Bryanna Clark Grogan’s Vegan Feast Kitchen/ 23rd Century Table

This was definitely Brownie Day for me!  I posted three past brownie recipes from this blog on Facebook today (Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies, Chai-Almond Brownies with Double Ginger Gelato, and my Almost No-Fat Brownies), and a new post here on this blog with a recipe for S'more Brownies that I had previously developed for my now-defunct newsletter.  But I just had to make some, even though DH and I are on Weight Watchers again.  So, I decided to test out an idea I'd been thinking about for quite a while.  If it turned out, we'd taste-test a couple each and freeze the rest for our company who will be here over the holidays.

Those of you who read my blog may have read the entry about the black beans and brownie mix recipe that I tried from the Internet. I followed the directions and used canned black beans and their juice. The texture wasn't bad, but it tasted so "bean-y". But not "nice bean- was determined to make my own version, though, because it intrigued me to use black beans as part of the fat and instead of the eggs in a brownie. My omni friends had no idea there were beans in these brownies, and gobbled them up!  But they were quite rich for my style of cooking and I wanted to test out a fat-free version of the black bean brownies as well as for the okara brownie variation that I had also developed from that recipe.

So, below is the result of today's labors, the vegan butter replaced with applesauce to eliminate the fat (except in any nuts you care to add), and the method streamlined.  Another blogger had tried my original recipe but had forgotten to add the vegan butter-- but they still rated high with her and her tasters, so, I was confident that they would be acceptable without the fat.  But I was nervous that just leaving out the vegan butter would result in a dry brownie, so when I made them today I used a thick, smooth, unsweetened organic applesauce in place of the vegan butter, in both the black bean brownies and in the okara variation (yes, I made both!).  They both turned out to be amazingly rich-tasting and moist, without having that raw, over-gooey texture that I dislike. (And the nutrition stats are pretty good, too! In my original recipe, I cut it into 20 squares and the plain, no-options-added brownie contained 195 calories and almost 10 g fat. With the new recipe, you can cut it into 16 larger squares and each one [no nuts]contains only 159 calories and about 1.5 g fat.)

You will notice that there is only 1/2 cup flour to 1 1/4 cups cocoa powder-- this is one reason that the brownies are so chocolate-y despite containing no solid chocolate.  Also, you will notice that I bake the brownies at a low temperature (300°F) for fairly long time compared to other brownie recipes. This ensures the proper fudgy-ness without what I consider that distasteful raw texture and taste.

I'm going to use this version from now on-- who needs the fat?  A bonus-- I have goodies for my company in the freezer!

Mmmmmm...brownies!

UPDATE: If you have no okara handy, you can make these brownies with black beans-- and, no, they do NOT taste like beans!  Instead of the okara, use 1 cup UNSEASONED home-cooked black beans (or very well-rinsed canned black beans), with a little water (it should all fit in a 1 cup measure). DO NOT use the canned bean liquid, please! 
NEW, STREAMLINED, ALMOST-FAT-FREE VERSION HERE!

I have to admit that I do not make use of the okara (soybean pulp) from making soymilk (and I make 2 batches at least twice a week) as often as I should. Yesterday, I had a chocolate craving (it was a bad computer day!), so I decided to try some ideas I had. I made three recipes and I will post the others if I think they came out well-- not sure yet!

But the brownies--this has got to be the most delicious way to use up some of your okara! DH declared these the best vegan brownies I've ever made! They are also pretty simple to make. They are cooked at a lower temperature for a longer time than most brownies to ensure the proper fudgy-ness without that yucky raw texture and taste.

NOTE: I squeeze and twist my okara in a large piece of cotton sheeting until I can get as much soymilk out of it as possible, so it is quite solid. To make this recipe come out properly, I recommend that you do the same. A very wet okara may result in disaster! This is what my okara looks like:



THE BROWNIES:



Printable Recipe
UPDATE: If you have no okara handy, you can make these brownies with black beans-- and, no, they do NOT taste like beans!  Instead of the okara, use 1 cup UNSEASONED home-cooked black beans (or very well-rinsed canned black beans), with a little water (it should all fit in a 1 cup measure). DO NOT use the canned bean liquid, please!
NEW, STREAMLINED, ALMOST-FAT-FREE VERSION HERE!

BRYANNA'S DARK, FUDGY OKARA BROWNIES
Yield: 20 squares

FLAXSEED AND EGG REPLACER "GLOP"
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons flaxseed, ground in a dry blender or coffee/spice mill
(do not omit the grinding step!)
2 tablespoons Ener-G or Orgran egg replacer powder

ADDITIONAL INGREDIENTS
1 cup light organic sugar
1 cup, packed brown sugar
3/4 cup, packed well-squeezed okara (soybean pulp from making soymilk)--
do not use very wet okara! See NOTE above.
4 oz (1/2 cup) melted vegan butter (try my homemade palm oil-free Buttah)
1/4 cup water
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

DRY MIX
1 1/4 cups organic unsweetened cocoa (yes.. that much!)
1/2 cup wholewheat or unbleached white flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

OPTIONAL: NUTS & OTHER POSSIBLE ADDITIONS.
1 cup chopped walnuts, pecans, or other favorite nuts (you could also add organic dairy-free chocolate chips, dried fruit, etc.)


Preheat the oven to 300°F. (Yes, only 300°F! That is not a typo!) Spray a 9-inch square baking pan with oil from a pump-sprayer, or with cooking spray, and line it with cooking parchment, with the parchment going up to the the top of the pan on at least two opposing sides. This enables you to lift the cooled brownie (uncut) out of the pan with no muss or fuss.

In a food processor, process the water and ground flaxseed at high speed until the mixture is smooth, somewhat like egg whites. I call this "Flaxseed Glop". Add the egg replacer and beat until thick and foamy.

Add the Additional Ingredients (the sugar to the vanilla) to the Food processor and process until well-mixed.

Whisk together the Dry Mix ingredients in a wide medium-sized bowl. Scrape the food processor mixture into the Dry mix. Fold and stir briefly, just to blend. Fold in the nuts.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 50 minutes. Remove to a rack to cool. Do not cut until the brownies are cool. You can lift the whole thing out of the pan, using the parchment liner, onto a cutting board . Use a very sharp serrated knife to cut into 20 squares.

Nutrition Facts (not including nuts or any other optional ingredients)
Nutrition (per serving): 194.6 calories; 41% calories from fat; 9.7g total fat; 0.0mg cholesterol; 102.3mg sodium; 185.9mg potassium; 28.5g carbohydrates; 3.0g fiber; 21.0g sugar; 25.4g net carbs; 2.3g protein; 4.1 points.

Enjoy!