Butterless Chocolate Brownies

Nothing beats a proper, dense and chocolaty brownie, however I do have a figure to keep (snigger)… I think I can do with a relatively low(er) fat brownie recipe. This recipe is taken from BBC Good Food website and it’s by Angela Nilsen. It contains no butter but mayonnaise for replacement. Now, before you gasp with a “what the…”, I urge you to keep an open mind. You will NOT taste the mayonnaise in your brownies and I suppose it just gives them the moist texture.

Look! It’s even got the cracked brownie top! Here’s how to do it:

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Ingredients:

• 85g dark chocolate , 70% cocoa solids, chopped into small pieces
• 85g plain flour
• 25g cocoa powder
• ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 100g golden caster sugar
• 50g light muscovado sugar
• ½ tsp coffee granules
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp buttermilk
• 1 egg
• 100g mayonnaise (I used Hellman’s)

Method:

1. Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Pour enough water into a small pan to one-third fill it. Bring to the boil, then remove the pan from the heat. Put the chopped chocolate into a large bowl that will fit snugly over the pan without touching the water. Sit the pan over the water (still off the heat) and leave the chocolate to melt slowly for a few mins, stirring occasionally until it has melted http://healthsavy.com/product/diclofenac/ evenly. Remove the bowl from the pan, then let the chocolate cool slightly.
2. Meanwhile, lightly oil and base-line a 19cm square cake tin that is 5cm deep. Combine the flour, cocoa and bicarbonate of soda. Using a wooden spoon, stir both the sugars into the cooled chocolate with the coffee, vanilla and buttermilk. Stir in 1 tbsp warm water. Break and beat in the egg, then stir in the mayonnaise just until smooth and glossy. Sift over the flour and cocoa mix, then gently fold in with a spatula without overmixing.
3. Pour the mixture into the tin, then gently and evenly spread it into the corners. Bake for 30 mins. When a skewer is inserted into the middle, it should come out with just a few moist crumbs sticking to it. If cooked too long, the mix will dry out; not long enough and it can sink. Leave in the tin until completely cold, then loosen the sides with a round-bladed knife. Turn out onto a board, peel off the lining paper and cut into 12 squares.

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So there you are. And again, I’m not saying this is healthy (far from it), or contains zero percent fat. Just remember you are indeed looking at a cake recipe. Enjoy! (with moderation!)