brownies.
While your flax eggs are resting, prepare, measure and weigh all the wet and dry ingredients for the brownies and place them in the bowl of your food processor.
There’s no need to go through the trouble of rinsing the beans, really, but be sure that you drain them really really well so as to not incorporate any excess liquid.
As soon as they are ready, add the flax eggs to the rest of the ingredients in the food processor.
Now, process all of those ingredients for 2 to 3 minutes, stopping to scrape the sides once or twice, until everything is reduced to a thick, uniform puree, with a few tiny lumps of beans still visible.
Don’t worry about those little lumps, they will only serve to add a little bit of texture to your brownies, but you won’t be able to detect them or even tell that they are there…
At this point, you’ll want to remove the s-blade and add the chopped walnuts and chocolate chips to the bowl of the food processor.
About those chocolate chips, be sure to read the ingredients carefully as most of them contain dairy and other unhealthy ingredients! My personal favorite brands include Enjoy Life and Made Good but of course, there are many other good ones to choose from. Feel free to use your own favorite!
Stir in those new additions with the help of a large spoon or rubber spatula.
Transfer the batter to the prepared baking dish and spread evenly all the way to the sides of the pan.
Bake for 22 to 24 minutes or until the the top is nicely set and the edges start to pull away. The brownies will still feel really soft to the touch, but don’t be tempted to leave them in there any longer than that. Should you overbake them, they would become dry and unpalatable…
Remove the pan from the oven and let the brownies cool completely before frosting them.
To make the frosting, simply add all the ingredients listed to a small food processor, such as Ninja Master Prep.
Process until nice and creamy and smooth and velvety and crazy yummy looking! If you feel that the frosting is a tad too firm, add a little bit of milk, but only a few drops at a time, and process well between each addition, until desired consistency is achieved.
Dump the frosting on top of the cooled brownies and spread evenly all the way to the edge.
If you’re feeling fancy, and especially if you happen to have one of them decorating combs on hand, make pretty little wave patterns in the frosting…
…and then sprinkle that frosting with a little bit of chopped walnuts.
Place your brownies in the fridge for at least an hour — this will make the cutting so much easier — then cut into 16 individual squares.
Store your finished brownies in the refrigerator in an airtight container, for up to a week.
Vegan Black Bean Brownies
Ingredients
Wet Ingredients
- 1 - 14oz can black beans, drained well
- 1/2 cup date paste
- 1/4 cup creamy cashew butter, or other nut butter
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 2 flax eggs, *see notes
- 2 tbsp coconut oil
- 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
Dry Ingredients
- 1/2 cup cacao powder
- 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
Add-ins
- 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
- 3/4 cup vegan chocolate chips
Frosting
- 1/4 cup date paste
- 1/2 cup creamy cashew butter
- 1/4 cup cacao powder
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tbsp coconut oil
- 2 tbsp almond milk, or other non-dairy milk of your choice
- Chopped walnuts
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F; grease a 9 x 9 baking dish with coconut oil and line it with parchment paper, leaving a bit of an overhang on either side for easier removal of the finished brownies.
- Make your flax eggs (see notes) and while they are resting, prepare, measure and weigh all the wet and dry ingredients and place them in the bowl of your food processor.
- When the flax eggs are ready, add them to the rest of the ingredients in the food processor and process for 2 to 3 minutes, scraping the sides once or twice, until the ingredients are reduced to a thick, uniform puree, with few tiny lumps of beans still visible.
- Remove the s-blade and stir in the walnuts and chocolate chips with a large spoon or rubber spatula.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared baking dish and spread evenly all the way to the sides into the baking dish.
- Bake for 22-24 minutes or until the the top is nicely set and the edges start to pull away. The brownies will still feel really soft to the touch. Do not overbake!
- Remove the pan from the oven and let the brownies cool completely before frosting them.
- To make the frosting, simply add all the ingredients to a small food processor and process until nice and creamy and smooth and velvety. If you feel frosting is too firm, add a little bit of milk, a few drops at a time, and process well between each addition, until desired consistency is achieved.
- Dump the frosting on top of the cooled brownies and spread evenly all the way to the edge. If desired, make pretty patterns in the frosting with a comb, and sprinkle with a little bit of chopped walnuts.
- Place in the fridge for at least an hour, for easier cutting, then cut into 16 squares.
- Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to a week.
Notes
Nutrition
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5 Comments on “Vegan Black Bean Brownies”
Any substitute for the date paste? Applesauce, perhaps?
I suggest you stick with the date paste, Ginny…
Hi Sonia, I’ve made many of your recipes and have your book as well. I still make ghee regularly as well as nut butters because of you! Thank you.
Although I’ve also made date paste often, I would much prefer to use the dates as I need them. Can I simply soften the dates in warm water and add to the mixture, or just add dates and water to the mixture? How many dates and how much water would I add to this or any recipe in grams? Thank you for your help!
I’m not sure, Emily… this is something that needs to be tested and since I haven’t done this, then I am unable to give you a straight answer. I think it’s safer to make the date paste, to be honest. It doesn’t take long at all and keeps forever, so it’s very well worth the effort.
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