Low Sugar Avocado Chocolate Brownies (Flourless & Dairy Free)
I know, I know, avocado brownies sound disgusting. I thought so, too. But after realising how delicious black bean brownies and beetroot & chocolate cake could be, I figured it was worth at least attempting.
Truth moment: it won’t be for everyone. As with beetroot chocolate cake, you cannot tell at all that there is a vegetable (technically fruit in this case) in there. But it is super rich, dark and fudge-like, so is for serious chocolate lovers and indulgence cravers.
And for all: the raw batter is delicious. It is like the best, most creamy chocolate mousse you’ve ever tasted. It does contain raw eggs, but if you aren’t pregnant or under 5, you could just skip the baking and eat the mousse straight out of the mixer. Not that I’ve done that…
What it does is take a super fudgy brownie, and add an extra layer of taste and creaminess. It makes them really filling, which is a perfect way to make sure you don’t get tempted to eat the whole tray (no? just me?), and gives them a creaminess that even butter cannot quite replicate.
Not to mention it makes it easy to make them flourless, low carb, gluten free, dairy free and really low in sugar*. And still taste delicious. Yep, this is the virtuous just-as-amazing cousin of the brownie.
Curious? Have a go. You may be very pleasantly surprised.
And if you are feeling extra decadent, I have to admit, it’s pretty darn delicious with a teaspoon of my sugar free caramel dolloped on top. 😉
*Seriously – the 85% chocolate brings less than 1g sugar per serve (74% brings it up to less than 2g per serve), using the dates only adds 1/4 date per square, and even if you were to use 100g sugar in place of xylitol, it would still come to less than 2 teaspoons of sugar per brownie, which is far far less than the average 6 teaspoons. Use xylitol and each brownie has less than 1/2 teaspoon sugar, but remember – even natural sweeteners and low sugar make these kinds of sweet bakes treats, not daily binge-eats!
These avocado brownies are surprisingly delicious. They make a super fudgy, creamy brownie that is dairy and gluten free, low carb and low in sugar. An almost-virtuous really filling treat.
- 100 g (3.5oz) 74-85% dark chocolate
- 2 ripe avocados, mashed (you can add them whole, but there is more of a risk of there being small avocado 'pieces' in the finished brownie)
- 4 eggs
- 75 g (3/4 cup) cacao or cocoa powder (cacao adds the healthier elements of antioxidants and minerals, but the cocoa powder makes it more authentic as a brownie flavour and masks the avocado better)
- 100 g (1/2 cup) xylitol (use this much for 85% chocolate, less if you use a sweeter chocolate)
- 2 teaspoons sugar free vanilla extract or orange extract
- pinch of sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- 2-4 dates (if you want it sweeter), optional (adds a tiny tiny bit more sugar, but also adds sweetness and flavour)
-
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas 4. Grease and line a 9" square baking tin. Melt the chocolate in the microwave until almost completely melted (about 1 minute - do it in 30 second increments to make sure you don't burn the chocolate), then stir until it is melted and smooth. Add all the ingredients to a food processor and turn on until smooth and combined. Pour into the prepared tin. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until it looks cakey on top and is only slightly squidgy to the touch (you want it fudgy but not underbaked). Allow to cool completely (trust me, it will taste so much better) before cutting into 16 squares and serving on its own or with a dollop of coconut cream, Greek yogurt or sugar free ice cream.
Hi Claire, this looks SO good! Do you think it would be possible to skip the xylitol?
Hi Pauline, the xylitol is what makes it sweet and keeps it from tasting horribly bitter. You have a few options to replace it though: (1) You could replace it with an equal amount of sugar in some form (table sugar/coconut sugar or slightly less raw honey/pure maple syrup), bearing in mind that it then adds more sugar to the brownies. They would still come out fairly low sugar for brownies (about 7g – just under 2 tsp – per serve if you use 85% dark chocolate and 100g (1/2 cup) sugar/coconut sugar/honey/syrup). (2) You could use erythritol (you may need a little more) or an erythritol/stevia blend like Natvia (use about half the amount in place of the xylitol as it is very very sweet and can have a bitter aftertaste if you use too much). (3) You could split the difference and use half the amount of sugar and a few drops of liquid stevia to make up the difference until it tastes sweet enough (or use a sugar/stevia blend like WholeEarth baking blend – again, half the amount). Hope that helps. Claire