Fudgy brownie cake pops

I am a sucker for recipes. I have a weakness for them and am often on the search for something new to try. I am a field editor for Taste of Home and I have more recipe magazines and cookbooks than I care to admit. (and I recently got a free subscription to Rachael Ray's Every Day, yay, more recipes to experiment with!)

I am also health conscious and try to keep things as natural as possible. Imagine my delight when I came across a dessert recipe that only had 1/4c of sugar and NO flour involved! Not only that, but I could sneak in some added protein and fiber. I set out to give this a try. The judge was going to be my unsuspecting husband, who unfortunately wasn't exposed to much creative, flavorful food growing up so he is a really picky eater. The poor guy never had BBQ chicken till he met me! (to his credit, he has gotten better since we've been married and has broadened his horizons. A little.)

So what in the world could these fudgy cake bites contain as their main ingredient you ask??

Black Beans & Instant Coffee


Yup, you read that right. 2 things my other half can.not.stand! He likes the smell of coffee but won't drink it and turns his nose up when the kids & I chow down on black beans & cilantro.

He wasn't home when I made these, so he had no clue what I was concocting. It really was an easy recipe. One new thing I did was make flax eggs. I always have ground flaxseed on hand for my green breakfast smoothies I make, so this step was simple. Everything got tossed into the food processor together, then baked.

After it was done baking, you let it set in the pan for about 30 minutes to cool down.
The top looks a little dry & crusty, but it isn't. The inside is still very moist.

I also threw on some sprinkles I had just to add a pop of color, not needed but it can make it fun.
Hard to tell but these are little peep sprinkles from Easter lol


I could hardly wait to dive in for a taste of these good looking morsels that I didn't let my chocolate set! If I hadn't made them myself, I'd have never guessed they weren't anything besides homemade brownie mix. I didn't tell the kids what they were, and they dug right in along with a friend of theirs (whom I later found out can not stand black beans!) They all asked for 2nds and 3rds!!!

When Kevin came home, the kids gave him one and said how good they were. We all anxiously watched his reaction. After his first bite, he was like WOW these are SOOO good! Of course, laughter ensued and we let him in on the secret that they were made with a whole can of black beans. He kinda paused, he liked them and he couldn't recant that based on the ingredient.

Like I've told him for years, it's mind over matter. If you have no clue what I put into food, you like it! ;)

Vegan Black Bean Brownie Pops
1 15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 flax eggs (2 Tablespoons flaxseed meal + 5 Tablespoons water)
2 Tablespoon canola oil
1/2 c cocoa powder {scant}
dash salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup granulated sugar (or sub other sweetener)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon finely ground espresso (or strong coffee) powder or instant coffee
1/2 bag + 1 dash dark chocolate chips (non-dairy for vegan)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a regular size loaf pan. Prepare flax eggs by combining flax and water in a small bowl and letting it rest for 3-5 minutes. Combine black beans through instant coffee (including flax eggs) in a food processor (sift in sugar if clumpy) and puree. Then stir in the dash of chocolate chips. Pour batter into loaf pan and smooth the top with a spoon or spatula. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the top is dark brown and appears slightly dry, and the sides are starting to pull away from the pan. A toothpick should come out somewhat clean. Let cool for 30 minutes before removing from pan.

After cooled, mash with a fork until it looks like batter, and then stick in fridge for 10 minutes to set. Remove from fridge and scoop out 1 Tablespoon amounts and roll into balls. Place candy sticks (I used wooden skewers cut in half) in top, being careful not to go all the way to the bottom. Dipping the stick into melted chocolate or chocolate sauce before inserting into the brownie balls can be helpful in holding them tighter, but it isn’t necessary. Place the pops on a silicone or wax-paper lined cookie sheet and set back in the fridge to firm up a bit – about 10 minutes.
Melt remaining dark chocolate chips in a coffee mug in the microwave for 20 second increments, being careful not to overcook (if chocolate is lumpy, add a little butter or crisco, stir). Once melted, carefully dip the balls into the dark chocolate. If the balls come from loose from the sticks, simply use a spoon to bring the chocolate up to the pop and then swirl it around to evenly coat. Shake on sprinkles while still wet, if desired.
Place back on cookie sheet and set in fridge to set – about 15 minutes. These are fine setting out, but can be stored in the fridge or at room temp in a freezer bag to preserve longer if necessary.
"The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart."
-Hellen Keller


5 comments

  1. you take awesome pictures and your food looks great!! I always have the best intentions of baking "pretty things"..and they usually come out looking like blobs, haha. At least they taste good right??

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  2. Oh my goodness Yummy, thanks for sharing ?:)

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  3. I tried a recipe with black beans but it wasn't a vegan recipe so I did lots of substituting and it was such a #FAIL! I think this will be better because I don't have to do any substituting! Thanks! Looks yum!

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  4. Too cool! Lucky children, lucky husband!

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  5. I testify...the are SUPER yum! Tried this last weekend...a big hit with the family! Will make some for my diabetic dad for his birthday coming up! :)

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I enjoy hearing from each & every one of you! Thanks for taking the time to comment. :)