Vegan Kidney Bean Brownies

Learn how to make the most delicious chocolate brownies made from red kidney beanies. These brownies are fudgy with a crackly top, vegan friendly and extremely addictive, so good you won't even notice the kidney beans (I promise).

I love brownies just like the next person, however a fun fact about me is that I'm a brownie snob.

When it comes to eating brownies, the texture is very important to me.

I don't like brownies that are incredibly fudgy and at the same time I don't like ones that are dry and almost of a cake consistency.

While I was cleaning out my cupboard I stumbled upon 2 cans of red kidney beans and I thought about those few times that I made brownies albeit using black beans.

Legumes are legumes right? Well not quite the same but you know where I'm coming from.

I made a batch of these exact brownies for my guests that came over for dinner and didn't tell them until the serving dish was empty what the hidden ingredient was.

They immediately become intrigued and a few of them ask me to jot down the recipe (which I did because I'm nice like that).

The taste is so foolproof that I promise you wouldn't even know the main ingredient is red kidney beans.

I dare you to try it on any fussy eater and these brownies will pass the test!

Recipe preparation

Now it's time to share this recipe with my loyal and faithful readers. You are going to love these brownies because they are really easy to make.

The kidney beans need to be pulsed, I personally prefer to use my food processor to which I add most of the ingredients (excluding the chocolate chips, chickpea brine).

You want the kidney beans to be of a puree type of consistency so adding the wet ingredients is key to achieving this.

To make this easier, the dry ingredients are added at the same time to make clean up easier and it's also more hassle free.

The consistency doesn't need to be entirely smooth, semi smooth is fine so it's okay to have a few bean pieces here and there.

The mixture is then transferred into a mixing bowl, now is the time to add your vegan chocolate chips.

Stirring them in whole is recommended so the heat will cause them to melt into the brownie mixture at it bakes and yield a more fudgy consistency.

The chickpea brine is whipped up separately into aquafaba, I suggest preparing just before you're ready to use it, so the soft peaks don't deflate too much.

I added a bit of cream of tartar to the brine prior to whipping it up as this helps to stablise it.

You will need to fold in the aquafaba, in a fold and cutting motion. The aquafaba is pseudo egg whites so they mimic the role of what an egg will do.

Ingredients you need

• Kidney beans - these are the star of the show, it's best to use canned ones (in water) and convenience.
• Cacao powder - vegan friendly version of coco powder for the chocolate taste/flavour.
• Almond flour - helps to balance the brownies to they are over fudgy nor too dry.
• Olive oil - all brownies need abit of fat
• Baking powder - to help them rise (a little)
• Vanilla, pink salt/raw cane sugar - for flavour and sweetness
• Chicory - pseudo coffee taste
• Vegan chocolate chips - I rotate vegan chocolate chips and carob chips and both work well.
• Chickpea brine/cream of tartar - to make the pseudo egg whites

Reasons to make this recipe

• Great for people who love brownies
• Perfect for fixing a chocolate craving
• Very quick and easy to make
• A good dietary source of fibre
• The perfect way to sneak in hidden pulse and beans
• Vegan and child friendly

The steps

• Preheat to oven to 180C/356F.
• Grease or line a non stick brownie pan and set aside.
• In a food processor fitted with an S blade, add the kidney beans, olive oil, vanilla, cacao powder, almond flour, raw cane sugar, baking powder and pink salt.

• Pulse into an almost smooth consistency (add a splash of water if needed), it is okay to have a few bean pieces here and there.
• Scoop the brownie mixture out into a medium sized bowl.
• Stir in the vegan chocolate chips and set aside.

• In a small bowl, combine the chickpea brine with the cream of tartar.
• Use an electric hand whisk, to whisk the brine to create soft peaks (this is your aquafaba).
• Scoop the aquafaba into the brownie mixture.
• Fold the aquafaba into the mixture until combined.

• Transfer the mixture into the brownie pan.
• Bake anywhere between 20-35 minutes, (it is difficult to be precise, so you will have to use your own judgement) or until the centre of the brownie no longer jiggles and is set to the touch, the top will have cracks too. If you test the brownies with a toothpick it will come out with some fudgy brownie on it.
• Remove the brownie pan from the oven and allow to completely cool down before slicing and serving it.

Notes and tips

• For best results, I recommend eating immediately or no more than 24 hours after baking (if they last that long).
• Don't be heavy handed when you are slicing the brownies, or they will crumble. Use a serrated knife to gently/carefully create slices.
• Make sure to use kidney beans that are canned in water not salted water.
• Any leftovers should be stored in an airtight container.
• When adding the aquafaba, you will only want to fold it in enough until the batter is combined, don't over stir.
• The baking time is key, you don't want to overbake nor underbake. Mine took around 20 minutes for fudgyness but your time may differ so use it as a guideline.
• If you want your brownies more of a cake consistency then bake them for around 30 minutes or more.
• The dimensions of my brownie pan is 29.4x19.1x4cm.

More red kidney bean and other legume recipes

• Jamaican Rice and Peas
• Refried Gungo Peas
• Vegan Kidney Bean Burger
• Stewed Kidney Beans
• Bean Pie Recipe
• Jamaican Stew Peas
• Cuban Black Beans
• Air Fried Black Eyed Peas

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