Pumpin' Pumpkin Bars-gluten free & vegan!

 

 So we're experimenting with pumpkin this month and found these awesome pumpkin brownies. Unlike another recipe we made with beans (that was more like a pumpkin pie), these turned out more cake-like, soft and moist.  YUM YUM! We adapted this recipe slightly from www.ambitiouskitchen.com taking out the refined sugar.  These freeze awesome and are a total crowd pleaser while being healthy!
    The 2 main components in this recipe are oats & pumpkin, both power houses in terms of nutritional value. Pumpkin is packed with Vitamin A, needed for red blood cell creation, bone and teeth development, and immune health.  Oats are very high in maganese.  Maganese is essential for:

• Help your body utilize several key nutrients such as biotin, thiamin, ascorbic acid, and choline
• Keep your bones/teeth strong and healthy
• Help your body synthesize fatty acids and cholesterol
• Maintain normal blood sugar levels
• Promote optimal function of your thyroid gland
• Maintain the health of your nerves
• Protect your cells from free-radical damage

Source: http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=nutrient&dbid=77

Ingredients:

• *2 1/2 c oat flour (we take 2 1/2 c organic rolled oats and grind them up for a few seconds in our Vitamix/blender and measure out to make sure to have 2 1/2 c flour)
• 1 cup pumpkin
• 1/4 c honey
• 1/4 cup molasses 
• 1/2 c unsweetened applesauce
• 1 tsp coconut oil
• 2 heaping tsp cinnamon (we love cinnamon)
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 or 1/3 c chocolate chips (vegan) + 2 tbsp for top
  

*use certified gluten free oats if needed

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 and spray an 8x8 or 9x9 pan with cooking spray (could make it in a larger pan, but these wouldn't end up as thick, and watch timing if you do so).
2. Make oat flour-by pulsing rolled oats in blender until flour forms
3. Mix wet ingredients together.  Mix dry ingredients (excepts chips) in a separate bowl and gradually add in dry ingredients.
4. Fold in chips and pour into pan
5. Bake for 20 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean. Cool and slice.
   
   
   

Nutritional Benefits:

• Pumpkin: high in beta carotene (Vitamin A): great for immune, bone, teeth and eye health, 1 c-840% of daily needs!
• Oats: high in fiber 1/2 c dry=4 g fiber and maganese (1c=68% of daily value) 
• Low in sugar/no refined sugar
• Low in fat
• Anti-inflammatory
• Anti-oxidant

Nutritional Information (based on 16 squares, but you could easily get 20 out of these)

Calories: 121 (in total recipe: 1938)

Fat: 3.3g (in total recipe: 53g)

Carbs: 21.7g (in total recipe: 347g)

Fiber: 1.8g (in total recipe: 28g)

Protein: 1.7g (in total recipe: 27 g)

Black Bean Brownies

You may be thinking-EWW, black beans in a brownie?! But you will be saying MMM!  These brownies will wow everyone who eats them! While making them, I have to confess, I did lick the bowl clean (that's how good these are!).
What makes these brownies high in protein are (drumroll...) black beans! Yes-I know, I was completely hesitant, and a little bit grossed out at the concept.  But I had heard many people say that they were good.  I looked at various examples, and then designed the recipe below to cut down on the sugar and fat that most of these recipes were high in.  The result, a brownie everyone will love.  Just wait until the pan has been devoured to tell them the ingredients :)

Ingredients:

1 can or 1 3/4 cup of black beans, drained (we make ours from organic dried beans, click here to learn how)

1/2 c of cacao powder 

2 eggs (or flaxseed equivalent for vegan: 2 tbsp flax meal + 5 tbsp water)

1/4 c agave nectar plus 1 tbsp (you can substitute with traditional sugar)

2 tbsp coconut oil (or canola oil)

2 tbsp apple sauce (no sugar)

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp coffee grounds (we saved some from our morning coffee)

2 tsp baking powder 

2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup chocolate chips 

Ingredients in Topping (optional):

2 tbsp unsweetened, shredded coconut 

1 tbsp chocolate chips

Directions:

1) Place all of the above into a food processor, except chocolate chips, adding balsamic last

2) Pour into a bowl and mix in chocolate chips

3) Greese an 8x8 or 9x9 pan and pour in batter

4) Top with additional tablespoon of chocolate chips and unsweetened coconut if desired

5) Bake at 350 for 15 minutes, or until knife inserted comes out clean

**Kids only critique (they still don't know there're black beans in this) is that it needed a little more sugar.  You can up the sugar to 1/2 c of agave.  I think they're perfect as is :)

Nutritional Benefits:

Black Beans: high in protein, a nutrient essential for healing damages tissues, as well as potassium, which aides in nerve conduction

By replacing beans for flour, you are greatly increasing the amount empty calories with high protein, high fiber nutrients.  

Coconut Oil: zero cholesterol, anti-inflammatory, vegan

Agave Nectar: while a sugar, agave nectar has a lower glycemic index, meaning it is more slowly absorbed by the body, decreasing rapid increases in blood sugar like table sugar does

Total Nutrient Values in entire recipe (makes 16-20 servings):

Beans: 

calories: 397

Fat: 1.6g

Protein: 26.7g

Carbohydrates: 71.4g

Fiber: 26.2g

Iron: 35% of daily value

Potassium: 1, 068 mg 

Coconut oil: 

Calories: 260

Fat: 28g 

Agave:

Calories: 300

Carbohydrates: 80g

Eggs:
Calories: 185
Fat: 14g
Protein: 12.5g

Chocolate chips:
Calories: 350
Fat: 22.5g (includes addition on top)
Carbohydrates: 50g

Total Fat in entire recipe: 66g, or 4g per brownie (if making 16 squares)-not too shabby for a brownie!
Total Protein: 39.2g or 2.5g per brownie (if making 16 squares)