I dreamed up this recipe and idea! Yes, I actually conjured it in my sleep! I was dreaming about whizzing nuts and cocoa in a blender with some oil to make a nut-choccy sort of spread, reminiscent of Nutella, and it turned out super-tasty. So the minute I got up, I tried it out while I was making my first cup of tea of the day!
Okay. So the end results are not really like a creamy, chocolate spread, as my dream intended. It has turned out more like a thick, spreadable brownie, hence the name, but very versatile. Yes, you can use this as a spread for toast, crumpets and sandwiches - it's dense, but delicious. Just gooey, sticky, sweet, chocolately, nutty heaven, really!
And you could also use it as a dessert. All you have to do is place into the bottom part of a sundae or martini glass, and top with vegan whipped cream or coconut cream (easy to make - just place a can of coconut milk in the fridge for 24 hours, then scoop the thick cream off the top. Whisk with icing sugar, if you like) and a cherry.
Make a vegan knickerbocker glory of it by adding chopped banana, vegan ice-cream and strawberry sauce - if you want! For my dessert here, I actually used vegan 'clotted cream' that I bought from Devonshire Klotted Kream.
And, the best bit, you can form yummy choccie-nut truffles from it too, maybe even adding a bit of rum or whiskey as well, for some umph. These are probably relatively 'healthy' as far as truffles go, aside from the maple syrup.
All you have to do to make them is just roll the brownie mixture into balls, and then roll each ball in icing sugar, cocoa powder, dessicated coconut as desired, to make delicious petis fours!
The recipe that I give you here fills about a third of a small Kilner jar - probably just under. As a single person living alone, it's enough for me to use over a week or so making little treats for myself (it seems to keep a while - though I haven't tested it's 'use by' point!). And also - this amount would be enough to make four sundae-style desserts, using martini glasses.
But if you're a family - it will go in seconds, I'm sure, so double up at least! Your kids will love this and you will too, so make sure you get to try it before they get their mitts on it.
All this versatility, from a recipe that's too simple to be true! But just in case I haven't given you enough ideas on how to use this recipe, you could, of course, just be rather naughty and scoop it from the jar to eat as it is. I won't tell anyone, I promise.
May I ask one thing too? If you make it, PLEASE tell me about it and post a comment below, your feedback is what makes this blog worth doing for me :) Also - I would love to hear your ideas for other ways of using this recipe!
(PS. UPDATE! You can also try adding a teaspoon of vanilla extract for some extra depth of flavour, or a different essence or extract - though below is the original recipe).
Brownie-In-A-Jar
Makes about 1 cup
¼ cup walnuts
¼ cup almonds
¼ cup cashews
¼ cup cocoa powder
¼ cup maple syrup
3 tablespoons sunflower oil
1. In a blender, grind all the nuts together until well-milled, although some pieces are fine. Pulse in the cocoa powder, and then the maple syrup and sunflower oil (you may use more or less oil, depending on the thickness desired).
2. You will need to scrape down the sides and stir a few times, to blend everything well. Once ready transfer the raw brownie mixture into a Kilner-style jar and store in the refrigerator until required.
PLEASE let me know if you make and like it!
I'm Andrea, and am obsessed with creating fabulous food. After I managed to ditch dieting, the reason Chocolate and Beyond was born, it seemed natural to evolve my site into a foodie blog. More so since I also ditched animal produce to be vegan. Now, I love showing how inventive cruelty-free cooking can be. And sometimes I like to rant, too. I wouldn't be myself otherwise :) x
Looks yummy!!! I going to HAVE to try it!
Posted by: Katie Knott | April 10, 2013 at 11:03 AM
Katie it is SOOOOOO easy there is absolutely no excuse :D Thanks so much for your comment, and please come back to let me know what you think!
Posted by: Andrea - Chocolate and Beyond | April 10, 2013 at 11:15 AM
Can't wait to try this! Thank you!!
p.s. I'll let you know how it goes.
Posted by: Sara | April 10, 2013 at 06:52 PM
Andrea, I've just made the mixture and I don't know how long it'll survive in the fridge because it is delish! Gonna make some truffles with it later. Thanks for this recipe, it is so quick and easy. xx
Posted by: Carolyn Casey | April 11, 2013 at 10:30 AM
@Carolyn - I'm so pleased to hear you have made it and enjoyed. It is hard to be believe such yummy results come such an incredibly easy recipe, hey? Have fun eating it!
@Sara - I'm waiting to hear from you! :)
Posted by: Andrea - Chocolate and Beyond | April 11, 2013 at 10:40 AM
I made this using coconut oil instead of sunflower oil, and it's absolutely delicious!
