I was totally titillated to see Heidi post a recipe for brownies with black beans in them on 101 Cookbooks. You should definitely read the post and check out the recipe and the pretty pictures. At first I was intrigued, and had every intention of trying the recipe as is, but as I read it more closely, I noticed it had a lot of steps. And, it had walnuts in it. (To which I say "blech" unless on a salad or something.) And, the recipe made 45 (!) brownies, which is a lot; I can't eat 45 brownies. And, if I really think about it, I don't even like brownies that much.



So... what to do, what to do? Using the black bean thing as a jumping off point, I decided to create a flourless chocolate cake. Wow. It came out dense yet souffle-like, with a great fudgy texture- and, as promised, there was not even a HINT of black bean taste. So seeing as the first mini-experiment was successful, I'm definitely tempted to try incorporating more bean action into my sweets. Why? No reason, actually, other than the fact that it kinda seems cool and tricky and novel.

This would be a great recipe for someone staying away from simple carbs, since it has no flour and only agave as a sweetener- or someone who wants proteinated dessert items lying around. Highly recommended- give it a try!




Dark Chocolate Flourless Cake... With a Secret Ingredient
I ate it with a dollop of soft homemade whipped cream. Yum!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter
• 3.5 oz dark bittersweet chocolate bar (I used Valrhona Le Noir 85%)
• 1 cup canned black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 Tblsp vanilla
• 2 Tblsp brewed coffee or espresso
• 1/4 tsp salt
• scant 3/4 cup agave nectar
• 1/2 cup almond meal
• 2 eggs

Method:

• Heat oven to 325. Using cooking spray, spray a 9-in cake pan and put a circle of parchment in the bottom and spray, or spray a springform pan.
• Melt the butter and chocolate together in the microwave.
• In a food processor, put the beans, vanilla, coffee, salt, and agave, and process until smooth.
• Add the almond meal and process, then add the chocolate/butter mixture and process.
• Beat the eggs with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes.
• Fold the eggs into the chocolate/bean mixture. Don't overbeat.
• Pour into pan. Bake about 40-45 minutes, until fully set.
• Let cool to room temp, then cover with plastic and chill in the fridge.
• Run a knife along the sides and flip out (not necessary if using a springform.)
• Serve with ice cream.