Love Living Gluten Free With This Brownie Recipe

Thanks to an article on using pumpkin to make what seemed to be the healthiest chocolate cake of all time, I began thinking through a brownie recipe that would suit all of our dietary needs. The fact that it's an easy brownie recipe adds to its appeal!

With the holiday season around the corner, a time when we gather with family and friends, we sometimes miss the special occasion foods that we used to eat.

It is my goal to have alternatives to gluten-filled food that are not only delicious enough to truly replace the old favorites we grew up with, but which have much healthier ingredients that everyone can benefit from.

Besides all that, we never want to have to set out “their” food and “our” food, particularly during Thanksgiving and Christmas meals, and especially on a dessert buffet. A gluten-free brownie just might be the place to start!

These brownies and my other gluten-free recipes are intended to be good enough to fill gift bags. Even those tiny bags are happily received when they are filled with a special homemade treat.

The discovery that it is not difficult or expensive to replace dairy, high-gluten, and sugar, or worse yet, artificial sweetener laden dishes with healthy versions has been a delight and a fun challenge to work on.

I am discovering that experimenting with all the possibilities of making gluten free foods yields dishes that make people ask for the recipe.

These wonderful brownies prove that it can also be very funny to watch their “You’re kidding!” expressions when I tell them what the ingredients are.

This recipe was made with one of the gluten free cake mixes that called for butter. I replaced the butter with coconut oil because of a dairy allergy. It is easy to use less coconut oil than the required butter for most recipes with a fruit or vegetable base.

Besides using a prepared mix, gluten free flours can be used to make some fabulous homemade chocolate cake and brownie recipes. See the links and videos included below to start learning more about the cost effectiveness as well as the health benefits of these recipes, and to locate some to use.

Any recipe that calls for butter can easily be adjusted for those who have an allergy to cow’s milk. I replace it with a good quality coconut oil because the benefit of using this oil is high compared to other vegetable oils.

I try to use organic ingredients when possible, but natural products without HFCS (high fructose corn syrup), artificial sweeteners and coloring, or preservatives are a must. It takes a little thought and time to begin making this a rule for shopping and cooking, but like any habit we develop, it soon becomes second nature.

There are cake and other dessert recipes that do not require eggs, but I have not yet explored this option since we do not have an allergy to eggs. From what little reading I have done, though, the recipes look like they would work well and be quite good. So, here’s the moist, gluten-free brownie recipe that this hub is really all about:

• Do not use pumpkin pie filling. Be sure to buy a plain can of pumpkin for this recipe.

• Use room temperature eggs so that the coconut oil does not solidify while mixing the recipe. Simply set the eggs out of the refrigerator 20-30 minutes before using. (If you mistakenly leave them out longer be sure to throw those egg away!)

• Coconut oil softens easily. If it is solid when you want to use it, just slightly warm it to liquify it.

• Chocolate cake dries out easily--do not overbake. Check early to see whether it is done by testing with a wooden pick.

• The cake mix I used is designed to make a simple 8 or 9” square or round cake. The additions I have incorporated into my recipe require the use of a 9 x 13” dish, or two 8” round cake pans.

• Have you ever wondered about an alternative to the risky use of a tiny toothpick to check your cake’s progress in a hot oven? Consider using a nice, long bamboo skewer--so much easier and safer! Reusable, too--if you are careful to wash and dry it immediately after using it.

• Did you know that unsulphured molasses is a great source of iron?

Ingredients:

1/4 Cup Coconut Oil

2 Eggs

1/4 Cup Agave

1 Can Pumpkin

1/4 Cup Almond Milk

1 Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Mix

3/4 Cup Chopped Pecans

1/4 Cup Grated Coconut

Method

Preheat oven to 350º.

Prepare a 9 x13 glass baking dish with non-stick baking spray.

In a large bowl mix oil and eggs.

Add pumpkin, then almond milk, blending well with each addition.

Mix in the chocolate cake mix until batter is smooth.

Stir in the grated coconut and pecans.

Pour into prepared pan, spreading evenly.

Bake approximately 28 minutes, adjusting time as needed (note tips above).

Set aside to cool. Use a knife to loosen cake from edges of baking pan.

Scramble two egg yolks in a cup and set aside.

In a small saucepan heat 1 cup of almond milk, adding 1 tablespoon molasses and 1 teaspoon coconut oil, stirring until it begins to steam.

Stir in a heaping 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, then 1/2-3/4 cup agave (add agave to taste--the amount needed depends on the bitterness of the cocoa used).

Slowly bring mixture to a boil. When bubbles begin forming slowly pour eggs yolks in while stirring the mixture. The yolks must be stirred in slowly and mixed well.

Continue stirring for 7 minutes on low.

Set aside to cool a bit while you use the skewer or a knife to poke holes throughout the cake about every 2 inches.

Served hot or cold this recipe is a special treat. Store in refrigerator.

This hub started out to be a simple piece on a recipe I was trying to develop. As it turns out, in addition to having a gluten free brownie recipe, it has touched on several food topics that I hope you will find beneficial and which I hope you will enjoy learning more about. If you have more questions, post them in the comments below and I’ll try to get an answer to you quickly (or put you on track for getting your answer).

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