As promised since my last post (a mere 10 minutes ago) here is a recipe I’m working on. Your (honest) feedback would be appreciated!

Pumpkins are in season right now so I encourage you to roast your own instead of the canned stuff. Your local farmer will thank you.

Pumpkin Swirl Brownies

*makes two dozen brownies

1/3 cup cocoa powder + 1/2 cup water, stirred together in a small pot
1/2 cup coconut oil
2 cups oat flour or Gluten Free Rolled Oats, pulsed into flour in a food processor
1 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
1/4 cup ground flaxseed + 3/4 cup warm water, stirred together and set aside for 10 minutes to thicken
2/3 cup maple syrup/agave
1 Tbs. vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups roasted pumpkin
~1/3 cup added water (less/more depending on dryness)
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/3 cup maple syrup/agave
1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly oil and 8×8 inch pan.

2. Add the oil to the cocoa/water mixture and heat on a stove top, stirring occasionally, until the oil is melted.

3. In a large bowl whisk together oat flour, baking powder, and salt. In a separate smaller bowl, whisk together flax/water mixture, maple syrup, and vanilla. Add these wet ingredients to the oat flour mixture.

4. Divide the dough equally into two separate bowls. Stir the chocolate mixture into one of the bowls of dough. Fold in the optional chocolate chips.

5. In a food processor, mix the roasted pumpkin, water, cinnamon, nutmeg and maple syrup, making a purée. Add this to the other half of the dough and stir it well. Now, you should have a bowl of brownie batter and a bowl of pumpkin batter.

6. Scoop half of the brownie batter into the prepared pan and smooth it out as evenly as possible using a rubber spatula. Add half of the pumpkin batter on top of the first layer of brownie batter and smooth it out evenly being careful not to mix it up into the brownie batter. Add another layer of brownie batter and finish the layering with the rest of the pumpkin batter. After smoothing out the top, run a butter knife through the batters to create a swirly, marbled pattern. Be sure to not miss the edges.

7. Bake for about 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out mostly clean. Allow to cool in the pan, cut into squares and enjoy! (The original recipe called to bake for about 1 hour, but I thought that was too long. Try it for longer and let me know what happened.)

NOTE: To make bite size brownies, add a dollop of chocolate batter to the bottom of muffin cups and then mix the resto of the two batters together in a bowl (enough to create a swirl pattern) and then portion out the remaining batter into muffin cups and bake for 30 minutes.

Stay tuned for a peanut butter version….