Where did my infant go?

Full of Beans

My friends have been telling me about Pinterest for some time now, and I've dragged my feet a bit when it came to looking into what all the fuss was about.  This is nothing new for me since I was the last one to start reading the Harry Potter books and I didn't join Facebook until I couldn't stand being out of the loop anymore.  Once I did ask to join Pinterest (yes, that's right.  You don't join Pinterest, Pinterest joins you) I have now developed an obsession that borders on the insane!  Especially since it is a great way to find incredible recipes without having to physically sort through hundreds of magazines and websites.

One in particular not only caught my attention, but made me immediately run to the kitchen to try it--Black Bean Brownies!

Now my picky eating habits are legendary in this area, and ask anyone who knows me and they will tell you how I despise green beans (a Southern staple and very popular vegetable in my neck of the woods).  But I can name at least 20 people who will not eat a navy bean, black bean or pinto bean.  Oddly enough, I am not one of them!

So when I told friends what I was making I was met with more than a little resistance, but I can assure you that the finished product has the potential to change the perception of beans altogether.  There are several recipes out there for these little treats, but I settled on the easiest since it called for only two ingredients, both of which I had available thanks to The Stocked Kitchen shopping guide:

Black Bean Brownies

One 15 oz. can black beans
One 20 oz. prepackaged brownie mix

In a food processor, or blender, puree the beans until smooth.  Then combine them with the mix and bake according to package directions.

The wet batter was very luscious (yes, I tasted some of the batter, and since it did not contain raw egg I didn't feel guilty about it).  The finished product was a perfect marriage between the gooey brownie that most people like, and the cake-like brownie that I personally enjoy.

I just happened to have some bittersweet chocolate chips in the cabinet, so they were generously sprinkled on top, and oddly enough mimicked the look of black beans!  Admittedly, not everyone I shared them with was immediately in love.  I did not tell the tasters what was in them until I got their honest reactions, but no one seemed horrified that they had eaten a "bean brownie" so I think I could probably get away with doing this again. Especially on occasions where I have neither milk or eggs in the fridge.

All in all, I'd say it was a pretty good find and maybe I can pass them off to my bean hating friends in the future.  I just have to wait long enough for them to forget about me going on and on about the black bean recipe...