Recipe Makeover: Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Brownies

I really had a craving from some brownies over the weekend.  I have madeover brownies before, but I was looking for something different.

I stumbled across a new recipe and truth be told, they are pretty madeover on their own.  Low in fat and under 100 calories per serving so I was ready to make them just the way they were and share them with you.

Only I ran into a few roadblocks.  I didn't have any bananas or eggs or cocoa powder.  No problem.  I just upped the oats for bulk, used some flax eggs and added anything chocolately I could find.

So far so good.  Then, I realized that the only flour in the house was bread flour.  So in it went.

I learned a very valuable lesson with this recipe:  Don't make brownies with bread flour. 

It gives the brownies a yeasty taste and makes them a bit too light, almost like a cake.  I want my brownies to be moist, slightly underdone and dense.  These were not terrible, just not what I was looking for.

However, they weren't too bad warm served with a little ice cream :)

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Brownies (Makes 20)
Adapted from Taste of Home 

1 1/4 cup of oats
1 cup boiling water
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup chocolate chips, melted
2 flax eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup malted milk powder (I used Ovaltine)
1/4 cup chocolate milk powder (I used Nestle with 1/3 less sugar)
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly grease 8x8 pan (or use your Amazing Brownie Pan like I did :)

Pour boiling water onto oats and allow to sit for 5 minutes.  Prepare flax egg and set aside.

Mix together brown sugar, melted chocolate chips, flax eggs and vanilla.  In a separate bowl, combine flour, malted milk powder, chocolate milk powder, baking soda and salt.

Add dry ingredients to the wet and stir until just combined.  Add soaked oats.

Pour batter into prepared pan and sprinkle with additional chocolate chips, if desired.

Bake for 20-25 minutes.  Allow to cool and cut into squares.

Because this is not a true "makeover:, I thought I would compare the nutritional info of this recipe to that of a traditional brownie.

 What are some crazy ingredient substitutions you have made?


Stay Healthy,
Tracy