Chayote Brownies (Gluten Free and Vegan)
Looking to sneak more vegetables into your diet while also enjoying more brownies? If so, I’d highly recommend these chayote brownies. Heck, I’d highly recommend them even if you weren’t.
Chayote (also known as choko) is one of those ingredients that I NEVER would have tried if it weren’t for the FAILSAFE diet. Of all the ways that we tried it (raw, sautéed, and baked into brownies) this was hands down my favorite. Probably because you can’t actually taste the chayote, but also because brownies.
This recipe was a special request from one of my FAILSAFE friends on Instagram. I was intrigued by the prospect of using chayote puree in brownies as it would have never occurred to me to even try. Not gonna lie, I was also a little scared. 😂
As I was reading up on chayote, I found that it was described as a mix between a cucumber and zucchini and cooked a lot like summer squash. Knowing that, I relaxed since I’ve already made brownies with squash, sweet potatoes, beans, and even zucchini. And since I really haven’t met a brownie I didn’t like, I felt pretty confident that these would be edible at the very least.
Needless to say, I had absolutely nothing to worry about because THEY ARE DELICIOUS. They aren’t as fudgey and dense as other brownies, though, so if that’s your thing, I’d recommend these black bean brownies instead. I’d actually say that the chayote brownies are more of a cross between brownies and cake. Which I’m okay with. Because again, delicious.
Chayote Brownies
Description
Looking to sneak more vegetables into your diet while also enjoying more brownies? If so, I’d highly recommend these chayote brownies. Heck, I’d highly recommend them even if you weren’t.
Ingredients
Instructions
-
Preheat oven to 350°F/175°C. Grease and flour a 9×13 inch glass baking dish and set aside.
-
Put cubed chayote/choko in a small pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook until fork tender, about 10-15 minutes. Drain and reserve cooking liquid. Place cooked chayote/choko and 2 tbsp of the cooking liquid in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
-
In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine oil, sugar, maple syrup (or vanilla extract), and puréed chayote/choko. Stir to combine. Add in gluten free flour, carob powder, baking soda, and salt and stir until everything has been mixed in.
-
Pour batter into your prepared baking dish and put into the oven. Cook for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
-
Allow to cool before cutting.
Note
This recipe is FAILSAFE and RPAH Elimination Diet friendly. It is also gluten free, dairy free, soy free, nut free, and low salicylate. It is also vegetarian and vegan.
//
*My absolute favorite gluten free flour mix is this one from Silvana’s Kitchen.
//
When it comes to carob powder, if the regular roasted carob powder gives you trouble, try a lightly roasted variety instead. You could also use raw carob powder, but in my experience it smells a bit like dirty socks and is hard to hide in the chayote brownies.
Here are some carob powder options (affiliate links) if you are looking for some recommendations:
*My absolute favorite gluten free flour mix is this one from Silvana’s Kitchen.
Hi Emily – does the recipe call for 2 cups of flour?
Many thanks,
Melissa
Hi! Yes, 2 cups. For some reason when I updated the site some of measurements didn’t convert. Thanks for catching that!
Thank you!
Why might the carob powder give you trouble? Figured I would ask as I do not want to mess these up…I’ll be sad!
I read something about roasted versus raw carob it in a FAILSAFE group I was a part of and figured I’d add the disclaimer. I honestly don’t remember the reason now, but would assume it has to do with the chemicals becoming more concentrated through the roasting process like it does for other nuts like cashews. I honestly never had a problem with carob. But if you’re concerned, try having it in small amounts first to see how you fare.