Oats Almond meal brownies

I have never baked seriously or passionately. I never found it difficult or maybe whatever I tried my hands at always came out well so I never worried about baking. But since I am not a fan of sweets and desserts, my spare time in the kitchen is exclusively devoted to concocting spicy, tangy stuff. So you would always find me pickling or inventing non-vegetarian spicy stuff , snacks and assorted tidbits. Unlike me, my sister loves baking. She is not a foodie, she is allergic to a lot of stuff so she survives more on tablets rather food. She cuts down spices and tangy stuff and follows a strict diet. So you won't find her experimenting with meats and fish like me. But one thing she loves to do is baking and she has a sweet tooth. Her love for rasgullas and gulab jamuns makes me averse to sweets- seriously I look chubby ( and no one but me can say that to me) but I hate desserts. My sis spent more time with mom at home where I was more like a guest visiting home once in a while from different hostels. The image of her's I can still visualize with my eyes closed is seeing her in the kitchen baking batches of brownies for Christmas or Easter which I guess she baked for her college mates. I can still smell the aroma of chocolate wafting through the kitchen and living room lingering around for a day. But frankly I don't remember popping a piece, though I am sure they tasted awesome. Have I ever baked brownies? I have a vague memory of baking one in 10th grade but I am not sure I have baked them in the last 15 years. Yesterday I was feeling bored and could not sleep so I decided to bake something. I have been fiddling with this box of almond meal lying in my refrigerator for like 6 months and so I decided it was time to put it to some good use. I love Deeba Rajpal's recipes at Passionate about baking and I had a vague memory of having seen a couple of recipes on brownies at her site. That's how I ended up baking these gluten free brownies. I had an unused slab of chocolate waiting for me and with my mom-in- law's arrival oats is something we always have at home. As for nuts thanks to bhai, who gifted me few packets of almonds and cashew so that my baby and I can stay healthy. 

I can't stand fruits and nuts and even if you tell me they will give me better hair and skin, I would still not feel compelled to have them. So I decided to pop them into this brownie :) sorry bhai :(

I tasted the brownie and I like them because they weren't too sweet. I used dark chocolate and I loved the bitterness it gave to these brownies. I also loved the coffee flavour of this brownies which made my hubby finish them to the last crumb.

Don is banned from our home since last week. He spends his time in the balcony trying to figure out this new phase in his life. I can't bear my sorrow but he has to make amends for the sake of our  baby. It's getting difficult dealing with his fur all around and maybe my 'nesting instincts' are more than awake these days making me frantically clean my home. I look at his pics of  him lying around on the sofa and wonder when will he get back to his comfy chair? Animals are creatures of habit so maybe he will adjust to this change in life. And so he is rewarded with a brownie for his new efforts.

Ingredients for Oats Almond meal brownies

Oats- 50 g

Almond meal-  25 g

Chocolate - 200 g

Baking powder- 1 tsp

Salt- a pinch

Eggs- 3

Butter- 100g

Sugar- 100 g

Coffee powder- 1 tsp ( I used coffee essence)

Vanilla essence- 1 tsp

Almonds chopped- 60 g

Directions

Heat the butter and chocolate in the microwave for 2 minutes. Keep stirring the chocolate till the butter and chocolate has melted completely. Now add the eggs one by one and whisk them followed by the dry ingredients ( sugar, salt, baking powder, oats and almond meal). Add the coffee powder/essence followed by vanilla essence at this point followed by the chopped almonds. Preheat the oven for 180 degrees and pour the contents of the brownie into a baking tin lined with parchment paper. Bake for 30-35 minutes and let the brownie cool for 10-15 minutes before you dig into them.

I was on a strict diet to avoid gestational diabetes. My Glucose tolerance test was scheduled for the week after I baked these brownies, so I tasted 1/8th of piece :). I was impressed at how oats was transformed into this magical treat. Would I bake brownies again? I guess yes, because my hubby loves them and hopefully my kid would too :) As for me, I would still stick to savoury stuff. 

I dedicate this post to my Sis. Happy Birthday dear! This post was composed on 25th of Novemeber, but you know how things are here....