Raw Brownies

What are peoples favourite chocolate baked good? I think that brownies would be right up there. Moist, chewy, rich, dense and fudgy – what’s not to like about it?


I love eating chocolate and sweets but as someone who spends most of her time cooking and eating, I try to eat everything in moderation. Ever since I took the Raw Decadent Dessert Cooking Class by A Foodly Affair I have been interested in finding recipes for guilt free treats.


Raw brownies are easy to make and a guilt free pleasure. After reading a few recipes I found that raw brownies are basically composed of some dried fruit, nuts, a sweetening/binding agent and cacao powder, then blitz, mould and chill for it to set.  

I found the raw brownies to have a surprisingly good resemblance to a real brownie in that it looked like a brownie, had a nice taste and a chewy texture provided by the mushed up dates. However, it didn’t have that dense, fudgyness of a real brownie. 


Even if raw brownies aren’t ‘real’ brownies, I definitely recommend them as a treat. It’s disgustingly healthy, requires no baking and is a great chocolate fix.


So I dedicate this recipe to people who:
• can’t bake
• are renting and have an oven which is as unpredictable as the weather
• are celiacs, lactose intolerant etc.
• are on a diet
• are chocohalics


I made a batch and kept some in the freezer. Raw brownies keep well in the freezer and remain moist and chewable when frozen so you can just take it out of the freezer and enjoy.

Raw Brownies


(My raw brownie recipe adapted from various recipes I read off the net)


Ingredients


• 1 cup walnuts
• 1 cup almonds
• 2 cups Medjool dates (pitted and roughly chopped)
• ½ cup raw cacao powder 
• ~ 1-2 tablespoons agave
• pinch of salt

I used some whole fresh Medjool Dates that I bought from my local fruit and veg store in Mount Lawley. Medjool Dates are the best kind of dates you can get – they have a sweet rich caramel flavour with a sticky texture which lends well to these brownies. I don’t know if you could get the same outcome with a different type of date.


Method


Place the walnuts and almonds in food processor and process until they have become small and crumbly. Add in the chopped dates and process until the mixture starts to stick together and the dates are well processed. Add the cacao powder and process until the mixture becomes dark chocolately brown. Add in the agave which will help to balance the bitterness of the cacao powder and also help the mixture stick together. Process for a few more seconds so that you end up with a mixture that resembles cake crumbs but when pressed will easily stick together (if the mixture does not hold together well, add more dates or agave).


Press the mixture into a lined cake tin and place in the fridge for a few hours to set. Cut into squares.