Avocado and Dark Chocolate Brownie

A friend asked me what they could do if they had too many avocados to use,and this is what I came up with. I made it for Valentine’s Day this year, and it’s a delicious recipe for whenever you have too many avocados.

These brownies have a lovely deep velvety richness and a delicious texture, very popular!

Tip: When your avocados are ready to eat, keep them in the fridge as they will last longer. You can also freeze avocados so you can enjoy their health benefits out of season – they make a wonderful addition to smoothies (or you can save them for these brownies!).

Handy tip: You can also serve these brownies warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Try the ‘Fast Ice Cream’ recipe in my cookbook, Waste Not Want Not, which is out in bookstores now.

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Avocado and Dark Chocolate Brownie

You Will Need:
20cm x 20cm (approx.) baking dish, lined (or oiled with olive oil)

Electric mixer (or a whisk, bowl and a good arm)

Wooden Spoon or Spatula

Sieve

This recipe makes 16 brownies.

Ingredients

1 medium-size ripe avocado, halved lengthwise, stone and skin removed (add stone and skin to compost)

¼ cup olive oil

2 large eggs, free range if possible

½ cup maple syrup (or you can substitute for sugar – coconut sugar works well)

1 tsp vanilla extract

¼ cup flour (I use white spelt flour)

¾ cup cocoa powder (I use Dutch-processed cocoa powder, which gives these brownies a rich dark chocolate flavour)

½ tsp salt

⅓ cup dark chocolate chips

½ cup frozen raspberries

½ tbs icing sugar (for dusting – optional)

Method:

Preheat the oven to fan bake 180°C.

Combine the avocado, oil, eggs, maple syrup and vanilla extract in an electric mixer or bowl. Mix well until smooth, with no lumps.

Place a sieve over the mixing bowl and sift in the flour and cocoa powder.

Add the salt to the bowl and mix well.

Fold in the chocolate chips with a spoon.

Pour the brownie batter into the prepared baking dish, using a spatula to spread the mixture evenly.

Poke the frozen raspberries into the batter – because I made these on Valentine’s Day, I created a love heart with the raspberries!

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until an inserted skewer comes out clean.

Cool for an hour before removing from the baking dish (although if you’re tempted to sneak a piece, I suggest you do – they’re divine warm).

If you wish, use a sieve to dust icing sugar over your brownies.

Cut into about 16 squares, and serve with strong coffee or red wine.