Fudgy Almond Flour Brownies (GF)

 

Is it possible to make a chewy, fudgy, gooey brownie loaded with chocolate without (wheat) flour and refined sugar? You betcha! And is possible not to eat that entire pan full of brownies? Well...probably not.

I mean, look at these little suckers. They are practically screaming for a glass of milk to wash them down. My husband, my kids and even a few friends have raved about these real ingredient, made-from-scratch brownies. Even the folks who love brownies from a box think these are delicious.

The best part is that you can make the batter for these yummy little squares of chocolaty goodness in a single saucepan. Less dishes = one happy cook! Check out all the wonderful, unprocessed ingredients ~ organic butter, pastured eggs, almond flour, raw honey, pure vanilla extract, semi-sweet chocolate chips and dark cocoa powder.

There are some simple adaptations you can make to these, allowing them to also be dairy-free and paleo friendly. I have some readers who are going to be completely beside themselves to have a yummy brownie that they can actually eat! And really...sometimes you just need a brownie (or 4). Ha ha!

In a medium sized saucepan, start out by melting some chocolate chips, honey and butter on the stove top at a low temperature. Stir in the cocoa powder and blend well. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly before adding in the vanilla and whisking in the two eggs. Then, in the same pan, fold in the almond flour and other dry ingredients. See what I mean? One pan. Be still my heart!

Cut a piece of parchment paper to line the bottom of your 8 x 8 inch pan, letting it overlap the sides. Grease the remaining two sides of the pan and pour in the brownie batter. Sprinkle with a few more chocolate chips.

Bake at 325 degrees for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out with just a hint of fudgy crumbs. Allow to cool completely. Lift the parchment paper flaps to remove from the pan and cut into 12 squares for serving. Rumor has it that plastic knives are the absolute best tool for cutting brownies cleanly, without all the crumbs. Just try it yourself. Seeing is believing.

I have eaten these up to 3 days after they were baked and they were still completely delicious. Covering them, however, will take away some of that yummy crusty goodness on the top and make them a little more cake-like on days 2 & 3.  Sounds like the perfect opportunity to add some ice cream and eat them a la mode, if you ask me!

That is the face of pure happiness, right there! Jackson is pretty much obsessed with anything chocolate or remotely reminiscent of cake. I am a former cake decorator and his first couple years were filled with the sights and smells of freshly baked cakes that I made and decorated out of my kitchen. He is not picky. Brownies, muffins, cookies...without a doubt, he is his mother's son.

What are you waiting for?! Get baking and then come back and let me know how you like them!

Fudgy Almond Flour Brownies (GF)

1/2 c. raw, unfiltered honey

1/3 c. semi-sweet mini chocolate chips* (plus 1/4 c. for topping)

1 stick of butter, cubed** (1/2 c.)

1/4 c. Dutch-processed cocoa powder

2 t. pure vanilla extract

2 pastured, organic eggs

1 1/4 c. almond flour (For a tutorial on making your own--click HERE.)

1/2 t. baking powder

1/4 t. salt (omit if using salted butter)

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees and prepare an 8 x 8 inch pan (glass or metal) by lining the bottom with parchment paper, leaving a few inches to overlap the sides. Grease the remaining two sides of the pan.

2. In a medium saucepan on low heat, add the honey, chocolate chips and butter pieces. Stir continuously until melted. Add the cocoa powder and mix well. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.

3. In the same pan, stir in the vanilla extract and whisk in the two eggs. Fold in the almond flour, baking powder and salt (if using).

4. Pour batter into prepared pan and sprinkle with a scant 1/4 c. of mini semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional).

5. Bake at 325 degrees for 28-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the brownies comes out mostly clean. There may be a few fudgy crumbs that stick to the toothpick, but it should be fairly clean.

6. Allow to cool completely. Run a knife along the two greased edges of the pan and lift out the brownie slab, firmly holding the edges of the parchment paper. (If you do not allow them to cool all the way before doing this, they will break when you lift them out.) Cut into 12 squares and serve.

*For a Paleo friendly option: Omit chocolate chips and cocoa powder in the batter and use 2 squares of unsweetened baking chocolate (100% cacao) instead. Leave off the chocolate chips on the top and replace the butter with 1/2 c. coconut oil.

**For a dairy-free option: Replace 1/2 c. butter with 1/2 coconut oil.

Want a delicious peanut butter swirl on top? Mix 3 T. natural peanut butter, 1 T. butter and 1 T. honey. Warm on the stove or in the microwave until soft and well mixed. Using a spoon, drizzle 3 lines of PB across the uncooked brownie batter and swirl very lightly with a knife. Sprinkle with 2 T. chocolate chips and bake as directed above.

Adapted from The Nourishing Home