On my last post, I wrote about our goal to eat healthier. Without “gittin’ all up in ar bidness” (thanks, Kelli), we are just trying to eat heart friendly.
I know, I know…you probably could not tell that by all the chocolate posts, Tavolo cooking classes and the recent raspberry muffins. (At least I posted a healthy salad most recently.)
But as we segue away from butter, I am posting two recipes today—my previous “go-to” brownies that are a whiz to whip up and another healthier version of the same recipe.
My Go-To Brownies (The Unhealthy Version)
2 sticks butter
2 c. sugar
2 t. pure vanilla
4 farm fresh large eggs
3/4 c. cocoa
1 c. flour
1/2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. fine sea saltIn a 8 quart glass measuring cup (or other microwavable mixing bowl), melt butter. Stir in sugar and vanilla. Add eggs one at a time, stirring well after each. Add cocoa ; stir until blended.
Add flour, baking powder and salt. Stir well. Pour into a prepared 9″x9″ baking pan. Bake 30-35 minutes or until brownies pull away slightly from side of pan.
I think I originally found this basic brownie recipe on the side of a Hershey’s cocoa canister. You can omit the vanilla and add butter pecan flavoring with chopped nuts. Delicious. One of my mom’s variations is to remove them hot from the oven and sprinkle Andes mint chips on top, allowing them to melt and then spreading them out with a spatula. Yum! I have added everything from chocolate chips to trail mix to this recipe. It is perfect every time.
But now for the new experiment:
Coconut-Pecan Brownie Bites
1/2 c. coconut oil
1 c. sugar
1 t. pure vanilla
2 farm fresh large eggs
6 T. cocoa
1/2 c. flour
1/4 t. baking powder
1/8 t. fine sea salt
1/4 c. reduced fat unsweetened coconut (finely shredded for baking
1/4 c. pecans, choppedIn a 8 quart glass measuring cup (or other microwavable mixing bowl), melt coconut oil. Stir in sugar and vanilla. Add eggs one at a time, stirring well after each. Stir until well blended.
In a separate small mixing bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, salt and cocoa powder. Add dry ingredients to the coconut oil/sugar/egg mixture. Stir well. Use a small cookie scoop and fill prepared mini-muffin tins (1/2 full). Bake 12-15 minutes or until brownies pull away slightly from side of pan.
Makes 2 dozen mini brownie bites (depending on the size of your tins).
As you can see, this is also a half recipe. Portion control is key ’round here! I also added some coconut and pecans to this mix and baked them in mini muffin tins and my silicon brioche pan (just filling the bottom part).
These brownies (whichever version you like) are also my Food ‘n Flix post this month. Glennis at Can’t Believe We Ate is hosting and the film this month is Practical Magic. If I had ever heard of this 1998 film, I have since forgotten. 🙂 The film is based on Alice Hoffman’s novel by the same name. (I really want to read the book now.)
I loved the quirky aunts (I want to be eccentric and wear Victorian dress when I get old) and the premise of the film: embrace who you are.
My darling girl, when are you going to understand that being normal is not a virtue. It rather denotes a lack of courage. —Aunt Fran (Stockard Channing) to Sally (Sandra Bullock)
Sally just wants to be normal and vows early on never to fall in love (due to a family curse dating back to colonial times). That is why she casts a spell only to fall in love with an impossible match:
He can ride a pony backwards….He can flip pancakes in the air. He’ll be marvelously kind. And his favorite shape will be a star. And he’ll have one green eye and one blue. —a young Sally (Bullock)
Because this imagined “true love” could never exist, she will never have to bother with love. Enter Gary Hallet (Aidan Quinn). Bet you can guess what color eyes his character has.
I knew I had to make brownies too. Brownies (and chocolate cake) seemed to be the “go-to” breakfast in the Owens’ household. That is until Gary arrives to flip up some cactus-shaped pancakes in the air.
If you have not seen this film, I would recommend it for a lazy afternoon or a rainy day. Sandra Bulluck and Nicole Kidman look so young and you also get to see a very young Evan Rachel Wood as one of Bulluck’s daughters, Goran Visnjic before his ER stint, and Margo Martindale way before Justified.
