When I saw this recipe on chocolatecoveredkatie.com, I had to read it twice. Then I read it again. Hummus and chocolate=yummy? I didn't believe it! But, then, I tried it-and let me tell you-YUMMY! I adapted her recipe just a bit, lowered the sugar and added some almond milk. When my hubby ate one, he couldn't believe it was healthy. And when I gave one to Ari, he said "mom, these are awesome!" So there you have it- a winning, healthy and yummy recipe! These are gluten free and can easily be vegan if you use vegan chocolate chips (available at Whole Foods or other health food stores.) Trust me on these and give it a try. They are super easy too, the hardest part was just getting the skins off the garbanzo beans, which is not mandatory but I think makes the batter creamier. FYI, when you drain and rinse the beans, put them in a clean dish towel and roll it back and forth to remove the skins. Then just separate them from the beans and dump it all in the food processor. Let me know if your family loves these as much as mine! And you see, blondes are smart! And they can cook! Hope you enjoy this recipe. Eat and enjoy!
Smart Blondies
(makes 15-20 squares)
- 1 1/2 cups chickpeas/garbanzo beans (1 can, drained and rinsed)
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup brown sugar (she says you can sub coconut sugar but I have never baked with it)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup ground flaxseed meal
- 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1/4 cup almond milk
- 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips (or vegan chocolate chips if you want)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Blend all ingredients (except chips) until very smooth in a food processor (not a blender). Mix in chips, and scoop into a greased (or tinfoil-lined) 8×8 pan. If you want you can put some chocolate chips on top too. Bake for around 30 minutes. They’ll look a little undercooked when you take them out, but they firm up as they cool, and you don’t want them to get hard.
YUMMY!!
