The only thing better than celebrating graduation with ooey gooey brownies is celebrating graduation with ooey gooey dark chocolate raspberry brownies. With black beans. I mean duh.
I can't believe it's over. Mostly because it often felt like it would never end. Everyone keeps asking me what's next; and the truth is that I don't exactly know yet. I do know that I plan on taking the RD exam in June before I leave for Europe and will continue my job search until then.
I want to offer private nutrition counseling.
I want to have a healthy meal delivery service.
I want to write a cookbook.
I want to become a personal trainer.
I'm only half kidding. But really. I have BIG dreams. I want to change the world, one chickpea at a time. Of course I want to do a million bajillion different things, which I'm sure doesn't surprise you one little bit.
There are a couple exciting opportunities floating in the air that I can't talk about just yet, but stay tuned. What I can tell you that I'll be partnering with the fabulous Columbus Barre3 for some fun nutrition events at the end of May! I'll talk details in a later post, but get excited.
And hungry.
Whatever I end up doing or not doing, know that I'll always be here. Your comments, emails and feedback are beyond inspiring. There's nothing I love more than hearing this blog has been a stepping stone in your journey to health and happiness.
Except maybe these brownies.
When I came home a couple weeks ago to a package of five dark chocolate bars from Theo Chocolate, I nearly died. If you know anything about me, you must know that I freaking adore dark chocolate. I eat it pretty much every night. I bought Theo on my own before their lovely chocolate showed up on my doorstep, not only because it's incredibly delish, but also because it's organic, fair trade, and has a stellar ingredient list. Did I mention the gorgeous packaging? That counts, too. But the best part about Theo is their mission, their passion for the connections that exist from bean to bar. Theo chocolate is sustainably grown with fair trade practices and produced in small batches for the a truly divine chocolate bar that's rooted in passion.
When I saw that raspberries were on sale at the store, the lightbulb went off like immediately. Fresh raspberries + Theo raspberry dark chocolate = brownies. DUH!
I learned a lot in grad school, but what really stuck with me throughout my thesis research is that a third of the 585,720 deaths from cancer each year could be prevented by healthy diet and a focus on plant-based foods. That's 193,290 lives. Doesn't it seem obvious?! Eat more plants!
Cheers to beany brownies and oh ya know, just saving hundreds of thousands of lives a year with nutrition.
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Dark Chocolate Raspberry Black Bean Brownies
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 35 mins
- Total Time: 45 mins
- Yield: 16 1x
- Category: Dessert
Description
Studded with fresh raspberries, these gluten-free black bean brownies are not only rich and fugdy, but also secretly loaded with fiber.
Ingredients
- 1-15oz can black beans, drained and very well rinsed
- ½ cup cocoa powder
- ¼ cup almond meal
- ½ cup pure maple syrup
- 2 eggs
- 2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
- 2 tbsp brewed coffee
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1.5 oz Theo 70% Raspberry Dark Chocolate bar, chopped*
- ¼ cup chocolate chips
- 1-6oz pkg fresh raspberries
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8x8 baking dish with parchment paper and spray with cooking spray. (I like to cut two even strips to cover the dish evenly both ways.)
- Add rinsed beans, cocoa powder, almond meal, maple syrup, eggs, coconut oil, coffee, vanilla, baking powder and salt to the bowl of a large food processor. Process until completely smooth (a couple minutes).
- Stir in dark chocolate, chocolate chips and raspberries by hand.
- Pour batter into prepared baking dish.
- Bake for about 35 minutes, or until brownies are set in the middle. Cool for ten minutes in pan before transferring brownies (still on parchment paper) to a cooling rack. Once completely cooled, slice into 12-16 squares.
- Store brownies in an air-tight container for a few days and then transfer to the fridge.
Notes
*You can use another dark chocolate bar if you don't have Theo or you could use ½ cup chocolate chips.
Adapted from my Simple Truth Ultimate Black Bean Brownies
Theo sent me a complimentary package of their products. I was not compensated for this post nor asked to review the products. I simply love their chocolate and wanted to share it with you all!