Sally ultimately embraces her many talents and finds courage in her not-so-normal family. By the end of the film she has a successful botanical beauty product business, has found acceptance from the other town mothers and has found her one true love—that backward-pony-riding, pancake flipping marshal with a star.
Here is Sally’s advice and the last line of the film:
Always throw spilled salt over your left shoulder. Keep rosemary by your garden gate. Add pepper to your mashed potatoes. Plant roses and lavender, for luck. Fall in love whenever you can.
And, I will add, enjoy healthier brownies in moderation.
Thanks for hosting, Glennis!
Haha these look delish but the unhealthy version please 😉
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Seriously, you must try the coconut oil version. I know YOU will love them.
Why You are welcome! 🙂 I really like these brownie bites and one of the kids will do anything for them – since his birthday is coming up, I’m going to make them for him!
Thanks for getting my Okie dialectical spelling correct! 🙂 I don’t know really how healthy these were because we almost polished off the entire batch yesterday during a kitchen remodeling project (but, I could still bake!)
These ARE magical! I love baking with coconut oil. I also love slathering it on my hands like lotion. Then I smell myself all day long. What? No judging!
I know! My mom keeps some out for the nephews who love to put it on chapped lips. Since they live in the frigid North, they go through a lot of it.
And, you’ll get no judgment from me!
Sorry I missed this movie, I did nit know Aiden Quinn was in it. Love him!
The coconut pecan brownies intrigue me. I like that tropical twist with my beloved chocolate. Mmmm
I know, Tina. I don’t know how I missed it in ’98. I love Aiden Quinn too, ever since Desperately Seeking Susan!
I must try one with coconut! They don’t look unhealthy at all :-))
Let’s just say they’re healthier than the former recipe.
Oh I loved that movie!! Except I thought her husband died really early in the movie but perhaps there’s a happier love ending for her I don’t remember. I do remember the mess of Nicole’s love life! AA! lol. I love that you’re using coconut oil in place of butter–I just adore that stuff!
Spoiler alert. Yes, her first husband dies early on but the aunts spurred that union on with a spell. I really started using it after reading some of your posts. I remember the coffee and coconut lattes.
I love both versions of your brownies, it’s nice to have alternatives to suit your fancy. We love to eat healthy but also have a wonderful time indulging from time to time. Thanks for sharing both!
Thanks, Chris. I do a lot or rationalizing when we indulge. 🙂
Good for you for going healthy. Now that we’re moving into warmer weather, B and I are back to lighter meals and less baking. Hoping to lose that winter coat. Your healthy brownies look like a great make-over of your go to brownies. They look so cute in the mini muffin shape. Now that you have me craving the sweet brownies, I need to go check out your quinoa salad. Hope you’ve had a great weekend.
Sorry about spurring on a craving. I need to shed that winter coat too!
All my favortie foods in one little bite! I just purchased some coconut oil so I will give this recipe a try!
Let me know what you think. I have been subbing in coconut oil for everything!
I’d bite into your bites with a great deal of joy.
Now that you said that, I could have called these Almond Joy bites if I had used almonds instead of pecans.
Hey,I would considered these very healthy! Chocolate is good for us. How can eggs, vanilla, coconut, and pecans be bad? 😛 As you said, the key is moderation and portion control. 🙂 I love these mini size brownie you prepared. Perfect for an afternoon snack.
I have never tried coconut oil! I must search to see if I can find it here! They look perfect both versions!
[…] at Eliot’s Eats , Debra made her “go to” Coconut-Pecan Brownies to honor the family’s unusual tradition of chocolate cake for breakfast…something […]
It’s been so long since I’ve seen that movie, and I actually didn’t even know it was ever a book. Shame on me, I’m adding that to my reading list. Your bites are adorable 😉
Thanks, Rhonda. It may be my next kindle purchase.
Did your movie really have that whole phrase? Mine didn’t say the pepper in the mashed potatoes or the roses!?
I will take either version, they both sound delicious!
This is actually from the novel. 🙂 You can’t have too much pepper in mashed potatoes.