Beets have a magical way of making flourless baked goods into fantastic, moist cake. And these brownies that I came upon in my gluten-free email group (yes, I’m that much of a nerd, I have an email list I subscribe to!) are healthy enough to have any time of the day. Yep, you can have dessert for breakfast if you choose! And only 6 ingredients go into the mix …so lets get started!

Golden beets are gorgeous and easier to clean up when you make your puree!

I love golden beets for this mix because they make less of a mess when you cook and blend them.  If you’d like you can substitute cashew butter, pecan butter or a mix of nut butters (except peanut, not the best here!) for the almond butter.  And you can bake them in a 9″ square cake pan, a round cake pan or even a rectangular pan of similar size as I did.

Beet Brownies

• 2 cups (1 16-ounce jar) of smooth, unsalted nut butter (I use almond, I’d avoid peanut here but try it if you’d like!)
• 1 cup beet puree with a bit of carrot added (***I use three small beets and two small carrots.  Peel & boil them, cooking them very well till they are extremely soft, cool to room temperature  then puree them in your blender with a little of the cooking water to help the mix)
• 2 eggs (I find Large/Jumbo eggs are the best to cook with, and the free-range organic eggs  DO taste better!)
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 cup honey (a trick : measure the honey after putting your nut butter in the bowl, filling the empty jar half-way up)

Preheat your oven to 325. (300 if your oven runs hot and tends to burn things) Stir everything together in a mixing bowl until its smooth.  Pour the mix into your pan of choice.  (I like to rub a little oil on the sides and bottom of the pan to make them easy to remove.) Bake the “brownies” for 20-40 minutes depending on your oven & altitude, checking periodically by inserting a knife in the center of the pan.  When the knife is clean or nearly-clean, you are all set!  (*best to bake all things made with nut butter in a low heat oven for a longer time as they can scotch on the outside and remain raw inside if the oven is too hot!)

Peanut butter icing is luscious!

Now, if you are so inclined, you can make a little peanut butter icing to finish things off!  Its very easy.  And its full of butter, which you may want to skip if you are looking to drop a few pounds.  The “brownies” are lovely on their own.  But, should you be indulgent…

Peanut Butter Icing

• 1 cup of butter (I told you!) left out on a counter to get soft
• 3/4 cup honey
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup smooth peanut butter

Whip up the butter, “creaming” it with a fork until it is sooth and looks like the picture beside this, or with a KitchenAide if you ‘d like to get fancy.  Add the honey and vanilla.  Once its all smooth, stir in the peanut butter. “Frost” the cooled brownies then store in the refrigerator.  Eat soon after you take them from the fridge or the icing will melt on you!

Its a fun “treat” with icing, but for everyday, just cut up your pan of golden beet “brownie” cakes and have then any time.  So, you see… you can both bake from scratch & eat well without too much effort!  Enjoy! xoxo Dana