The Healthy and Nutritious Blondie That Does It All
Yes, yes, and yes. Literally, where to even begin on this one? It’s a nutrition monster: plant protein from the chickpeas and peanut butter; vitamin A and potassium from the pumpkin; a good source of fiber from all. And did we mention it’s a dessert–sweet (if you want it to be), creamy, and very filling? Think of it as a brownie that does dinner’s heavy lifting.
Ingredients
Instructions
Prep
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Rinse and dry chickpeas. Boil them with a small pinch of baking soda for 6 minutes to soften, discarding any skins that separated from the beans. Set aside to cool.
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Preheat oven to 350. Coat a pie pan or 8x8 baking tray with cooking spray.
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To ensure a smooth mix, place the following in a blender in the order listed: a splash of almond milk, vanilla extract, maple syrup (if using), pumpkin puree, two scoops of peanut butter, and the chickpeas. Blend on high until all mixed and a consistent texture; plan on stopping and reshuffling the contents and/or using your blender’s tamper tool once or twice.
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Add in flour; baking soda; and a couple of shakes or cocoa powder and/or handful of chocolate chips, if using. Blend until integrated. The texture should be not unlike frosting.
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Pour the batter into your pan or tray; smooth out to ensure the bottom of the cooking device is covered and the batter spread out evenly. Spread chocolate chips out across the surface.
Cook
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Bake for 25-27 minutes. Allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.
Note
*If the peanut butter you’re using has added sugar, or if you plan on being generous with the chocolate chips, you can skip the maple syrup.)
