Red Velvet Brownies

Very similar to my Beetroot Brownies, this Red Velvet version uses black beans as well as beetroot. I used maple syrup in this recipe but I usually use honey as my liquid sweetener of choice. If using honey, I add a table spoon of water as honey is a little thicker than maple syrup.

Black beans are great in sweet treats - try my Black Almond Fudge for starters.

Red Velvet Brownies
Makes 12

Ingredients:
- 120g / 4oz oat flour
- 20g / 4tbsp cocoa powder, unsweetened
- 1/2tsp baking powder
- 60ml / 4tbsp coconut oil
- 60ml / 4tbsp maple syrup OR 60g / 3tbsp honey plus 1tbsp water
- 80ml / 3floz almond milk, unsweetened
- 1tsp vanilla extract
- 140g/ 5oz black beans, (I use no salt added)
- 240g / 8.5oz beetroot (I use no salt added canned beets)
- 40g / 1.4oz dark chocolate, chopped OR chocolate chips

Method:

• In a mixing bowl, combine the oat flour, cocoa powder and baking powder.
• Add the oil, maple syrup or honey, milk and vanilla.
• Using a food processor, blend together the black beans and beets and then add to the mixing bowl.
• Finally stir in the chopped chocolate / chocolate chips.
• Pour batter into a 8x8 baking tray lined with parchment.
• Bake in the oven at 190C / 375F for 25-30 minutes. 
• Allow to cool completely before slicing. ENJOY!

Nutritional Information:

Beetroot Courgette Brownies

This is a complete mash up of my two brownie recipes:
Beetroot Brownies
Chocolate Courgette / Zucchini Brownies

In the future, I think I'll be tempted to make this version if I can both beetroot and courgettes to hand. It's a perfect mix of gooey chocolaty sweetness, with each brownie giving modest amounts of fats (6.3g from coconut oil) and sugars (5g from honey and dark chocolate) in only 121 calories!

Beetroot Courgette Brownies
Makes 8

Ingredients:
- 85g / 3oz beetroot (I use no added salt canned beets)
- 120g / 4oz courgette, grated
- 40g / 1.4oz oat flour
- 40g / 1.4oz flour
- 20g /4tbsp cocoa powder, natural unsweetened
- 1.5tsp baking powder
- 20g / 1tbsp honey
- 1 egg, beaten
- 30ml / 2tbsp coconut oil, melted and slightly cooled
- 1tsp vanilla extract
- 40g / 1.4oz dark chocolate chips or chopped

Method:

• Blend the beetroot in a food processor to make a puree.
• Stir in the grated courgette.
• In a large bowl, stir together the dry ingredients (oat flour, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder).
• Add in the wet ingredients (honey, egg, coconut oil, vanilla extract).
• Stir in the beet courgette mixture.
• Finally, stir in the chopped chocolate or chocolate chips.
• Pour batter into a loaf tin or 8x8 pan (lined with parchment paper or sprayed with cooking spray).
• Cook at 175C / 350F for 20-25 minutes.
• Cool on a wire rack and cut into 8 squares. They should be a little gooey. ENJOY!

Nutritional Information:

Beetroot Cupcakes with Chocolate Frosting

A chocolate cupcake recipe adapted from my recent Beetroot Brownie recipe. The only difference is this recipe does not have any refined sugars, whereas the brownies contain some (store-bought) dark chocolate. Therefore the base is not as sweet or chocolaty as the beetroot brownies but the chocolate frosting on top makes these cupcakes rich and delicious! The chocolate frosting is also refined sugar free and has been adapted from my Chocolate Pudding recipe - same ingredients (minus the milk) but thicker.

The cupcake base is actually the first version of my brownie recipe - the one the cat ate - before I perfected it with a little more chocolate.

The Beetroot Brownie recipe can be used for the cupcake base, or more cocoa powder and honey can be added to make them sweeter. However, I'm always conscious of sugars in each serving and I think the chocolate frosting added to these cupcakes give a good balance between taste and nutritional density.

One cupcake is under 200 calories whereas most traditional chocolate cupcakes from a bakery are anywhere between 400-600 calories! Store-bought cake mix and frosting contain less calories but tend to have artificial flavours and colours.

Beetroot Cupcakes with Chocolate Frosting

Makes 8

Click HERE for a printable recipe card.

Ingredients:
Cupcake base
- 120g / 4.3oz beetroot (I use no added salt canned beets)
- 40g / 1.4oz oat flour
- 40g / 1.4oz flour
- 20g /4tbsp cocoa powder, natural unsweetened,
- 1.5tsp baking powder
- 40g / 2tbsp honey
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 45ml / 3tbsp coconut oil, melted and slightly cooled
- 1tsp vanilla extract

Chocolate frosting

- 112g / 4oz avocado

- 20g / 4tbsp cocoa powder, unsweetened

- 40g / 2tbsp honey

Method:
Blend the beetroot in a food processor to make a puree.

In a large bowl, stir together the dry ingredients (oat flour, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder).

Add in the wet ingredients (honey, eggs, coconut oil, vanilla extract) and beet puree. Mix until smooth.
Pour batter into cupcake.

Cook at 175C / 350F for 20 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

Meanwhile, in a food processor, blend all the chocolate frosting ingredients together (avocado, cocoa powder, honey) until smooth.

 

Spread the chocolate frosting on top of each cupcake. ENJOY!

Click HERE for a printable recipe card.