Thanks for posting.
Posted by: MIchal | April 12, 2013 at 01:33 PM
I just made these as truffles, and wow... delicious!! Perfect little ooey, gooey chocolate, walnut brownie truffles. I rolled them in powdered sugar, but will try other options in the future. These would make a lovely gift.
Instead of my blender, I used my food processor, and also used melted coconut oil instead of sunflower oil. I think I could get away with 2 tablespoons of oil next time, as some separated.
Thanks so much for the recipe. Easy, tasty, healthy and impressive: what more could one ask for!?!
Posted by: Sara | April 14, 2013 at 07:41 PM
This is deelish. Can't stop eating!
Posted by: Natalie | April 15, 2013 at 01:30 AM
@Michal - many thanks for commenting and I will try coconut oil myself next time - great suggestion!
@Sara - Thank you for coming back! I'm really glad it was a success for you and you loved it. Next time, I'm DEFINITELY trying coconut oil, too!
@Natalie - Hi! And wonderful to hear you love this recipe!!!
Posted by: Andrea - Chocolate and Beyond | April 15, 2013 at 11:07 AM
I made this yesterday and it was really quick and easy. I used a cheaper version of maple syrup which was about 60% carob, I'm not sure if it was less sweet than proper maple syrup as the overall mixture for me could have been a bit sweeter (I do have quite a sweet tooth). So I added about 8 dates and some vanilla essence which worked really well. I may also have used too much cocoa as I didn't really measure anything properly.
I made the mix into some truffles which accompanied me to perve over Ryan Gosling at the cinema yesterday and have just finished the rest of the mix with some Swedish Glace, chocolate flavour, which was amazing. Great recipe, and so versatile, thanks Andrea!
Posted by: Clare | April 15, 2013 at 08:24 PM
Clare - thank you for your comment! I'm glad you find my recipe the perfect accompaniment to the cinema and Ryan Gosling :) I think the maple syrup I have is just the pure stuff, so yeah, maybe on the sweeter side. But it sounds like you worked it out fine anyhow. I'm really glad you enjoyed!
Posted by: Andrea - Chocolate and Beyond | April 16, 2013 at 09:07 AM
I made a similar concoction with coconut oil, just brought it to room temp and added some cocoa. Of course it's super-rich but you don't need any sweetener because the coconut is so sweet already! Makes a yummy treat by the spoonful, or I bet you could add the nuts, shredded coconut, ect to make another kind of no-bake brownie!!
Posted by: Cyndi | May 17, 2013 at 09:48 PM
Hi Cyndi, thanks so much for your comment and suggestions! I think coconut oil is a popular alternative for this :)
Posted by: Andrea - Chocolate and Beyond | May 18, 2013 at 01:23 PM
Dear Andrea ,
Except for the maple syrup and the oil , I regularly make such 'truffles' or 'logs' . I use organic pure (no added sugar) date "honey" and organic cold pressed coconut oil or
coconut butter . For white "truffles" I use cashew and
skinned almonds with organic agave syrup ( and of course -
no cocoa ). For flavouring I use 'Simply Organic' vanilla &/or 'Simply Organic' almond flavours as well as Drambui liquour and sometimes some instant coffee .
I love maple syrup , but since only Canadian is available
where we live , i've stopped buying it and won't buy
Canadian products till they stop the seal murder .
Best Wishes
Ruth
Posted by: Ruth Sheffi | May 21, 2013 at 03:09 PM
Hi Andrea, Love the no cook aspect! I am going to try this, but with a couple of additions. A pinch of salt and instant coffee granules(regular or espresso). I have found chocolate really likes a bit of salt as a balance to the sweetness and the coffee is to again give it a bit more depth without it standing up and shouting "Here I am!"
Posted by: KD Baldwin | May 22, 2013 at 03:15 AM
@Ruth - oh the date syrup is a good idea, I have some of that in! Thanks for your other suggestions too - I will give some of them a go! And thanks for stopping by :)
@KD Baldwin - coffee granules sounds interesting! Will you please come back and let me know how it turns out? Thank you!
Posted by: Andrea - Chocolate and Beyond | May 22, 2013 at 09:57 AM
Planning to press brownie mix into a small cupcake pan and fill the cups with cream cheese sweetened with stevia, vanilla, and almond extract topped with berries.
Posted by: Leah | June 19, 2013 at 03:32 AM
Sounds lovely Leah! :)
Posted by: Andrea - Chocolate and Beyond | June 21, 2013 at 11:59 AM