Chocolate disaster- yummy gluten free brownie (GF)

Two weeks ago, on the event of my son’s 16th birthday, we were making rocky roads.
Instead of melting gently into a smooth dark chocolate sauce, the chocolate split and became a kind of grainy dark brown blob, surrounded by melted butter and golden syrup. What to do, arghh? We managed to melt down some left-over chocolate letters from Sint-Nicolaas and made some pretty nice rocky roads.

I hate to throw away food and I really don’t like it when something doesn’t turn out the way I planned to. But at that moment there was no time but to throw it into a bowl in the fridge.
For two weeks now this chocolaty mixture was in my fridge and in my head. This morning I decided to give it another try, put it on a very low heat and stir it slowly. It dissolved slightly (not as it should, but how is that?) and I decided to make a quick brownie from it.
Inspired by Karina, thanks!

Handling disasters and disappointments is something we have to learn. I am not perfect, and so is my blog. I’m always in awe with other blogs, the pictures, the ideas, but in the end I realize that I am who I am, I do the things my way, there is no other way. Dealing with a cooking disaster is, as dealing with other disasters in life, a lesson. Improvising comes forth of it, when you let go of the disappointment and the judging and the why-did-this-happen-to-me? And improvising is a big gift of life, it stimulates creativity and being in the moment, accepting things as they are. It brings space. And when there is space, there is new energy!

The sun is shining on this beautiful second Christmas Day, so I go for a walk. Enjoy!

This is my recipe, but feel free to use Karina’s or maybe this one from Elana’s Pantry is very nice too.

Chocolate pecan brownies (GF)

200g chocolate
80 g butter
2 tbsp golden syrup
½ cup/ 45 g almond flour
¼ cup/ 35 g brown rice flour
½ cup/ 70 g light brown sugar
½ tsp sea salt
½ tsp tartaric acid baking powder
2 organic eggs, beaten fluffy
1 big tsp vanilla extract
2 handfuls of chopped pecans or walnuts


Pre heat the oven on 175˚C.
Prepare a baking tin with foil that you grease. I use a glass Pyrex from 20x16 cm.
Melt the chocolate together with the butter and golden syrup. Let it cool a little before you add it to the rest.

Mix the dry ingredients well and make a hole in the middle. Pour in the fluffy beaten eggs and vanilla extract. Spoon it together. Then add the chocolate mixture and mix it for 2 minutes with a hand mixer. Stir in by hand the nuts and spoon the dough/batter in the prepared tin.
Bake in the middle of the oven for 35-45 minutes. Mine took even 50 minutes, so watch it after 35 minutes, stick in a needle or chopstick to check out if the brownie is ready, must be clean when taken out.
Let it cool completely before cutting this "failed" sticky and delicious brownie.

Chocolade-pecan brownie (GF)

200g chocolade
80 g boter
2 el golden syrup
45 g amandelmeel
35 g bruine rijstmeel
70 g lichtbruine basterdsuiker
½ tl zeezout
½ tl wijnsteenzuur bakpoeder
2 biologische eieren, luchtig geklopt
1 flinke tl vanilla extract
2 handjes gehakte pecans of walnoten

Verwarm de oven voor op 175 ˚C.
Bekleed een Pyrex vorm van 20x16 cm met aluminiumfolie die je licht invet.

Smelt de chocolade samen met de boter en golden syrup. Zet opzij, zodat het even kan afkoelen.

Meng alle droge ingrediënten door elkaar. Maak een kuiltje in het midden en giet daarin de geklopte eieren en het scheutje vanille extract. Roer snel door elkaar.
Voeg dan het chocolademengsel toe en klop dit 2 minuten met een handmixer.
Voeg de noten toe en roer deze er met de hand door. Giet het deeg/beslag in de geprepareerde vorm en bak de brownie 35-45 minuten in het midden van de oven.

Mijn brownie deed er zelfs 50 minuten over om te garen. Steek na 35 minuten een breinaald in het deeg en als die er schoon uitkomt is de brownie gaar. Anders check je om de 5 minuten opnieuw.
Laat helemaal afkoelen voordat je deze heerlijke "mislukte" plakkerige brownie aansnijdt.