Healthy Fudge Brownies

Lots of baking has been going on in my house lately. I've been on the Anti-Candida Diet for about two months, and it's bred quite a bit of creativity in my desserts! Just this month, I started reintroducing small amounts of fruit into my diet as my first taste of sugar after the Anti-Candida Diet cleanse.

I've never used dates in baking before, but I'm loving them now. They don't have a weird after-taste, and they add a nice texture and subtle sweetness. And the best part? In this recipe, the entire batch of brownies has 7 grams of sugar.

The brownies also boast high-protein from the beans and cashew butter, healthy fats from the coconut oil and cashew butter, and are grain, dairy, and refined-sugar free.

Each brownie comes in at about 125 calories, less than 1g sugar, and 5g protein. Not bad, right? As opposed to a typical boxed brownie, which is full of wheat, refined sugar, unhealthy oils and fats, and will cost you upwards of 250 calories each. There is less sugar in the entire batch of these than you will get in one regular brownie. Not even exaggerating. If that's not motivating, I don't know what is.

I had several taste testers for this recipe (because I loved them so much, and I never fully trust my taste now, as my threshold for sweetness has dipped so low) and they were approved by multiple picky-eaters and sugar-lovers. That's a win in my book.

I think these are best straight from the oven, but they were tasty after being chilled, too!

Healthy Fudge Brownies
(makes one pan, or around 15 brownies)

1 1/4 cup cashew butter (cashews should be the only ingredient; I make my own.)
4 dates
up to 5  Tbsp water
2 1/2 cups white beans, drained and rinsed well  (I used navy)
2 Tbsp extra virgin coconut oil
2 tsp gluten-free baking powder 
1/2 cup cocoa powder
2 tsp vanilla extract
6 packets Stevia
4 Tbsp pure Xylitol
1 tsp celtic sea salt
1/4 cup sugar-free/dairy-free chocolate chips (I make my own with 100% chocolate bars melted down, mixed with stevia and made into chocolate chips)

Before starting, soak the dates in a cup of water until they are soft and start to disintegrate into the water. Depending on what kind of dates you use, this will probably take around 10-30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350˚F.

Grind the cashew butter and dates on high in a food processor until smooth. Add the beans and process until a very smooth dough forms. Add in the coconut oil and baking powder and process well. Next, add in the cocoa powder and process again. When the cocoa is fully incorporated, add in the vanilla, Stevia, Xylitol, and salt, and process again. 

The dough will be cookie dough like in texture. One tablespoon at a time, add the date water, and pulse. Keep adding the water until the batter thins out. It should be thick, but spreadable- a bit thicker than regular brownie batter, but thinner than cookie dough.

(At this point, I ate a good portion of the batter. If you have more self control than I, proceed to the next step. If not, eat up, friend.)

Grease a 9x13 baking pan with coconut oil. Spread the batter evenly in the pan, then drop the chocolate chips over the top. Mix them in a little, but not too much- the batter will be warm, so be careful not to melt them! Sprinkle a few more on top. 

Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until the top looks dry. Let cool for 10-15 minutes before cutting. Eat warm!

The Healthiest Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever

Maybe that's a bold statement. The healthiest?
I don't know.

But the healthiest I've ever personally come across, for what it's worth.

Like I mentioned in my last recipe, I've been on the anti-candida diet lately. And as I also mentioned, I've been really needing some desserts around the house.

I came across this recipe a while back, and used to make it often, back in the days when I could have peanuts (which I can't have because of my diet, and also because my nursing babe has a peanut allergy), garbanzo beans (which are a close relative of peanuts, and therefore my girl is also allergic to them), and honey (which...you know. sugar.).

It struck me yesterday, though, that I could make some substitutions, and with a little adjusting, come up with a completely sugar-free, peanut-allergy-friendly version.

So these cookies have no flour, no butter, no sugar, no dairy, no eggs, no garbanzo beans, and no peanuts. Making them vegan, anti-candida diet friendly, and gluten-free, to name a few.

But equally as important, they're really, really good. Not to mention you're getting 4 grams of protein, healthy fats from the cashews and coconut oil, and antioxidants from the cocoa nibs in every cookie- and 0 grams of sugar in the entire recipe!

I don't count calories when eating clean, but if you're into that, each cookie comes in at about 125-135 calories (depending on the size of your cookies).

They're more like a cookie dough bite, like the original recipe from which it was adapted. The texture, when the cookie is chilled, is very dough-like, which I, personally, prefer. 

The Healthiest Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever

makes: about 2 dozen mini cookies

1 1/4 cup cashew butter (cashews should be the only ingredient; I make my own.)
2 1/2 cups white beans, drained and rinsed well  (I used navy)
2 Tbsp extra virgin coconut oil
2 tsp gluten-free baking powder 
2 tsp vanilla extract
6 packets Stevia 
4 Tbsp pure Xylitol
1 tsp celtic sea salt
1/4 cup - 1/2 cup cocoa nibs (or mini chocolate chips of your choice)

Preheat oven to 350˚F. Grind the cashew butter and beans on high in the food processor until a very smooth dough forms. Add in the coconut oil and baking powder and process well. Add in the remaining ingredients, except cocoa nibs, and process well again. Stir in cocoa nibs, and drop on a cookie sheet (I use an ice cream scoop to do this). Bake at 350˚F for about 12 minutes, or until the bottoms turn golden and the cookies look dry. They will not spread or rise like normal cookies. 
Eat warm, or chill in the refrigerator or freezer. I like them best cold (and they hold together better that way, too), but they are also delicious straight out of the oven.

Enjoy!