Okay, we are three days into our January reset, so it’s time for some chocolate. Chocolate is a must in our household. We’ve given up bagged, chips, cookies and crackers but there is always room for something a little sweet. These little brownies are the easiest sweet you’ll ever make. No baking required just a few wholesome ingredients that you whiz up in a food processor and dessert is served. They are rich, sweet and entirely satisfying. Best of all my son totally loves them, so when he’s raiding the refrigerator in the dead of night, I feel pretty good that these are waiting for him. Breaking our sugar addiction has always been a failure so we’ve decided to embrace it and try to find better ways to satisfy our sweet tooth. We’ve vowed to only consume sweets that we make ourselves and with these at home its much easier to say no to candy bars or cookies that tempt us when we are out and about.
Eating to nourish your body doesn’t mean you have to forgo flavor and enjoyment. These brownies are loaded with dates that are high in potassium and are a good source of fiber, the walnuts supply healthy omega-3 essential fatty acids, and raw cacao is one of the best sources of magnesium found in nature. If you want to keep it virtuous and raw you can skip the chocolate frosting the brownies are delicious either way but it’s the ganache that sets them apart. So there you have it, a life changing event just waiting for you to grab it. You can thank me later, I’m off to eat a brownie.
If you make any recipes from Scaling Back, be sure to tag #scalingback on Instagram – I love seeing what you create in your kitchen! You can also find me on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Snapchat (username: scalingback)
- 2 cup Medjool dates, pitted
- 1 cup raw walnuts
- 1 cup raw almonds
- ¾ cup raw cacao or cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- For the topping:
- ¼ cup almond milk
- 1 cup dark chocolate chips
- pinch of sea salt
- ¼ cup chopped walnuts
- Put the pitted dates into a large bowl, cover with boiling water and let sit for 5 minutes to soften. Place the walnuts, almonds, cacao powder and salt into the bowl of a food processor and process until the nuts are chopped and everything is blended. Drain and add the dates and process until the mixture holds together when you squeeze it between your fingers. Press the mixture into a 9x9 pan lined with parchment. Use the back of a spoon to smooth the top into the corners and to make everything level. Heat the almond milk in the microwave for 30-45 seconds until scalded. You could also heat the milk in a small saucepan if preferred. Add the chocolate chips and let sit for 5 minutes to melt the chocolate. Gently stir the mixture until thick and fudgy and pour the mixture on top of the prepared pan and smooth with a spatula. Sprinkle with the ¼ cup chopped walnuts. Refrigerate or freeze the brownies for an hour so they will be easy to slice. When ready to serve slice into 16 pieces and store in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer for up to a week.
I cant wait to try these this weekend. Thank you so much