[ Equipment: food dehyrator or low-temperature-capable convection oven, an 8-inch square cake pan. For more information about the terminology in this recipe, see Low Temperature Baking: A Journey of 3 Paths ].
These semi-raw, moist, chewy brownies scented of mint and lavender have been packed with grains, fresh and dried fruits and nuts, but weigh in at less than 1/2 the calories and 1/5 the fat of commercial raw brownies made from date and nut pastes. The solid leavener (puffed rice squares cereal) transforms the oat flour dough into a pseudo-cake with a soft, coarse crumb. It's also the only non-raw ingredient and could be omitted to make 100% raw brownies.
It was my first dehydrated cake. In raw cuisine, a cake is constructed from layers of date and nut pastes, often chilled or frozen for firm slicing. I wanted a cake with a lighter texture, however. Plus, a cake on VaporBaker should be baked; chilled cakes didn't truly qualify. The raw cookie doughs from my earlier dehydration recipes would be too firm or crumbly to fashion into cakes. They had binders of a nut or legume butter sweetened with honey or a syrup, binders that broke apart too easily for a chewy-type brownie.
For this recipe, I coarsely ground oatmeal in a food processor to make oat flour in a ratio of 1-1/4 cup oatmeal per 1 cup of oat flour. A maple syrup, raisin and banana puree formed a very flexible binder, because the hydrophilic fruits dehydrated slowly into a sticky adhesive. A large banana alone pureed with the syrup could probably have held the cake together as well, but the raisins helped darken the binder to blend well with the cocoa.
The brownies can be made without a leavener, but puffed rice squares substantiated the texture by adding volume without impacting the taste. Regular puffed rice cereal (individually puffed grains of rice) might not work as well as the squares, which trap more air in the dough. Do not substitute a puffed grain containing gluten (such as puffed wheat or puffed kamut). The gluten stretches too much when moist for a rubbery mouth feel.
I've been experimenting with low-fat, low sugar ingredients, but only recently extended that paradigm to dehydrated pastries. Alternative no-calorie sweeteners like sucralose didn't behave like sugar other than as a sweetener. For example, the sugar-free maple syrup from Maple Grove Farms (the only brand in my local market) lacked the body and tack of regular syrup, so I left it to the banana-raisin puree to supply both flavor and adhesion for the dough. For those who avoid sucralose and all the other alternative sweeteners, I have also given sugar-based options.
The perforations in the dough helped speed the evaporation of moisture. The brownies are heated at a relatively high temperature of 150°F/65.5°C for the first hour to warm up the dough quickly and reduce the overall dehydration time (less than 3 hours total). Those with more time could dehydrate at 125°F/51.7°C throughout.
Although these brownies must refrigerated because they contain fresh fruit and will spoil at room temperature, they will harden when chilled. A few minutes in the dehydrator brings them back to life.
Makes 12 servings
- 100 calories/3g fat per serving
- Oven Temperature: 125-150°F/51.7-65.5°C
- 2 cups coarsely-ground oat flour (see text)
- 1/2 tablespoon lavender flowers
- 1 teaspoon crushed mint leaves
- 1/2 cup natural cocoa powder
- 2/3 cup sucralose-sweetened maple syrup or dark agave syrup (see text)
- 4 packets powdered sucralose or 1/8 cup sugar
- 1 medium banana
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon finely ground coffee bean or instant coffee
- 1 cup puffed rice squares cereal (Rice Chex)
- 1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds (optional)
232 cal/15 g fat
1. Cover raisins, lavender flowers and mint leaves in hot water and soak about 1 hour or until plump. Drain, reserving raisins, lavender flowers and mint. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, mix oat flour (w/lavender), salt, cocoa powder until well combined.
3. In a blending cup, puree maple syrup, raisin mixture, vanilla extract, salt, coffee powder and sucralose with an immersion blender until smooth (or do this in a blender).
4. Add banana, cut into small chunks, and blend until smooth. Total volume should be around 1-1/2 cups.
5. Pour wet ingredients into flour mixture and stir until moistened.
6. Stir in sunflower seeds.
7. Add puffed rice squares cereal and stir gently until evenly distributed. Try to avoid crushing the cereal.
8. Grease 8-inch square pan. Press dough into the pan. With 1/8 inch skewer, perforate the dough through to the bottom of the pan at 1/2-inch intervals.
9. Dehydrate at 150°F/65.5°C for 1 hour. Reduce heat to 125°F/51.7°C and dehydrate for another 1-1/2 to 2 hours. Brownies should be firm, moist but not soggy. Score into 12 squares.
Store brownies in an air-tight container in the refrigerator. Warm them before serving.
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