Dark Chocolate Brownie Bites

What could be better than these rich, dense (portion-controlled) brownie bites? I needed an easy dessert for a Sunday lunch AND a little treat for my husband to take into work with him for a birthday celebration. These dark chocolate brownie bites hit all the right marks, and they had the added bonus of being super easy to make and they’re dairy free!

Brownie Bites

Makes 12 muffin-tin sized brownie bites.

Ingredients

• 1 cup (divided) dairy-free dark chocolate chips, I use Ghirardelli’s 60% cacoa

• 1/2 cup coconut oil

• 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

• 1 teaspoon vanilla

• 1/2 teaspoon powdered espresso or instant coffee

• 2 large eggs

• 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour

• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Equipment

• 12 cup muffin tin

• 12 tin liners, these are my favorite (If you Care)

Who’s going to lick the spatula in your house?

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 F, check to ensure rack is in the middle of your oven. Place muffin/cupcake liners in your 12 cup muffin tin, set aside.

In a microwave-safe medium bowl, combine 1/2 cup chocolate chips with the coconut oil. Microwave in 30 second increments until both ingredients are melted. Whisk until smooth. To the melted chocolate mixture, whisk in the brown sugar, vanilla and instant espresso until combined. Whisk in the eggs.

In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Gently fold the flour mixture into the chocolate mixture until just combined. Fold in the 1/2 cup reserved chocolate chips.

Using an ice cream scoop, or spoon, equally portion the brownie mixture into the 12 muffin tin cups.

Bake for 20-24 minutes until just set. My batch takes 21 minutes. Do not over bake! I had a hint of par-baked batter remaining on my toothpick tester. Slightly under-baking the brownie bites gives the insides a super moist, dense crumb. The brownies will continue to bake once you pull them from the oven. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then serve warm, or at room temperature. Will keep for up to 3 days in an airtight container.

Crackly tops and dense centered brownie bites!

For my keto-friends, I have listed the macros for just one of these beauties. Swapping the Ghirardelli chips with Lily’s stevia sweetened chocolate chips ups the fiber content, but they are still high in carbs. Still, these brownie bites are a nice treat every once in a while!

Macros, for one brownie bite, using the Ghirardelli chocolate chips:

• Protein: 2.6g

• Carbs: 28.4g

• Fiber: 1.3g

• Sugar: 25.5g

• Fat: 18g
  

Sesame Almond Crackers

I had a hankering for crispy crunchy sesame filled crackers that were keto-friendly and gluten free. The starting point recipe omitted any fat beyond the egg, but the addition of some extra virgin olive oil bumped up the flavor and texture, taking these crackers from okay to fantastic. Everything Bagel seasoning (I like Trader Joe's version) has black and white sesame seeds, poppy seeds, caraway seeds, onion, garlic and salt. This everything spice makes the cracker work with a variety of different dips or toppings. I like to stack them with a piece of Cabot colby jack and a slice of pepperoni!

Rolling out the cracker dough.

Sesame Almond Crackers

Makes approximately 6 dozen (1" x 1") crackers

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cup almond flour
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Everything Bagel seasoning
• 1 tablespoon hulled sesame seeds

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 F. In a medium bowl combine almond flour with the everything bagel seasoning and extra sesame seeds; stir with a fork to combine. In a small bowl, whisk the egg and olive oil until combined. Pour the egg mixture into the almond flour mixture and stir until it forms into a ball. Place the dough between two sheets of parchment paper and flatten with your hands, creating a rectangular shape. Use a rolling pin to flatten the crackers as much as possible. Carefully pull back the top layer of parchment, and place the bottom layer with the crackers on your cookie sheet pan. With a pizza cutter (or knife) cut the crackers into 1 x 1 inch squares. I didn't mind the craggy edges, and they still baked up beautifully.

On the center rack, bake the crackers for 6 minutes, then rotate pan 180 degrees and bake another 3-4 minutes. Rotate again and bake for 2 minute increments until golden brown. During the final cooking increments, I ended up pulling a few crackers off from the edges that were very browned. Total cooking time for my oven was 12-14 minutes.

Remove from the oven and let cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to a week. 

MACROS per 10 crackers:

• Calories: 212
• Fat: 19 g
• Carbs: 0 g (3g carbs - 3 g dietary fiber)
• Protein: 7 g
• Sugars: 1 g
• Sodium: 178 g