Nicole already made one adjustment that I normally do in baking, which is to replace all-purpose flour with whole wheat pastry flour. I took it a step further and used my favorite sugar adjustment - evaporated cane juice. I loved her suggestion of using applesauce instead of oil, but decided to go for the glory on the first try, and use that one later if I make them again. I reduced the sugar to 1 cup, as she suggested, but after a quick sampling of the final batter, decided that was too little and added 1/4 cup more. It was definitely an interesting batter to work with, and they turned out to sort of be a cross between cake and brownie. No matter what you call them, though, they certainly are delicious!
These brownies are well on their way to being a great dessert for clean eaters, and it almost pained me to pour the full-of-powdered-sugar frosting on top. The frosting is quite sweet and is a fabulous complement to the brownies, but I was hoping for something a little more healthy. The good news is that I might have just the right frosting recipe! It's been waiting on the sidelines, for just the right companion to come along. I will definitely be making these brownies again to test out this (hopefully) great match!
Whole Wheat Frosted Zucchini Brownies
Source: Slightly adapted from Prevention RDYield: 30 brownies
Ingredients
For the brownies:
- 1/2 cup safflower or canola oil
- 1 1/4 cups evaporated cane juice
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
- 1/2 cup (dutch processed, if available) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 cups zucchini, shredded (about 2 zucchini)
- 6 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup nonfat milk
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Directions
- Pre-heat oven to 350 F. Grease and flour a 9×13 inch baking dish, or line with parchment.
- In a large bowl mix together oil, sugar and 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract until well blended. In another bowl combine the flour, 1/2 cup cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. A little at a time stir into the sugar mixture. Fold in zucchini. Note: the batter will be dry and crumbly. Spread the mixture evenly into the prepared baking dish.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes until the brownies spring back when gently touched. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool.
- To make the frosting, melt together the cocoa powder and butter in a small sauce pan over low heat. Set aside to cool. In a medium bowl blend confectioner’s sugar, milk, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract. Stir in the butter/cocoa mixture. Spread over cooled brownies and cut into squares. Refrigerate 1-2 hours to set.
I honestly can't imagine how zucchini would taste in brownies, cause I haven't tried that but I really like the way they look :)
ReplyDeleteMedeja - you can't taste the zucchini! :-)
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