"Deceptively Delicious" Brownies

I recently checked out the cookbook Deceptively Delicious by Jessica Seinfeld at the library.  As you can already tell, I've been baking and cooking with more vegetables or fruit and with fewer oils and fat.  This book is just what I need!  The cookbook uses vegetable purees in every recipe.  This one uses carrots and spinach.  There are popular recipes for zucchini brownies, which actually sounds better than using spinach.  Making the brownies was a pain.  First I cooked carrots and spinach, then pureed both (separately) in the food processor.  Then I needed to melt the chocolate, which I found easier just to do so in the microwave, not a double boiler, for just three ounces.  After that it was pretty easy to mix the ingredients together.  It baked for 40 minutes and it was done when I took them out!  That made me happy.  The taste is different.  The texture is strange, maybe because I didn't puree the vegetables to be creamy and smooth.  A lot of chocolate taste, but not a lot of moisture.  Not what I expected, but I can try other recipes from the cookbook.

Ingredients:
3 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate
**I used 1 oz. 70% cocoa chocolate and 1/4 cup (= 2 oz.) of semisweet chocolate chips**
1/2 cup carrot puree
1/2 cup spinach puree
1/2 cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 T trans-fat-free soft tub margarine spread
**This didn't mix well.  I guess it was still too cold**
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 large egg whites
3/4 cup oat flour, or all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Spray an 8x8 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Break chocolate into pieces and melt in a microwave, stirring every 20 seconds until smooth.  In a large bowl, mix together melted chocolate, carrot puree, spinach puree, brown sugar, cocoa powder, margarine, and vanilla.  Mix for 1 to 2 minutes until creamy.  Mix in two egg whites and add flour, baking powder and salt stirring with a wooden spoon.  Pour batter into the greased pan and bake for 35-40 minutes.  Cool completely.  Makes 12 bars.

Seinfeld also remarks that you must wait for the brownies to cool, or they will still have a spinach taste to them.  The featured nutritionist, Joy Bauer, informs us that each brownie is only 133 calories and has three grams of fiber!  Wow, that's impressive.

Recipe from Seinfeld, Jessica.  Deceptively Delicious. New York: HarperCollins, 2007. 156.