And this nutrient-rich comes from nature's dessert...fruit. Now granted, you can't eat 12 of them at a time, unless you really want to! And given how good they taste, you probably will. Vasudha Viswanath who wrote the new cookbook Vegetarian Reset, stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about her many recipes, all of which play a role in helping to "reset" your metabolism. And even if you are on a diet, you have to make room for dessert. Vasudha told Tonia about her Hazelnut Brownie, which she says was inspired by Nutella. But the sweetness here comes from dates, with the hazelnut flavor from hazelnut butter. These brownies are natural, full of fiber and oh...so delicious!
15–20 pitted mejdool dates (12 oz/340g)
1 cup/240ml hot water
4 eggs, beaten
1 cup/224g hazelnut butter or other nut butter (no sugar or additional oil added)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup/112g blanched almond flour
1 cup/86g unsweetened cocoa powder (I use Valrhona for an intense dark color)
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
Directions
Step 1. Immerse the dates in hot water, cover, and let sit, for 10–15 minutes. Drain and reserve the water. In the carafe of a food processor or blender, blend the dates with 1/2 cup/120ml of the
reserved water until smooth. You can add more water from the remaining reserved water as needed, 1 tablespoon at a time.
Step 2. Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C.
Step 3. In a large bowl, whisk together the beaten eggs, hazelnut butter, vanilla extract, and date paste until smooth. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt.
Step 4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients gradually, mixing well until fully incorporated.
Step 5. Grease an 8-x-8-x-1 1/2 in/20-x-20-x-4-cm baking pan or casserole dish and pour in the batter. Bake for 18–22 minutes (see cooking notes).
Step 6. Let cool for 30 minutes. Slice into 16 rectangles and serve.
You may need to run a butter knife around the edges to loosen.
Cooking Notes
For a fudgy brownie that you need to eat with a spoon, bake for 18–20 minutes. Bake for 20–22 minutes for a brownie you can hold.
Halve the recipe for an 81/2-x-41/2-x-21/2 inch/21-x-11-x-6-cm loaf pan. These freeze beautifully, too! You can freeze the whole slab or cut it in half. Wrapped in plastic wrap, the baked brownies will keep for up to 3 months in the freezer. The date paste keeps well in the fridge for about 10 days and in the freezer for up to 3 months.
To Veganize
Use ½ cup + 1 Tbsp/135ml aquafaba (soaking liquid from a can of chickpeas) in place of the eggs, and 2 tsp baking powder.
Reprinted with permission from THE VEGETARIAN RESET by Vasudha Viswanath, The Collective Book Studio, January 2023.
Photo credit Alexandra Shytsman
