Super Simple Gluten Free Chocolate Brownies

Two weeks in a row... not bad going, right? ;-)

These brownies are lovely, rich and chocolatey, and with a few cheeky ingredients swaps, not as bad for you as you might think!!

It seems to have become a recent habit of mine to find a recipe, decide to try it, and then change it around a bit in the process of making it. This particular recipe started it's life as a 37-calorie brownie recipe, which Joy posted to the Cake'n'Bake club Facebook wall. My version is about 64 calories, as I used sugar instead of sweetener, and added some chocolate chips. They went down well in my office! (Note - the calorie content will change depending on the brands you use... I make no promises!) I'd also recommend using milk chocolate chips, as I found these injected a bit of sweetness into the rich chocolate brownie which just MADE them.

Ingredients:
50g rolled oats
175g low-fat natural yogurt (I actually used a soy yogurt which worked just as well)
50ml milk
70g cocoa
30g caster sugar
1 medium egg
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp vanilla extract
50g milk chocolate chips

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 12-15 minutes
Makes 16 brownies

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees and grease and line a square brownie tin.
2. Pop your oats into a blender and whizz to a fine flour - don't worry if there are a couple of bigger bits, as long and it's mostly ground.
3. Tip all of the ingredients into a bowl and mix together to form a thick batter. Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake for 12-15 minutes, until springy to touch.
4. Allow the brownies to cool in the pan before turning out onto a chopping board and slicing into 16 squares.
5. Enjoy with a cup of tea, completely guilt free!!

Happy Thoughts
x

Healthier Than Usual Brownies

It would be a lie to say this recipe was healthy, but with a few changes (and the help of an unexpected ingredient!) these brownies are much healthier than their traditional counterparts.

This recipe is based heavily on this recipe I found on BBC Good Food (I LOVE GOOD FOOD!), with a few extra changes to make the brownies even lighter! My dodgy old maths skills tell me that per brownie, there are approximately 104 calories and 3.5g fat - not too shabby for a chocolatey treat! I think this is my favourite of the healthier recipes I've posted this month, and even though I don't think the brownies tasted quite as good as normal full-fat full-sugar lots of chocolate brownies, they were still better than most store-bought brownies I've ever tried! I will definitely be coming back to this recipe again.

Ingredients:
50g dark chocoalte
75g dark brown sugar
3tbsp stevia
1tsp vanilla extract
40g (2tbsp) buttermilk
1 medium egg
120g extra light mayonnaise
85g plain flour
pinch of salt
40g cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Makes 12 brownies

1. Preheat the oven to gas mark 4 and line a square baking tin with greaseproof paper.
2. Melt the chocolate, either in the microwave on short bursts or in a bowl over hot water, then pop this to one side to cool slightly.
3. Stir the sugar, stevia, vanilla extract and buttermilk into the cooled chocolate until all combined. Beat the egg into the chocolate mixture, followed by the mayonnaise. The mixture should now be smooth and glossy.
4. Sift the flour, salt, cocoa powder and baking powder into the chocolate mixture and gently fold in until just combined. Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake for 30 minutes, until firm but still a little sticky on top. 
5. Allow the brownies to cool in the tin, then turn them out, cut into 12 and enjoy the relatively guilt-free chocolatey goodness!

Happy Thoughts
x