Cacao Avocado Brownies
Nutritious and satisfying, these easy-to-make brownies just might be one of the most scrumptious treats I’ve ever made with cacao. Last night, Juan and I ate half the pan. I strongly suspect that when I get home from writing this post there will be none left. Or possibly one. The combination of avocado (make sure you use ripe avocados) and pure cacao makes for a rich, fudgy texture and deep dark chocolate flavor.
Ingredients
2 very ripe avocados
2 TBSP chia seeds, hydrated in 6 oz water or 1 egg
¾ cup raw sugar
¾ cup "light" flour, like white pastry, rice, cassava or plantain flour
½ cup "heavy" flour, like whole-wheat, sorghum, quinoa, almond, or coconut
pinch of salt
1 tsp baking powder
2 oz kombucha or water with a TBSP lemon juice
1 tsp oil for for coating baking pan
*For these healthful brownies, any of our SDV hand-milled cacao & spice blends work beautifully. In the variation shown, I used Hot Cacao (with roasted cayenne pepper) for a less-sweet and slightly spicy flavor to compliment the dark chocolate cacao. For a less daring but delicious version, try our Masala Mix (with ginger, cinnamon, clove, & star anise), or Spiced Cacao Tonic (with turmeric, cardamom, and ishpingo). Or, you can grind our Whole Bean Cacao yourself with a mortar and pestle and add whatever spices you like.
Optional (for the topping)
⅓ cup pumpkin seeds (or crushed walnuts or slivered almonds)
⅓ cup crushed Sueño de Vida Cacao beans
Sprinkle of cinnamon, nutmeg, and/or chili pepper powder
1 TBSP raw sugar or honey
Utensils
Medium-sized mixing bowl
Wooden spoon or spatula
Fork or potato masher
8x10 or similar-sized baking pan
Directions
To make the topping
Place a heavy frying or sauté pan over low heat. Add the nuts or seeds, and crushed cacao. Toast for about a minute.
Add the raw sugar and spices, quickly mix and turn off the heat (don't scorch the sugar). Set aside
To make the brownies
Preheat the oven to 350° and grease the baking pan.
Halve and scoop out the avocados into the mixing bowl. Mash well.
Stir the raw sugar, hydrated chia, and ground cacao into the mashed avocado. Mix very well until everything is blended.
Sift the flours together with a pinch of salt and any spices
Make a "well" in the middle of the avocado/cacao mixture. Deposit the mixed flours into the well.
Drop a teaspoon of baking powder onto the mound of flour and pour the kombucha (or water with lemon juice) directly into the baking soda. It will make a foam.
Quickly mix everything in the bowl together until incorporated.
Spoon the batter into the baking pan and smooth it flat. Add the topping and distribute evenly over the surface.
Bake in a 350° oven for 20 minutes. Test with a knife. If the knife comes out really sticky, turn the oven down to 300° and bake for another 10 minutes.
Note: These brownies are very moist and rich and the knife probably won't come out completely "clean" even when they are done.
Remove the pan from the oven and allow to cool for at least 20 minutes before cutting so the brownies will hold a neat square shape. Or if you must have one right away, carve out one small corner to eat and slice the rest of the pan when the brownies cool down.
At Sueño de Vida we work in a meaningful way to heal land ravaged by deforestation. How meaningful? According to a recent UN Foresight Brief on climate change,
“…It is of the utmost importance to stop deforestation and to increase reforestation efforts around the world. Agricultural practices should focus on soil building, year-round soil cover with plants and the use of agroforestry methods.”
That is exactly what we do here at SdV. You can help by helping us do what we do every day: plant forests that nurture soil, people, and community.
Click HERE to donate directly to our reforestation fund OR make a monthly pledge on our Patreon.
About the author
Kristen Krash is the director and co-founder of Sueño de Vida, a regenerative agroforestry farm, education center, nature reserve in Ecuador’s Chocó Andino Cloudforest. Prior to moving, Kristen was known for her guerrilla gardens — productive green spaces she created in any available space. Now an urban transplant in the South American rain forest, she has adapted her urban gardening and sustainability skills to large-scale reforestation of degraded land. She takes a practical and accessible approach to helping others achieve more balance and self-sufficiency in their lives.
Kristen’s articles and interviews have been featured on popular sustainability platforms like Abundant Edge and The Mud Home, and in the Rainforest Regeneration Curriculum at the Ecological Restoration Camps.