Chocolately Goodness

It seemed like J had been talking about brownies on a daily basis for the last couple of weeks. With all the talk of brownies in the house, the thought of eating them was beginning to stick with me, too.

Part of the reason it took so long to actually make brownies since first having the idea is because we've been trying to avoid making sweets at home. Yes, I realize that homemade goodies are better than the store bought or commercially made alterntives, but I get (and eat) too many cookies and desserts at work. Many of these sugary goods end up coming home with me, so J's belly gets more than its fair share, too.

Brownies were lingering in our minds for days. Finally, J made some...
It was worth it.

These brownies are super moist. Not so much cakey brownies, but not dry and not very dense, either. It's hard to describe them, except by calling them banana-y, chocolate-y, and delicious!

Super Moist Banana Brownies

Dry Ingredients
3/4 c. sugar
3/4 c. flour
1/3 c. cocoa
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. chocolate chips
Handful of walnuts

Wet Ingredients
1/2 c plain soymilk
2 overripe bananas, mashed
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Mix all of the dry ingredients together, except for the chocolate chips and walnuts. Make a well in the dry mixture, the add the wet ingredients and mix well. When the wet and dry ingredients are mixed together, add the chocolate chips and give one more stir.

Pour brownie mixture into a 9 x 9-inch square pan and sprinkle walnuts on top. Bake brownies at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for around 30 minutes or until done.

As you can see, we only put nuts of half of the brownies (because that's the only way we could agree on it).

Note: Instead of chocolate chips, we actually used half of a bar of vegan dark chocolate that was crushed into small pieces. The dark chocolate was fantastic in the brownie; the pieces melted enough to incorporate into the brownie while giving a bit of resistance that was nice to bite into. The flavor of the dark chocolate also contrasted nicely with the sweeter brownie batter. Whether you use chocolate chips or a crushed chocolate bar, I do recommend using dark chocolate for this added yumminess!

Banchocnut-uffins!

I like to think of this creation as a treat that is not *completely* unhealthy. Though, I wouldn't go as far to calling it a health food, by any means. It's a great way to use up old bananas or to solve a sweet tooth's craving. If you don't want to eat them all at once (or you want to make a double batch), these muffins freeze and re-heat pretty decently. I just microwave them for a few seconds, and then pretend they just came out of the oven!

Banana Chocolate Chip Walnut Muffins

1 c. all purpose flour
1 c. whole wheat flour
1/4 c. cane sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
1 T. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 overripe bananas
1/2 T. vanilla
1/2 c. soymilk
2-3 T. canola oil or non-hydrogenated margarine (such as Earth Balance or Soy Garden)
1/2 c. chocolate chips
1/2 c. chopped walnuts

Mix dry ingredients, mash in bananas, then add wet ingredients. Fold in the chocolate chips and nuts.
Fill muffin pan 2/3 full, and bake at 400 degrees Farenheit for about twenty minutes, or until golden.
Makes about 12 muffins or 6 jumbo muffins.