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~ raw, vegan, gluten-free ~
I have always been a brownie lover, but to be honest, since I started eating healthier, I have kept this yummy dish off my menu. How sad is that? Sad, sad day (hangs head in self-pity). Everyone needs some brownies in their life.
I share this recipe just as the holiday season is beginning. And I know it will come fast…it is my goal to be better prepared for all those dinner parties and gatherings.
These Espresso’ My Mint Cacao Brownies are perfect for that task. They freeze beautifully! You could even go as far as topping them with a raw Chocolate Ganache frosting or even a raw caramel frosting. Shew that would be decadent and super-rich. Whether you dress them up or not, I promise you and your guests that you won’t be disappointed!
If you surf the net, you will find endless information regarding the health benefits of cacao. I won’t even begin to touch the tip of the iceberg here. Still, I do want to point out that raw cacao powder contains more than 300 different chemical compounds and nearly four times the antioxidant power of your average dark chocolate – more than 20 times than that of blueberries. It also is a source of protein, calcium, carotene, thiamin, riboflavin, magnesium, sulfur, flavonoids, antioxidants, and essential fatty acids are also present.
Word of Caution, hmmm not what you are expecting to see on a recipe posting, now is it? But I feel that it is crucial to point out that cacao powder contains theobromine. It can stimulate the central nervous system and dilate blood vessels. Theobromine has about 1/4 of the stimulating power of its sister molecule caffeine. So if you are sensitive to caffeine, be watchful in how your body may or may not react to raw cacao. Oh, and if you are sensitive to caffeine, omit the espresso and feel free to add any other flavor extract if you wish to.
This brownie recipe is a cross between the texture of a brownie and fudge. The good news is, is that it doesn’t require any dehydration. But it will need to stay in the fridge or freezer. Which brings up another great point… These brownies will keep for 1-3 months in the freezer. They won’t freeze rock solid so they can be enjoyed on the whim of any chocolate craving attack. How is that for service? I hope you enjoy this recipe. Be sure to comment below and have a blessed day, amie sue
Ingredients:
Your website is unlike any site I have ever seen. Striking.
I can tell you put a lot of work into this passion of yours.
All your recipes look fabulous, and can’t wait to try all of them. Thank you so much for taking the time to turn folks on to this type of eating. You will be rewarded (you are already, huh?) Much appreciation, kate
Thank you Kate :) I am thrilled that you are enjoying the site. I pour a lot of love and passion into it. :) And yes, I reap my reward daily by being blessed on so many levels . :)
Hi, Ami Sue,
These look delicious, but is there a substitute for the espresso?
Thanks!
Hi Alta,
You could use ¼ to ½ tsp. coffee extract. Are you asking because you don’t like the coffee flavor? Are you looking to totally replace it? If it is because you can’t make an espresso due to the lack of equipment, you could make a really strong coffee and use that too.
Hello,
I love your recipes, thankyou so much for sharing with us.
I was wondering if it possible to use agar agar powder in place of Irish Moss?
If so, how much Agar Agar should I use per 1/4 cup of Irish Moss required?
Agar agar has less body quantity than Irish Moss, would you have any ideas on what I could add to the recipe aswell as the agar agar to make up for the lost quantity of ingredients?
Thankyou for your help
Kind regards
Hi Debbie,
Whereas Agar Agar and Irish moss both offer properties of thickening up a recipe and giving it body, they can really change the outcome of a recipe. Do you have a specific recipe that you can share with me that you are looking to use the agar in, instead of the Irish Moss?
Hello, Thankyou for you reply. Yes, I am wanting to make the Lemon Meringue Pie from the Café Gratitude cook book. See recipe below.
