The perfect brownie should be dense, fudgey and supremely chocolatey, and if it’s really special, there will be nuts, lots of nuts. These brownies have got it all; they’re chewy, crunchy, moist, chocolatey and taste oh-so-naughty. Based on this highly scientific equation, I don’t think it is unreasonable to call these the perfect brownie.
The best brownies have extra chunks of chocolate thrown in too, so I added some dairy-free chocolate chips, and then dipped them in melted Rawr Chocolate Goji Chunks, because there is no such thing as too much chocolate.
Rawr Chocolate produces bags of broken pieces of their Goji and Vanilla chocolate bars, a bit like Cadbury ‘Mishshapes’, which are perfect for using in your own recipes. Rawr suggest drizzling it over fruit and desserts; melting it into milk for a decadent hot chocolate; using it on top of homemade raw bars or in baking, or you could even melt and reshape it to make your own chocolate treats!
The lovely people at Rawr are actually offering these big bags of chocolatey chunks at a discounted rate online for a limited time, so go and grab a bag before they go!
I have a secret ingredient that I have added to these raw brownies that make them taste extra special, something that gives the flavour a warmth and depth that helps to bring out the flavour of the goji berries in the rich dark chocolate. What is this secret ingredient? Cinnamon. You might think that’s quite a weird thing to add to a chocolate brownie, but I promise you it makes such a different to the taste, as it pairs perfectly with the rich flavour of the cacao and the pecans, and lifts the sweetness of the goji berries from the darkness of the raw chocolate.
I made these bars as a little treat for my parents, who are ever-so slightly mad, and who competed in a 21 mile race against horses deep in the heart of the Valley’s in Wales this weekend. Needless to say, after an afternoon spent scrambling up and down mountains, through rivers, all whilst being eaten alive by midges, these brownies were greatly appreciated, as they will be by your friends and family too. That is, if you manage not to eat them all yourself first; although it would be totally understandable, and no one would blame you if you didn’t!. I mean, just look at those big juicy, goji berries, and those generous chunks of macadamia and pecans nuts, topped off with rich Rawr chocolate.
These brownies seriously impressed my parents and their friends, who assumed they must’ve been super complicated and tricky to make because they look and taste so damn good, but the best thing is all you really need is a food processor and a mixing bowl and you are already half-way to brownie heaven.
Firstly, process your walnuts until you have a chunky flour that looks something like mine below. Don’t go crazy and blitz your walnuts into dust, you want them to still have a bit of crunch and texture.
Give your dates a little whirl around in the processor to turn them into a sticky dough, then add the cacao and pulse until all the ingredients are combined as below.
Get those oats, goji berries, nuts, cinnamon and vanilla involved in the party by throwing them in a big bowl with the cacao/walnut mixture. Give everything a good stir until everything has mingled and combined into a big delicious mess.
The glue that binds all of these glorious ingredients together is a heavenly combination of almond butter and maple syrup (you’re welcome!), which you should gently melt together in a bowl over a pot of boiling water. You don’t want to heat the maple syrup and almond butter, instead you are just adding a bit of heat to encourage them to mix together properly. Once they have formed a silky smooth paste, pour them over the brownie mixture, and stir well until everything in the bowl has formed one big, harmonious mass of chocolate brownie deliciousness. Just look at how moist and fudgey they are!
Once the brownie has hardened and been cut into bars, gently melt some Rawr Goji Chocolate Chunks in a bain-marie and dunk your bars in until they have a generous coating of delicious raw chocolate around one end.
- ¾ cup (75g) walnuts
- 1 cup (90g) oats (can use GF alternative)
- ⅓ cup (32g) pecans
- ⅓ cup (47g) macadamia
- 12 Medjool dates (1.5 cup/200g)
- ½ cup (118g) cacao powder
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- 3 Tbsp goji berries
- 2-3 Tbsp dairy-free chocolate chips
- ¼ cup (60ml) maple syrup
- ¼ cup (25g) almond butter
- ¾ cup 80g 'Rawr' Goji and Vanilla Chocolate Chunks
- Process walnuts in a food processor until they turn into a coarse, but floury mixture. You don't want huge pieces, but you don't want it to be powder either. Remove from the processor and keep it in a separate bowl whilst you complete the next step.
- Add dates and process until sticky doughy consistency is achieved, mine always end up rolling into a big ball at this point.
- Throw your walnuts and cacao powder in to the food processor and pulse until they are well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Place the mixture in a large mixing bowl, then add the nuts, goji berries, chocolate chips, vanilla and cinnamon and stir until combined using a wooden spoon.
- Pulse the oats in a blender until they are a coarse flour. You don't want it to be powder, you want some large pieces left. Then stir the oats into the mixture with the other ingredients to combine.
- Over a pan of hot water (bain-marie) melt the maple syrup and almond butter until they form a smooth liquid. Then pour this over your brownie mixture and stir until combined.
- Then transfer brownie mixture to a dish lined with greaseproof paper so they can be lifted out easily. Place in the freezer for 15-20 minutes to firm up.
- Remove bars from the freezer, and chop into bar shapes, or whatever shape floats your boat!
- Place roughly 50g of your 'Rawr' Goji and Vanilla Chocolate Chunks into a bowl over a pan of boiling water and melt. You can dip your bars into this chocolate in whatever way you please.
- Place the chocolate covered bars on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper, and place in the fridge for 15 minutes to harden.
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looks absolutely delish!!! yumyy
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