These brownies were inspired by the subject of my last post, A Hill of Beans, in more ways than one. Of course Rockbrook Espresso is a fantastic muse in it’s own right–however, I’ve been continually taken aback by this shop’s accessibility; their “something-for-everybody” attitude.
I’ll be the first to admit–sometimes being gluten-free, with a mostly grain-free, dairy-free, and low-sugar slant can seem pretty lofty sometimes. While all these things help my body feel its best, I’m also aware not everyone eats like I do, because their body’s best looks dietarily different than mine. In short: not all my dishes are going to satisfy all eaters.
With this brownie recipe, though–I think I bridged the gap a bit.
I was motivated to use nut butter as the base of brownies by Elana’s Pantry and celiacchicks. I made my brownies with almond butter, like Elana did, though celiacchicks made theirs with peanut butter. While I haven’t tried it–if peanut butter if your thing, go ahead and experiment.
I also used xylitol, which can be substituted…well, with a great many granulated sugar substitutes. Or actual table sugar, if you’re not too sensitive to it.
My hope is that these brownies can bring together people, no matter how diverse our palates and dietary needs are.
If you tweak the recipe to fit you, using the ingredients that make you feel your best–feel free to drop me a line on the comment section below. I’d love your take on a universal feel-good treat!
Rockbrook Espresso Brownies
- 2 cups almond butter
- 3 eggs
- 2 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup strongly brewed coffee made with Rockbrook Espresso (cooled)
- 30 drops stevia (I used Vanilla Cream Stevia)
- 1 teaspoon finely ground Rockbrook Espresso coffee
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup xylitol
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)
1. Preheat oven to 325° F.
2. In a large bowl, blend almond butter until smooth with a hand blender or kitchen-aid standing mixer. Blend for 2 minutes on high.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk eggs. Then add brewed coffee, vanilla extract and stevia and mix the wet ingredients until well combined.
4. In another medium bowl, combine cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, finely ground coffee, and xylitol and stir the dry ingredients until well combined.
5. Slowly add the wet ingredients to the almond butter and stir by hand or on the lowest speed possible.
6. Add the dry ingredients.
7. Fold in the chocolate chips.
8. Grease a 9 by 13 baking dish.
9. Pour batter into dish.
10. Bake at 325° F for 40-45 minutes, until the middle of the brownies are springy to the touch.
10. October 2010 at 8:58 pm
These look super yummy! I'll have to make some this week and let you know how they turn out. I used to be a PB addict but now decided to avoid peanuts and almond butter is ten times better for you and I prefer the taste now too! I'll probably try it with Erythritol rather than Xylitol as they are similar but there are no digestive side effects with it as Xylitol can sometimes do (though I have been told when you bake with Xylitol it negates that effect!). I have never heard of Rockbrook espresso coffee before so I'll have to look it up! I'm going home to WA in 6wks for the holidays and my family loves brownies so I'm thinking these might be great to sneak in there for them to try!
16. October 2010 at 2:45 pm
Hillary–Thanks! I'm so excited to hear how you make "Rockbrook Espresso Brownies" yours!
16. November 2010 at 7:16 am
Question about the chocolate chips: Are they semi-sweet? I use the "Eat Freely" brand, and they are semi-sweet.
16. November 2010 at 7:31 pm
Karen: I did indeed use semi-sweet chocolate chips and have made a note of it on the recipe. How do you like the "Eat Freely" brand?
21. August 2011 at 9:27 pm
Hi there – what a great blog! I’d like to make this for a friend who is gluten and dairy free (tomorrow is her birthday) but I will be using sugar. Any idea how much I should substitute for the stevia and xylitol? Thanks so much!