Kind regards, Debbie
Makes one 9-inch pie
For the crust
-2 ¾ cups macadamia nuts
-1/8 teaspoon salt
For the filling
-58g Irish moss (pre-soaked and rinsed)
-1 ½ cups lemon juice
-3/4 cup agave nectar
-Pinch of turmeric
Meringue
-10g Irish moss (pre-soaked and rinsed)
-1/4 cup water
-1/2 cup coconut milk (blended coconut meat and coconut water from 1 Thai coconut)
-1/4 cup coconut meat
-1/4 cup soaked cashews
-2 ½ tablespoons agave
-1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
-1/2 teaspoon vanilla
-dash of salt
-3/4 teaspoon lecithin
-1/4 cup coconut butter
For the Meringue:
Blend Irish moss and water until smooth and thick. Add coconut milk, meat, cashews, agave, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt. Blend until smooth. Add lecithin and coconut butter until well incorporated. pour into a wide, shallow pad and set in fridge for up to 3 hours.
Enjoy
To make the crust:
In the bowl of your food processor fitted with the “s” blade, process the macadamia cuts and salt to a dough-like consistency (do not over-process or the macadamias will release too much oil). Press into a 9-inch pie pan.
Enjoy
To make the filling:
Blend Irish moss with lemon juice and turmeric until smooth and thick. Add agave and continue blending until well incorporated. Pour into prepared crust and set in fridge for 20-30 minutes. When the meringue is set, top pie and if you like, peak with the back of a spoon.
Enjoy
I have been wanting to try this recipe out Debbie. To be honest I am no really sure on using the agar as the sole replacement. It would change the consistency. I have put a request into the make of this recipe to see what they say. In the meantime, I will make this recipe so I can better see for myself on how it comes together. Stay tuned!
Thankyou. I look forward to seeing the photos of the Lemon Meringue Pie you make :)
Hi Amie Sue,
Have you ever swapped out dates for prunes in a recipe?
I was wondering if it affected texture and or taste?
Looking forward to some baking this weekend!
Love your recipes!
Louise
Hello Louise, I haven’t used prunes a whole lot but occasionally. Texture wise it is pretty darn close to dates… all depending on the type of dates, and the moisture content of which you are comparing when it comes to the prunes and dates. Taste wise, well it would depend on the recipe and what other flavors come into to play. It could alter a flavor a tad but I don’t think enough to make a huge difference. Test it out and let me know. :) Have a great day!
Dates again. You told me a couple of days ago that you always use dried. Strangely enough. The only medjool dates I can easily find are fresh. The only dried dates are other varieties are really really dry.
I’m trying to decide now between fresh medjool or dried ‘sayer’ dates – or even prunes as above.
Does it really matter?
Would love your opinion on the dried/fresh medjool/sayer dilemma.
Xx
Hello Helen,
If I use fresh dates, I will indicate that. Not many of recipe use fresh ones because they haven’t been available to me. I must live in the wrong places. hehe Fresh and dried dates are not always interchangeable due to the texture difference. Many times dried fruits have a two-fold purpose in a recipe; sweetens and binds. You can sure use other dried fruits in place of dried dates if need be; dried prunes, dried figs, etc. Just always take the end flavor in consideration.
Does this help? Have a wonderful weekend. amie sue
You always help.
Xx
I was very pleased with the texture of these, they are quite brownie like =) i used mint from my garden which seemed to give them a weird taste, maybe if i used mint flavouring it might be better(?) its hard to describe the strange taste…but my brother agreed it was the mint, so i’ll leave that out next time.
I made these three times so far and I love ’em. It is a forgiving recipe in that I can make adjustments in the ingredients and it still works out. They are super fast to make too. This time I added 3 tablespoons of pine pollen powder and we couldn’t tell it was there at all. It’s a way for us to hide a supplement that Art needs to take into something delicious. Also I reduced the dates down to 1 cup and it works just as well for me.
I used a cambro as a mold and made 25 one inch blocks – so cute – with the cacao nib chips resting up on top pressed in oh so gently so that they stay in place.
Good evening Judy! :) I love that you could put the pine pollen powder into the recipe. Isn’t that just the beauty of raw foods?! Thanks so much for sharing your experience with the recipe. Now I want to go make them again. hehe Blessings, amie sue
hola que es un chupito de espresso?
Hello Paulette,
An espresso shot is a small amount of strong coffee – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espresso. blessings, amie sue