Not sure what got into me last week, but I needed a chocolate fix that only a batch of brownies could satisfy. I decided to take my traditional brownie recipe that I’d found in a magazine years ago and see if I could make them a little better. I replaced two of the eggs with egg whites and substituted some of the all-purpose flour for whole wheat flour and used raw sugar instead of refined white sugar. By no means, did I make these dark chocolate brownies into health food, but I was able to make some small changes that made me feel a tiny bit better about eating them. Mostly, I think I made them better in the taste category, by adding some of my favorite ingredients like espresso powder, fleur de sel and toasted almonds.I hope you will enjoy this chocolaty indulgence as much as I did.
Better Chocolate Brownies:
2 cups Raw Sugar
1 1/2 sticks Butter, melted
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
1 Egg
2 Egg Whites
2/3 cup All-Purpose Flour
1/3 cup Whole Wheat Flour
1/2 tsp Sea Salt
1 cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1 tsp Instant Espresso Powder
Topping:
1 60-70% Cacao Dark Chocolate Bar
Toasted Almonds
Step One:
Place raw sugar, butter, vanilla, egg and egg whites in a large bowl and mix to combine.
Step Two:
In a separate bowl, whisk together flours, sea salt, cocoa powder and espresso powder.
Step Three:
Gradually add flour mixture to the sugar and butter mixture and stir to combine.
Place batter in a 9 x 9 pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes until batter pulls away from sides. Allow to cool and cut into 25 pieces.
Optional Garnish:
Melt one 3.5 oz dark chocolate bar on the stove top over low heat. Spread a thin layer of melted chocolate on top of brownie pieces and top with a pinch of fleur de sel and a whole toasted almond.