You’ve gotta love brownies. You can put just about anything into them. As long as you have enough chocolate and sweetener in them, they’ll still make a gooey and satisfying dessert. Case in point: Our kale brownies, and now these lentil brownies.
We hadn’t ever thought of adding lentils to brownies, until we met up with the Canadian Lentils folks at BlogHer Food. The lentil crew had an enormous display of just about every kind of food cooked with lentils, from samosas to artichoke dip. And of course there were these unbelievably tasty brownies.
Lentil Brownie Recipe
Lentil Brownies (via Canadian Lentils)
These tasty and gooey lentil brownies are made with pureed red lentils - but no one would ever know.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup pureed lentils (we used small red lentils)
- 1/2 cup butter
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 2 cups sugar
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 3 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup flour
- 1 cup chocolate chips
Instructions
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Make the pureed lentils: Simmer one part lentils and two parts water for 15 to 20 minutes or until lentils are tender. Place cooked or (rinsed & drained canned) lentils into a food processor. For every 1 cup lentils, add ¼ cup water. Blend to make a smooth purée with a consistency like canned pumpkin. If needed, add additional water 1 tbsp. at a time.
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Melt butter, pour into a medium mixing bowl. Mix in lentil purée, cocoa powder, sugar and salt. Add eggs, one at a time. Mix in vanilla. Stir in flour and chocolate chips.
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Bake in a greased 9 x 13 pan at 350° F (175° C) for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
True story: We posted a picture of the lentil brownies from the conference and got quite a few comments from doubters. We get it. Everyone is tired of things being hidden in food, and no one wants their brownies messed with. But what if the lentils added a little extra fiber and potassium to your dessert? And if the taste stayed just as good? We’d say, ‘Why not?’
In fact, as soon as we got home from Austin, we tried out the recipe for ourselves. The brownies were just as gooey and chocolate-y and delicious as we could have hoped. The best review so far: Our six-year-old asked why we had to take pictures of the brownie next to a bunch of lentils. He absolutely had no idea there was anything different about the brownies. We fessed up, of course, and…he asked for more.
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These gooey and delicious lentil brownies (yes, lentils!) are sure to be a hit!
Hi! I'm Jeanne Fratello - a writer, reporter, and food enthusiast who is on a mission to write great stories about food and where your food comes from.
I’m sold. What if you made a brownie with kale AND lentils?
Whoa.
Hi Jeanne! Just wanted to drop by to say that it was great to meet you at BlogHer Food (at the Stubbs party with Priscilla of She’s Cookin’). Your site is great. Some great healthy tips for myself, and some great stuff I can pass along to my mommy friends. Hope you got some useful info out of the conference. Let me know if you ever make it up my way to San Francisco!
Hi Melissa: Thanks so much for stopping by – It was great meeting you! I’ll definitely let you know if my travels bring me up to SF!
I love that you blogged about them. I will FB and tweet!
Thanks, Amee! Loved seeing you again!
My roommate made the BEST brownies, so fudgy…, with beans, sweet potato, honey, and dates. It was amazing! I am begging her for the recipe so I can post it on the blog 🙂
WOW – Beans and sweet potato? I’ll have to give that a try!
Never seen these before but what a great idea 🙂