I love being invited to dinner and having an excuse to make a dessert. I really enjoy baking and this keeps me from consuming an entire batch of decadence which is never a good idea!
I did some googling and came across this delicious looking recipe by Dana of Minimalist Baker. As I’m not vegan, I decided to use regular ingredients and altered the recipe slightly. Luckily my experimenting paid off as everyone was seriously in raptures about these brownies. Decadent, rich and oh so good.
Scroll down for the recipe…
A quick note:
I don’t have a food processor and so I used a blender instead. This does work but requires more effort! So in the recipe below, I’ve kept the food processor instructions as specified in the original recipe.
- 100g raw walnuts (keep a few aside to add as a topping)
- 100g raw almonds
- 2 1/2 cups dates (if dry, soak in warm water for 10min, then drain)
- 3/4 cup cacao powder
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- handful of cacao nibs
- 1/4 cup milk
- 80g dark chocolate
- 2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- Extra cacao nibs, walnuts, coarse sea salt, matcha tea
- - Blend walnuts & almonds in a food processor until finely ground ( I blended mine in a blender)
- - Add the cacao powder and sea salt and blend to combine. Set mixture aside.
- - Add the dates to a food processor and process until small bits remain. Set aside (I mashed the dates by hand)
- - Mix the nut & cacao mixture together with the dates until a sticky dough consistency is achieved. The mixture needs to hold together when squeezed in your hand. Assess how much date mixture to add. I didn't need to use it all.
- - Line a dish with wax paper, and press the brownie mixture into a firm base.
- - Sprinkle cacao nibs generously over the base and press down into the base (these add texture to the brownies)
- - Place in the freezer for 15 minutes to chill.
- - Add the milk and chocolate to a dish and place over a saucpan of boiling water, stir gently until the chocolate is melted (Use a heat proof dish!)
- - Add salt and coconut oil and whisk.
- - Set in fridge for 10 minutes to thicken slightly.
- - Spread topping over the base.
- - Add toppings and cut into squares.
- Add a few walnuts and cacao nibs for decoration.
- Sprinkle generously with Maldon sea salt, this contrasts perfectly against the sweetness.
- Add a dusting of Matcha tea for fun.
All photography: Lana Kenney ©
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