Quick: You are traveling, you don’t have any of your own kitchen equipment and someone asks you to bring a raw dessert to dinner. What to do? Raw Brownies! I recently posted a brownie recipe but instead of making the same recipe, I found myself thinking, “What else can I do with this raw recipe?”. The thought of adding a little heat and smoke to the chocolate was irresistible. I was so pleased with how these came out, I thought it was worth sharing with you.

This time around I decided to use walnuts instead of hazelnuts and throw in some ground chipotle powder to get the aforementioned heat and smoke. I rounded it out with cinnamon, an exciting addition of figs that created depth and a chipotle ganache. Gourmet raw brownies, here we come!

Walnuts are a great source of Omega-3’s, heart healthy monounsaturated fats, anti-oxidants to support your immune system and L-arginine, an essential amino acid which promotes healthy blood pressure.

PRINT THIS Chipotle Cacao Raw Brownies MAKES 16 2x2 inch Brownies Brownies 2 cups walnuts

1 cup cacao powder

1 teaspoon ground chipotle powder

1 teaspoon cinnamon

pinch Himalayan salt

2 cups Medjool dates

1/2 cup dried figs

1 teaspoon vanilla (optional) Process the walnuts in the food processor until finely ground. Add cacao, chipotle powder, cinnamon and salt. Pulse until combined. Add figs and dates, 1/4 cup at a time until all ingredients are well combined. Pulse in optional vanilla. Pat into 8 x 8-inch pan. Chipotle Ganache 1/2 cup cacao

1/2 cup agave nectar or liquid sweetener of your choice

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted

1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon Whisk all ingredients together. Pour over top of brownies and chill until set. Cut into 2″ squares.