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Low Carb Brownies with Peanut Butter Chocolate Layer (FM)
Recipes | January 19, 2018
What are FM & WEM recipes?
These brownies are a great choice for a Low Carb as well as Keto lifestyle.
*yields up to 16 brownies
Ingredients for the brownie cake:
100g extra dark chocolate (at least 85% cocoa)
2 eggs
125g unsalted butter
18 drops liquid vanilla flavored stevia
3/4 cup erythritol, powdered (I use Swerve)
1/2 cup + 1 tbsp carob powder
1/4 cup ground chia seeds
1/2 tbsp baking soda
1 tbsp cream of tartar
Peanut Butter / Chocolate Layer:
75g extra dark chocolate (85% cocoa)
4 tbsp unsweetened butter
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tbsp crunchy peanut butter
1 tbsp coconut oil
Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven at 350F and place the rack into the middle. Prepare a 9×9 inch brownie baking pan and line it with a parchment paper. It’s ok if the paper is sticking out – it will be easy to grab and remove the cake from the pan when it’s done.
2. Break the chocolate into smaller pieces and place it into a mixing bowl. Then add the butter and place the mixing bowl over a pot with simmering water. Just make sure that the bottom of the bowl is not touching the pot – it should be just sitting in the water or right above the water. In other words the mixing bowl should be round and slightly wider than the pot. When the butter and chocolate melts, make sure to stir well to combine.
3. Place the eggs, stevia and erythritol into a mixer and turn on low to combine. Then add the melted chocolate and dry ingredients. Be careful with the carob powder – it will make a big cloud if you just dump it into the bowl. Add it slowly and keep the mixer on low at first, you can turn it on high when the dry ingredients are incorporated.
4. Spread the thick batter into the parchment paper lined pan and bake in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes. Let it cool down and then lift the brownie cake out of the pan with the parchment paper.
5. Make the chocolate layer. Break the chocolate into really small pieces. Pour the heavy cream into a small sauce pan and bring it to simmer. Then pour the heavy cream into a bowl over the pieces of chocolate and butter and let it sit for a minute. Stir until combined and glossy. Add the coconut oil and peanut bitter and mix well until combined. Let it cool down until it thickens, then spread over the brownies. Place in the fridge until the chocolate has hardened.
6. Cut into 16 equal portions. Keep refrigerated, enjoy at room temperature.
Macros Per Brownie:
Calories: 565
Carbs: 9.2 g
Net Carbs: 6 g
Fat: 58.1 g
Protein: 5.3 g
Private Member |
Chocolate and peanut butter= 😍😍 my favorite!!! These look amazing I can’t wait to try them! ❤️😬
Private Member |
caseyville, illinois
Favorite!
Private Member |
seattle, washington
If eggs how many? I’m figuring a dozen…😂 is it fair that you edit eggs in and not say something… ???
Private Member |
Are the chia seeds measured before they’re ground, or after? Also, is it 1 Tablespoon of cream of tartar? Or is it supposed to be 1 tsp? I don’t really use it so I’m not sure what the affects are. 🙂
Private Member |
ft. lauderdale, fl, usa
Baked this yesterday (on a fast day, duh), I used 2 eggs and measured the seeds after I’ve ground them. It took at least 30 minutes to bake, the consistency of the dough was pretty much liquid until the 30 minute mark, even though the batter itself was very thick before baking.
The brownies are good but so very much sweet, I’ll be using less sweetener next time. My hubby refused to eat them saying that they’re not real brownies 😀 he’s a low carb hater.
Private Member |
melbourne, victoria, australia
Thanks Nicole, as I am not a fan of sweet things your comment is much appreciated 😀
Private Member |
ft. lauderdale, fl, usa
Happy to help 🙂
Private Member |
woodbridge, virginia, usa
Hey Z, I’ve been waiting for this here recipe!…but I just starting the Shred & Glow Plant based meal plan, so I might have to continue to wait, unlesssssss is it okay to eat them?
Private Member |
Hi Zuzka..can you do a Keto meal plan too please? 😉😊😉 Since I don’t know from where to start. Thanks
Private Member |
ontario, ca
Yes a keto plan would be great!
Private Member |
berkel en rodenrijs, netherland
That would be awesome…
Private Member |
lake tahoe, nv, usa
I’ll put something together 🙂
Private Member |
Yupeeeee 🙂
Private Member |
walnut creek, california, united states
Z, are these the brownies mentioned in today’s Monday Motivation with Jacqui ?
Private Member |
what can i substitute for the swerve? i prefer more natural sweetness …. honey, maple syrup, stevia….even xylitol…
Private Member |
Amy…. Swerve is erythritol and the same kind of sweetener as xylitol (sugar alcohol) I totally get what your saying, but sugar is sugar even if it comes from natural sources. Now if you have fiber with that sugar it’s better. I enjoy maple syrup to sweetened stuff , but there are 48 grams of sugar in 1/4 cup. 4tbsp is equal to 1/4 cup. 4 grams is equal to 1 teaspoon of sugar….. Anyway my idea to counter this much sugar in my baked goods is use half of the natural sweetener (honey or maple syrup) and the other half with stevia. I enjoy swerve which is just erythritol and I use flavored stevia sometimes.
Private Member |
Hi Amy, another option may be coconut sugar (which is dry like swerve or sugar), it has a lower glycemic index and contains some nutrients so it is better than refined sugar. However, I think carb wise it is not better than normal sugar. It is used in a lot of keto/paleo recipes that I cook with. You could use honey or maple syrup but that might change the consistency as they’re liquids, and of course add more carbs. If I substitute sugar with honey or maple syrup I usually use half the amount, so here I would use about 1/3 cup instead of 3/4 cups. I haven’t tried it though!
On a side note, does anyone know Zuzka’s opinion on honey and maple syrup (or if you read this Zuzka, what is your opinion :-))? I have asked before and looked for articles on the site but couldn’t find anything detailed. They are often used in the paleo (not keto) recipes I cook with and I’ve read in multiple articles that while the are “carb heavy”, they do have benefits (and therefore in my opinion is ok to eat occasionally). Honey is also absorbed easier by the body, doesn’t raise the blood sugar levels like normal sugar and has vitamins and anti-inflammatory properties, and maple syrup also contains certain vitamins (I don’t use it often though). So unless I am following a strict low carb diet I would always prefer to use either over sweeteners.
Private Member |
portland, me
Zuzka,
I’ve been using birch xylitol as a sweetener. Is there a benefit to substituing with eryrithritol?
Thank you for sharing your health and fitness knowledge.
Rene
Private Member |
lake tahoe, nv, usa
Hi Rene, the reason I use erythritol instead is because xylitol can cause more of a stomach irritation. Not for everyone but apparently more than E.
However I started using monk fruit sweetener which doesn’t have these side effects – I think that’s better than both of these.
That said if xylitol is ok for you, then you can use it too.