vegan biscoff brownies
photo: vegan biscoff brownies fresh out of the oven
now i know that on bake off this year, there was a lot of drama after contestants failed to produce a good brownie. however, i think they received unfair judgement, as although brownies are a simple bake to mix and don’t require any fancy techniques, i have always struggled to achieve the perfect bake. whenever i have made brownies in the past, i just never seem to achieve the gooey, indulgent quality that i want - either they are criminally under-baked or they end up with the texture of cake.
a few months ago, i decided it was time to face my fears, and whilst looking for a vegan brownie recipe i could share with my flatmate, i found a delicious looking recipe which had biscoff spread swirled into the brownie batter. my flatmate loves biscoff, so i thought it would be a good recipe to try. the method is simple, and apart from the biscoff and chocolate, just features standard store cupboard ingredients.
now as much as i love and appreciate a vegan bake, i was a little skeptical about how successful the bake would be, given that i have struggled to make a good brownie with a standard recipe. however, i was so blown away by how good this recipe was. it was so so simple to prepare the batter, and after baking for the time suggested in the recipe the brownie came out the perfect, fudge-y brownie, whilst still leaving a skewer clean. this has quickly become my go-to brownie recipe, and is perfect for sharing with both vegans and non-vegans alike!
the bake
photo: ingredients ready to go
ingredients: 150g self raising flour; 110g caster sugar; 4tbsp cocoa powder; 1/2tsp salt; 250ml oat milk; 5tbsp sunflower oil; 1tsp vanilla extract; 100g melted vegan chocolate; 4tbsp biscoff spread.
preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius.
firstly, you mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl to combine. then, you add the oat milk, sunflower oil and vanilla extract, and mix until a smooth brownie batter forms. there should be no flour visible in the mixture.
next, add the melted chocolate to the batter. this should thicken up the mixture ready to fill a lined brownie tin. once the mixture is transferred, smooth the top of the batter with a pallet knife.
at this point, add the biscoff spread to the brownie mixture. you should warm the spread slightly to loosen, before dolloping onto the mixture and swirling with a skewer or the handle of a wooden spoon. this is definitely a step i need to work on for myself, as ideally there should be some beautiful swirls clearly visible on top of the batter, but i was a bit heavy handed and mixed it a bit too much into the batter!
when you are happy with the swirls, place the brownie into the preheated oven. in our old flat, we did not have a fan oven, so it took around 25 mins at 180 degrees. however, in the new place we have a fan oven, so the mixture was baked and ready after only 20 mins. you want the brownie to look baked but soft, and a skewer should come out clean.
leave the brownies to cool completely in the tin - or, if like me you don’t quite have the patience to let it go cold, wait until nice and warm, then serve. the brownies are perfect served warm with some fresh berries and ice cream.
photo: brownie with some fresh raspberries - the only thing missing is some ice cream!
me and my flatmates were so happy with the way these brownies turned out, they’re such a tasty recipe and reliable bake. you can find the original recipe at lucy’s friendly foods here.