You read that right! I wanted to try these as soon as I heard of this recipe. And I giggled the whole time I was making them. I mean, black beans in brownies? Who came up with this idea?
Here’s the recipe:
Black Bean Brownies
- 1 box brownie mix
- 1 (16-oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 cup water
Puree beans with the water. Mix with brownie mix. Bake according to package directions.
My kids love to help me bake, but I purposely made these while they were watching a movie so they wouldn’t know about the secret ingredient. My four-year-old did come in as I was about to put the brownies in the oven and of course asked to taste the batter–his favorite part. I said sure, giggling to myself some more, and gave him the spatula which he licked clean and never noticed a difference. (I usually love brownie batter too, but the mental-block from the bean thing held me back from eating a spoonful.) The brownies smelled amazing while they baked. My husband came home while they were cooking and was excited that I was making dessert. I wasn’t planning to tell him, but I couldn’t keep the secret anymore! I wish I wouldn’t have though…I served the brownies with ice cream and caramel sauce, thinking it might help mask any funny bean taste. But honestly, we couldn’t taste the beans AT ALL! My kids devoured them, and Jared and I loved them. The only difference I noticed was that the beans seemed to make the brownies a little cakier rather than chewy. Isn’t this recipe fabulous? Since the beans replace the eggs and oil they are low-fat and packed with fiber! Seriously, who thought of this?
I found a “from scratch” recipe I want to try soon!
On side note: In honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day I read the kids some books from my first-grade-teaching days to help explain who MLK was and why we have the holiday. Then while we were eating our dessert as a family, I asked them, does the white (vanilla) ice cream good? (yep!) Do the brown brownies taste good? (yep!) But they taste even better when they are together, don’t they? Then we talked about how people are good no matter their skin color, and how things work even better when we work together. It seemed the illustration helped the kids understand, at least enough for now. Ahhh, how I love when food can be used as an analogy!
Here are a few books I like (click for links):
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!! I’m allergic to eggs and haven’t been able to find an eggless brownie recipe until now! They were perfect!
I’m so glad they worked for you!!
‘`~ I am very thankful to this topic because it really gives great information ;.*
online health stores always give some promo and discounts that is why i always order from them .”.
Pam-
I read about the lentils on the $5 dinner mom blog and was lead to this post. I HAD to try it and blog about it myself. I absolutely loved the brownies and my daughter did too. (Very finicky eater). I can’t wait to try some of the other stuff you have come up with and try some stuff of my own. Thanks for posting!
I tried these tonight, I really like them but Andrew wasn’t too sure. He said, “Maybe we can convince Peter to like them.” 🙂
I bet Peter will love them! I think it’s more of a mental thing, just knowing what’s in them. LOL
mmmmm….we tried these tonight & they were SO good. I used the dark chocolate brownie mix (Duncan Hines). I used a little more than 1/2 cup water. Baked in a 8×8 glass pan (so the brownies were thicker). They were super-moist & chewy – YUM! I’m taking them to a Super Bowl party tomorrow. We’ll see how the guys like them 😉
Oh, yes, please report on how the guys like them! I wonder if they even notice? Are you going to tell them there are beans in them? LOL
I wasn’t too fond of the vegan ones.
Good to know. Saves me some time and ingredients. LOL
So glad to know! I’m excited to try them next! Thanks for letting me know.
I had everything for the vegan ones…they are in the oven right now! 🙂
Where do you buy agave nectar?
I buy it at several places. Our grocery stores carry it in either the natural/organic section of our store or near the peanut butter/ jelly & honey (so does Wal-Mart, I believe) also the local health stores. Usually I see this brand: http://www.madhavahoney.com/AgaveNectar.aspx
CostCo started selling it too. They carry this: http://www.wholesomesweeteners.com/brands/Wholesome_Sweeteners/Organic_Blue_Agave.html
I’ve seen it in a lot of places, usually in the section where there is honey, sugar, or natural/organic sections.
@Megan (meganmecrazy), At Fry’s it’s right next to the more ‘sophisticated’ syrups. if you go past the powdered sugar, you’ve gone too far.
Okay so I tried the brownies and they were good. 🙂 The only thing is they were a little dry, so some frosting/ice cream/ or whip cream probably would have made them perfect. I’ll definitely be doing it again though. Thanks for sharing!
.-= Suzanne Blair´s last blog ..An Announcement and a Freebie!! =-.
WOOOHOOO!
I wonder if it matters what kind of brownie mix you use? Mine turned out really cakey and I prefer chewy brownies. WIll have to experiement.
Did you tell Rand? Or did he try them?
My mom makes chocolate black bean brownies and WE ALL LOVE THEM!!! 🙂 I’ve been meaning to get her recipe for them but thanks so much for posting this! I’m going to try this one with the mix!!!
Oooh, yes, let’s have the scratch recipe! You all love them AND you know what’s in them!
OK, so I talked to my mom and I actually have a few recipes to share because in her house she said my step-dad likes fudgy brownies and so does my sister but everyone else likes cake-like brownies (which are the ones I tried but heck, I like any type of brownie…fudgy, cakey, chewy, well done…LOLOLOL). So here goes…
Since you said you don’t like the cakey I thought I would share these couple recipes she sent me.
Healthy Vegan Brownies
These are FUDGEY and vegan!
**If you don’t like them to be too soft or too fudge-like, add another 1/4 cup oats or flour.**
Ingredients
15 ounces black beans, drained and rinsed
2 whole bananas (if you don’t have bananas use 1/4 cup raw sugar)
1/3 cup agave nectar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup instant oats
Directions:
Heat oven to 350F. Grease an 8×8″ pan. Combine all ingredients, except oats, in a food processor or blender and blend until smooth, scrapping sides as needed. Stir in the oats and pour batter into the pan. Bake approx 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool before slicing.
then the other one she sent is this website…
http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/amazing-black-bean-brownies-recipe.html
and finally the ones that I tried…
Cakey Black Bean Brownies
Ingredients
1 (15.5 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
3 eggs
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 pinch salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon instant coffee (optional)
1/2 cup milk chocolate chips (optional)
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease an 8×8 square baking dish. Combine the black beans, eggs, oil, cocoa powder, salt, vanilla extract, sugar, and instant coffee in a blender; blend until smooth; pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the top of the mixture. Bake in the preheated oven until the top is dry and the edges start to pull away from the sides of the pan, about 30 minutes.
These look awesome. More brownies in the near future! Thanks for sharing!
hmmm- I am very skeptical, but I also have a whole shelf of beans from WIC and a husband who hates them, so maybe I’ll try making them while he is away at school. 🙂 ****Sneaky laugh inserted here*** I’ll let you know how it goes.
Yes, definitely try this and let me know how it goes. LOL Fancy them up with frosting or whipped cream and hot fudge or something!
I HAVE to try this!! AND, I love your new blog look!!
Brilliant!