Quarantine = More time for cooking, less options for exercising due to social distancing, and therefore good odds of ending up a little heavier on the way out of quarantine than on the way in.

I love baking and am enjoying having more time to experiment with new recipes. I am definitely exercising less, but I refuse to pack on the pounds because of it! So what to do….

Turns out that the advice to “eat dessert first” is actually legit!

According to Ayurvedic principles, the sweet taste should come first in a meal as it takes the longest to digest. Since sweet foods are said to dampen the digestive fire we can eat those first and then the sour, salty, pungent, bitter, and astringent aspects of our meal enhance the digestive fire to keep digestion moving properly. Plus, if you have dessert first, you’re less likely to overeat by forcing yourself to make room for dessert after you have already filled up on dinner. 

So, as a lover of dessert, I am: 

1. Making desserts that include healthy wholesome ingredients, and
2. eating said desserts for a quick delicious breakfast or before we eat dinner. 

Do you love dessert too? Try desserts that include some protein, fiber or healthy fats and use sweeteners that offer some nutritional value like maple syrup, honey or blended fruit.

Sweet potato pie is one of my standby favorite dessert recipes and this particular black bean brownie recipe is one of my new favorites 🙂 

Stay healthy, stay home, eat dessert first!

Fudge-y Black Bean Brownies

Delicious, gluten-free, and arguable pretty darn healthy, we have these for breakfast or for dessert.

Ingredients
1 15-oz can black beans rinsed and drained
3 large eggs
3 Tbsp olive oil or melted coconut oil
2 tsp vanilla
⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
½ cup maple syrup
½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp finely ground or instant coffee
½ – 1 cup chocolate chips (I use Lily’s stevia sweetened chips)
½ roughly chopped walnuts
Optional: sometimes I add in a few dashes of cinnamon and cayenne for a “mexican chocolate” version or some cardamom and pistachios (sub for walnuts) for a bit more of a mediterranean feel.

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°. I like simplicity so I dump everything except for the chocolate chips and nuts in the food processor and blend until smooth and well distributed. Then, so as not to make more dishes, I pour the nuts and chips on top of the batter once it is in the greased pan ( 8×8 or 9×9) and mix gently until add-ins are incorporated.

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until the center doesn’t jiggle too much when you shake the pan. More jiggly = more gooey brownies, less jiggly = less gooey brownies. Brownies cut better if you let them cool first, but hot brownies are delicious so if you want them as soon as they come out of the oven dish ’em out with a big spoon.

Recipe adapted from Live Eat Learn at https://www.liveeatlearn.com/black-bean-fudge-brownies/.