I posted my No Ordinary Chocolate Brownie back in November last year. Since then I have made it a few more times but though I would tweak the recipe a bit more and make it SUGAR FREE. Since reading Sarah Wilson's book "I Quit Sugar" {You can purchase the books through my site, located in the Shop Tab} I have been trying to look at what I am consuming, making and baking and trying to find ways to eat better, healthier, unprocessed and less sugar. I am not perfect by any means but if I can make a daily effort to cut out sugar, eat more natural unrefined foods and make healthy choices in my diet than I am happy.

I would love to dedicate all my recipes to be sugar free, unprocessed and healthy but I just know there is no way that is going to be happen since hubby still loves his baked treats and lets be honest I still like to bake a naughty treat every known and again.

I also know there are people out there who don't want to eat this way and that’s cool too. I am not going to preach to you about it. My main aim when creating recipes is to inspire you with seasonal recipes that will cause you to pull out your pots and pans and make it as well. You will get both sides of the coin on this blog - healthy, wholesome, sometimes sugar free recipes and then there is the decadent, mouth-watering, finger licking recipes mixed in there as well. Life and nutrition are about balance. It’s about eating well a lot of the time and slipping in a treat when the occasion calls for it. I am by no means a nutritionist or health coach but I have been trying to eat a more wholefood, natural, unprocessed approach over the past 6 months. Some weeks I go great guns other weeks I fall flat on my face and am thankful for a new day to come.

It is hard to eat a healthy, unprocessed diet especially when you’re a tired mummy who looks in the cupboard for dinner and just wants to pull something out of a packet. Eating in a natural way does require a little bit of extra time in the kitchen but I find preparation and a little bit of organisation is the key to success to staying on track. I found the times that I was not organised, unprepared, tired and worn out were the times I found I stumbled and fell into the “Give me junk food” mentality. Do you feel this way? I’m sure every tired, stressed out mum would say AMEN to that.

Anyway I kind of got off track with these Brownies. These are the best kind of brownies you can eat. They are packed full of goodness without you even knowing it. There are some hidden goodies inside of it that your kids won't even realise are there. If you have seen the first version of the recipe you will see that the basis of it is pumpkin or sweet potato puree and coconut flour which is still the case with this brownie. So the kids are getting some vegetables without even knowing it. Sneaky sneaky. This brownie obviously does not come from a packet mix so it's free from any over processed ingredients.

The first version of my brownie is still good however for those wanting to lower their “fructose” intake I have opted to remove the date puree which was used in the first recipe. To replace the dates as the sweetener I used Rice Malt Syrup instead. Sarah recommends this in her I Quit Sugar Cookbook as a safe sweetener to use in baked goods as it a low GI alternative reducing the blood sugar spikes that you can get using other types of sugars. I also packed in some other goodies such as coconut oil, raw cocoa nibs and a delicious chocolate avocado mousse to serve alongside it or use it as an icing or ganache on top. Did you guess that it was avocado in there? This luscious chocolate dessert still boasts a gluten and dairy free title with the changes that I made to it. I recommend towering pieces of the brownie on top of one another . Top with a generous dollop of silky chocolate avocado mousse, finished off with one or two fresh raspberries and a sprinkling of raw cocoa nibs to clinch the deal. This dessert is best shared with a friend, spouse or fellow chocolate lover.

Ultimate Chocolate Brownie

Prep Time: 25 min

Cook Time: 30 min

Makes: 15 pieces

Ingredients:

Wet ingredients

2 cup pumpkin or sweet potato puree (approx 600g pumpkin/sweet potato boiled, cooled, pureed)
4 eggs, lightly beaten
2/3 cup almond milk
½ cup rice malt syrup
½ cup coconut oil
2 tsp vanilla extract (or powder)

Dry ingredients

2/3 cup coconut flour
¾ cup unsweetened cocoa
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarb soda
¾ tsp salt
¼ cup cocoa nibs
1 cup walnuts, roughly chopped

Chocolate Mousse

2 large ripe avocados
4 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa
4 tablespoon almond milk
4 tablespoon rice malt syrup
2 teaspoon coconut oil
2 teaspoon vanilla extract (or powder)
¼ teaspoon salt

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 175 degrees Celsius. Grease and line a slice tray.
In a small saucepan over a low heat, place the coconut oil and rice malt syrup. Stir until the coconut oil has melted. Remove from heat and let it cool.
In a small bowl, lightly beat the eggs with a fork. Add the almond milk, vanilla and cooled coconut oil mixture. Gently mix together to combine.
In a large bowl sift the cocoa, coconut flour, baking powder, bicarb soda and salt. Place in the cocoa nibs and walnuts. Add in the combined wet ingredients along with the pumpkin puree and stir to combine thoroughly.
Place mixture into the slice tin and smooth down the surface.
Place in oven for 30 minutes or if a skewer poked into the slice comes out clean. Cool completely before slicing.
Serve with a dollop of chocolate mousse, a sprinkling of cocoa nibs and raspberries.

Chocolate Mousse:

In a small sauce pan over a low heat melt the rice malt syrup and coconut oil stirring together. Set aside to cool slightly.
In a blender or food processor add the avocado, cocoa, vanilla, almond milk and salt along with the coconut oil and rice malt mixture. Blend until silky smooth and all ingredients are combined.
Place mixture into a glass serving bowl and place in the fridge to cool for 2-3 hours or serve warm.