Nutritional Information:

Beetroot Brownies

My first efforts at baking with beets turned out to be hugely successful! I've been wanting to bake with beetroot for a while, ever since brownies and red velvet cupcakes featured beets. After buying no added salt canned beets for less than a dollar, I got to experiment in the kitchen perfecting the recipe below.

These beetroot brownies also include coconut oil, another first for me. I did a search on the internet as I wanted to learn more about coconut oil. It seems to have become very popular recently, not only as an alternative to butter and other varieties of oil (olive, canola, etc.) in cooking and baking (it withstands heat), but also in many beauty and skincare products. This website has 101 Uses for Coconut Oil
Even Dr Oz is talking about The Surprising Health Benefits of Coconut Oil

Coconut oil

Melted Coconut Oil

Varieties of coconut oil, olive oil and canola oil typically have 120 calories per serving (15ml / 1tbsp) and 14g fat. Out of those fats, olive oil and canola oil only has 1-2g saturated fat but coconut oil has 13g saturated fat. For comparison, one serving of butter (14g / 1tbsp) is 100 calories, 12g fat with 7g saturated fat, and 31mg cholesterol. Oils do not have any cholesterol.

I was shocked by the amount of saturated fat found in coconut oil, but there's been more and more information and research into fats which is changing the way I'm thinking about food and what's fundamentally 'healthy'. A good article I read recently was published in the New York Times: Butter Is Back

The saturated fats found in coconut oil (medium chain triglycerides) are metabolized differently in the body in comparison to dairy and red meat. MCTs go straight to the liver from the digestive tract, where they are used as a quick source of energy. More can be read about MCTs and other evidenced based health benefits of coconut oil online.

Enough about nutrition and more about the deliciousness of chocolate brownies made with veg! I love brownies that are chocolaty, gooey and dense. Traditional recipes call for butter, white flour and refined sugar. I usually don't like to add processed foods into my recipes but I added a little dark chocolate as the first initial batch of brownies (which only contained cocoa powder and honey) turned out to be more cake-like than brownie-like. They weren't as chocolaty as I'd envisaged either. I think I overcooked them too, keeping them in the oven a few minutes longer than necessary.

That didn't stop the cat from helping herself as they were cooling on the side. The pesky scamp took one in her mouth and ran halfway up the stairs!

The second batch were the winner. Kept far away from the cat, these brownies were perfect in texture and taste. The half melted morsels of dark chocolate added just the right amount of sweetness and the combination of coconut oil and beetroot puree ensured the brownies were soft and moist.

The second batch have 25 additional calories and 4g extra carbs (3g extra sugar, 1g extra fiber) than the original experimental batch. All the other nutrients are very similar as I reduced the amount of coconut oil by a tablespoon.

Beetroot Brownies
Makes 8
Click HERE for a printable recipe card.

Ingredients:
- 120g / 4.3oz beetroot (I use no added salt canned beets)
- 40g / 1.4oz oat flour
- 40g / 1.4oz flour
- 20g /4tbsp cocoa powder, natural unsweetened,
- 1.5tsp baking powder
- 40g / 2tbsp honey
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 45ml / 3tbsp coconut oil, melted and slightly cooled
- 1tsp vanilla extract
- 56g / 2oz dark chocolate chips or chopped

Method:
First, blend the beetroot in a food processor to make a puree.

In a large bowl, stir together the dry ingredients (oat flour, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder).

Add in the wet ingredients (honey, eggs, coconut oil, vanilla extract) and beet puree. Mix until smooth and then stir in the chopped chocolate or chocolate chips.

Pour batter into a loaf tin or 9x9 pan (lined with parchment paper or sprayed with cooking spray). Cook at 175C / 350F for 20-23 minutes.

Cool on a wire rack and cut into 8 squares. They should be a little gooey. ENJOY!

Click HERE for a printable recipe card.

Nutritional Information:

Beets, Red Beets, Beetroot

Beets, Red beets, Beetroot. Whatever this red root vegetable is called, it can be added to a variety of dishes: salads, soups, smoothies, and even desserts! It is easily becoming a popular food in my daily diet.

I recently ate a delicious salad with roasted red beets, chickpeas and feta. At home, I tried to recreate it (without the feta as I didn't have any) but used canned beets instead.

As much as roasted veg tastes great, I rarely have the patience to wait whilst veg roasts in the oven, especially when it can be eaten raw in a salad or steamed in boiling water for a couple of minutes. As the weather warms up and summer approaches, I prefer to eat uncooked food and keep the oven turned off.

The convenience, shelf-life and cost ($0.79 a can) associated with canned beets are more appealing. Cooking fresh beets take 35-60 minutes. They then must be peeled before use in a dish. After discovering they also maintain about the same nutritional value as fresh beets, giving you a good source of fiber, iron and folate, I stocked up at my local supermarket - ensuring I bought beets with no added salt.

A typical serving (120g / 4oz) contains 40 calories, no fat or cholesterol, 25mg sodium (no added salt variety), 8g carbs, 6g sugars and 1g fiber. They also contain potassium, magnesium, iron, vitamins A, B6 and C, folic acid, and antioxidants.

The day after my beetroot salad, I used some in a smoothie. I added in 100g canned beets into my Green Fruit and Veg Smoothie. Instead of green, it turned out to be a milk chocolate brown colour. Although it didn't taste like drinking melted chocolate, the natural sugars from the apple and beets made it refreshingly sweet.

I am keen to make Borscht, an Eastern European soup, as well as red velvet brownies and cupcakes.