Gluten and Grain Free, Vegan Brownies

I searched for many months for someone else's recipe for brownies that were both grain free AND vegan (that also tasted good) to no satisfying avail. Then finally, I came up with this one of my own by accident! I was trying to make a variation of a chocolate chip cookie recipe of mine, but when I removed these from the oven, they smelled and tasted like brownies. And not just a substitute for regular unhealthy brownies...but unctuous mouth watering brownies. They also pack over twelve grams of protein per batch, a nice dose of zinc, and you can eat six of these average size brownies for about three hundred calories!!!!

 Perhaps another bonus of these brownies, is that you can throw almost all of the ingredients into a container in advance, then just add the water and vanilla later right before mixing and popping them in the oven!

I make mine in a pan sprayed with olive oil cooking spray with twelve shallow cavities, but you could also drop spoonfuls into a prepared muffin pan. Or don't use a pan at all, and drop batter and smooth it out on a parchment lined baking sheet. I will tell you, with a pan and the olive oil spray, you get that extra crunchiness on the edges of the brownies.For more cake like brownies, double the recipe, and pour into a 8×8 inch baking pan...delicious!

The ingredients are as follows: 

(For more cake-like brownies, double all ingredients.)

• 1/2 Cup garbanzo bean flour (I use Bob's Red Mill, available at health food stores or online)
• 2 Tbs. carob or cocoa powder
• 1/4 Cup of walnut pieces
• 1/4 Cup of coconut palm sugar, or maple sugar
• 1/2 Cup of Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips, or other organic carob/chocolate chips
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1tsp. of vanilla extract
• 1/2 Cup of water or more, if needed, to get a brownie batter consistency

Again, you can add together all but the last two ingredients if you want a brownie mix that you just add the liquid to later.

Before baking: Combine all ingredients, slowly adding more water if needed. You want it thicker than pancake batter, thinner than cookie dough. Place batter into prepared pan, on parchment or an 8×8 inch pan, for cake-like brownies . Sprinkle the tops with coconut palm or maple sugar. Bake at 375° for between fifteen to twenty minutes until edges crisp and tops set. Remove from pan immediately after baking, allow to cool.

Sometimes, I like to spread a small amount of soy-free Earth Balance vegan butter on the tops of these. Or you can make a cashew cream icing, adding carob or cocoa powder, and frost these and garnish with nuts as in the last picture. I used this link, for the cashew cream recipe, having to adjust it quite a bit: https://healthyblenderrecipes.com/recipes/raw_vegan_vanilla_cashew_cream

Enjoy!