Crock Pot Sugar-Free Chocolate Quinoa Brownies

Brenda Bennett — Sun, 13 Jul 2014 12:23:19 +0000

Dense Chocolate Brownies made with quinoa, sugar-free and in the crock pot!

If you’ve never tried quinoa in a baked treat you’ll be in for a delicious surprise if you venture to make these brownies. The quinoa replaces any flour needed to provide a nice, soft, dense “brownie”.

Using your crock pot in the winter season is typical for many busy people. You prepare ahead and come home after a long day to the house filled with home cooked aromas like someone has been slaving at the stove all day. So nice right?!

Using a crock pot in the warmer months is just as smart and equally as helpful. While I am an avid crock pot aficionado, I had never made a brownie or any cake like dessert in the crock before. I always stuck with the practical like, Overnight Cinnamon Crumble French Toast, Crock Pot Sugar Free Fudge, and Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Soup. You can check out my Crock Pot tab on my Recipe Index for more wonderful recipes.

This brownie recipe has been on my mind and on my list FOREVER! My original recipe which was super popular was Cocoa Baked Quinoa Bars. I adapted slightly for the recipe here and the results are pretty fantastic!

Summer also brings us to vacations. In fact this week I’m in the Poconos of Pennsylvania with my entire family: Parents, 3 brothers, 2 sister in laws and between us and them 9 children! Last year we were in a house on a Lake in New Hampshire. To my surprise it wasn’t as scary as I thought it would be, no offense to my family but living all under one roof with so many different personalities can be challenging. The house was beautiful but the living space was a little on the tight side.

Luckily my mom and I found a house in the Poconos with 7 bedrooms so everyone has there own space and it’s quite comfortable. The comforts of a home kitchen make for an enjoyable week ahead.

We often make many meals together, every family takes a turn. Today hubby and I are on breakfast and lunch duty. I’m making Egg burritos for everyone then some Cilantro Mayo Free Chicken salad which everyone loved last year. This year I brought along my brown rice fresh skin roll wrappers to place the chicken salad in with some cucumber and carrot sticks and lettuce. New idea, not sure my Italian daddy will enjoy, but that’s what I’m making. 🙂

I’m optimistic this week will be an enjoyable family reunion vacation. As long as I can do most of the cooking to keep it pretty healthy, I will be happy and even willing to do it again next summer! 🙂

Brenda’s Notes:

I use Lily’s Brand of sugar-free chocolate chips made with stevia found at Whole Foods.
Here’s my stevia conversion chart if you need to exchange liquids for powders. etc.
To make 3 cups cooked quinoa, use 1 1/2 cups dry rinsed quinoa with 3 cups water. Cover and bring to a boil and boil for 12-15 minutes until all water is absorbed.
Another dessert Quinoa recipe you might like: Mini Chocolate Brownie Bites!