16 February 2019

Chunky Monkey Blondies


I have three words for you: Chunky. Monkey. Blondies. Vegan banana blondies with chunks of walnuts and dark chocolate. Who said chunky monkey was just a flavour for ice cream?


These are somewhere between banana bread and blondies; a deep banana flavour, with gooey chunks of rich dark chocolate and crunchy walnuts, not too sweet, yet just sweet enough that all the flavours work together perfectly. Moist and a little fudgy and totally moreish. 


These blondies are super simple with just 7 ingredients, they're also a little more nutritious than your average dessert. There's plenty of banana loaded into these blondies, delivering a natural sweetness, as well as vitamin C, B6, potassium and magnesium, the soy yogurt also delivers sweetness, whilst adding a touch of protein to the recipe, helping to slow down the absorption of sugars. The olive oil and walnuts will also help to regulate your blood sugar, providing a source of healthy fats and some vitamins and minerals too. Dark chocolate also isn't short of the good stuff, loaded with a whole bunch of minerals like iron, magnesium, copper and manganese, as well as fibre and flavonoids - exerting antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. With any dessert, it's a good idea to eat in moderation, but you can feel good knowing that you're getting some goodness in your sweet treat. If you'd like to boost your fibre even further, you could try a 50/50 mix of whole wheat and white flour, but you may need a tbsp more of soy yogurt to ensure they don't dry out. 



Chunky Monkey Blondies | Yield: 12 blondies | Time: 45 mins

You'll need

  • Mixing bowl
  • Measuring cups + spoons
  • Potato masher
  • Chopping board
  • Knife
  • 10x7" brownie tin
  • Greaseproof paper

Ingredients

  • 2 cups mashed ripe banana (~4 large bananas)
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 2/3 cup vanilla soy yogurt
  • 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
  • 100g 70% vegan dark chocolate
  • 1 2/3 cups plain flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder

Method

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C and line the brownie tin with greaseproof paper.
  2. Mash the bananas with a potato masher, ensuring you have 2 cups of mashed banana. Then mix in the olive oil and vanilla soy yogurt. 
  3. Roughly chop the walnuts and the chocolate into chunks and add to the bowl with the flour and baking powder. Fold the flour in until no lumps remain and pour into the brownie tin. Smooth out the top and bake for 30 minutes at 180°C.
  4. Allow the brownies to cool fully before cutting into 12 and then enjoy! 
Cassidy xx