Yesterday, I needed to quickly whip up some low cal snacks, and was feeling brownies. I was really impressed with the outcome of this batch, and they were SO freaking good! I’ve tried pretty much every recipe out there, and much like a lot of us, this ended up being a mash-up of many.
I’m not into cake-like brownies, and I did try this recipe last week using 50% casein and 50% whey, but the casein made it too dry. I remade the recipe today and replaced the casein with all whey protein, as I was already using pastry flour. Let me tell you these came out fudgey, gooey and tasted legit.
I used a standard square baking tin (don’t know exact size – sorry!). I like to let them cool in the oven without opening the door for around 30-60 minutes. Apparently, this helps prevent sinking/deflation. Once out of the oven, allow to cool further in tray. I then added icing, cut into 9 pieces, and placed in the freezer to set for an hour or so.
These brownies come to 37 calories (per piece) without icing, or 47 calories with icing (recipe included in photos). You could easily cut smaller pieces to lower the recipe further, but I find 9 pieces to be pretty decent, and I will often have two as a snack.
I’ve also included a few tips that I’ve found helpful when it comes to using liquid egg whites (esp. if you don’t have access to fresh), and how to mix the batter into the whipped whites without deflating before baking.
Brownie Recipe (makes 9 pieces):
Dry Ingredients
* 20g pastry flour
* 20g whey protein isolate (I only had vanilla, but chocolate would be ideal)
* 20g cocoa powder
* 0.5 tsp baking soda (not powder)
* 0.25 tsp salt
* 50g granulated sweetener
* 50g brown granulated sweetener
* 10g psyllium husk
* 0.5 tsp cream of tartar
* 1 tsp instant coffee
Wet Ingredients
* 50g Chobani Fit Greek yoghurt
* 100g liquid egg whites
* 1 tsp vanilla extract
* 50ml unsweetened almond milk
* 100-150ml Diet Coke or Pepsi Max (I recommend vanilla flavour)
Icing Ingredients (optional)
* 15g casein protein
* 40g powdered sweetener
* 5g cocoa powder
* 30g Chobani Fit greek yoghurt
Method
1. Preheat oven to 170°C.
2. Pour the egg whites into an oven safe bowl and place in the oven while preheating for around 2-3 minutes. Be careful when removing the bowl from the oven. I prefer to use a glass bowl as it retains the heat evenly. It shouldn’t be hot, just warm, and the egg whites should still be clear.
3. While the oven is preheating with the egg whites, combine all dry ingredients in a bowl, except the brown granulated sweetener. Mix well.
4. Add the yoghurt, almond milk and vanilla extract to the bowl and mix well.
5. Slowly begin to add the Coke Zero/carbonated choice to the batter in increments and gently stir. Do not overstir. You may or may not need to use the full amount. The aim here is to create a brownie batter consistency – not too thick and not too runny.
6. Moving on to the egg whites; add the cream of tartar to eggs. Using an electric beater on the high setting, mix the egg whites for around 2-3 minutes, or until they become fluffy and cloud-like. The eggs will begin to thicken slightly. Stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a silicone spatula. Once fluffy, take a break from mixing and sprinkle the brown granulated sweetener over the egg whites, then continue to mix until fully combined (1 minute or so).
7. Now that you have two bowls, we need to combine them. It is important to use a silicone spatula when doing this. Start by scooping a small amount of the egg white mixture into the batter and combine it gently using the ‘fold’ technique. I find that adding the eggs to the batter in small amounts allows the two to combine easier and prevents deflation. Aim for the mixtures to be around 80-90% combined in one bowl (don’t worry if you can still see some of the egg mixture in the batter – it’s best to not overstir and risk losing volume).
8. Slowly pour the mixture into your baking tray of choice, smooth out any bumps to create an even surface, and place into the oven for 20-25 minutes. I prefer fudgey brownies, so 20 minutes was perfect.
9. Allow to cool in the oven for as long as possible once finished. Tip: do not open the oven during or after the cooking process. It helps to maintain the volume and prevents deflation. They also settle much nicer if they’ve had enough time to rest. Once enough time has passed, allow to fully cool in the tray before icing. If you’re having them as is, cut into 9 pieces and enjoy 🙂
10. The icing is super easy and I like to pre prepare it while the brownies are baking and leave it to thicken in the fridge – simply take the casein protein, Greek yoghurt and powdered sweetener, and mix, using small amounts of almond milk to help combine the ingredients. I like to keep mine thick, so don’t add large amounts of almond milk. Once the brownies are cooled, evenly spread with icing, slice into 9 pieces (or whatever your heart desires), and store in the fridge or freezer.
** MACROS and CALS are shown in photos **
Tips:
If you don’t have the time to wait for your egg whites to settle at room temperature, I place my egg whites in a separate glass bowl and pop them into the oven while it’s preheating for around 2-3 minutes. Keep an eye on them so they don’t start to cook. This brings them to room temperature, maintains the temp while whipping due to the glass retaining heat, and whip exactly like fresh whites.
Cream of Tartar and a hand mixer are key! Keep whipping until you start to feel the mixture ‘thicken’ slightly. It will look foamy at first, but keep going and a smooth, creamy consistency will come. Usually, I can achieve this in 3-4 minutes using the ‘high’ setting on a hand mixer.
Add brown sweetener to egg whites AFTER they are fully whipped. Idk why, but order matters here!
Use a silicone spatula to add large, cloudy ‘spoonfuls’ of the egg mixture into the batter, and FOLD(!!!) to combine. DO NOT stir. This is superrrr important to maintain the volume and fluff-factor. Don’t over mix. It is okay if the egg mixture is not fully combined with the batter. Aim for around 80% before pouring the mixture into the baking tray.
by DarkBloom11