These delicious brownies couldn’t be easier to make yet are designed to pack a protein punch and deliver stable energy to fuel or recover from workouts.
They get their fudgy texture from nutrient-dense nut butters and bananas, rather than flour and sugar, and with the added protein powder they contain around 60g protein per batch. Depending on brownie size, each two-brownie serving would deliver around 15g protein, or around 10g without the protein powder, thanks to the nuts.
They are also packed with minerals, including magnesium, which is important for muscle recovery and relaxation. The brownies won’t spike your blood sugar either, because as well as protein, fibre and healthy fats, they are naturally sweetened with bananas, plus just a small amount of maple syrup, raw honey or Palmyra jaggery, which you could omit if you prefer a semi-sweet snack.
| Ingredients (makes 8-12) |
|---|
| 100g cashew butter |
| 100g almond butter |
| 3 tbsp cacao/cocoa powder |
| 2 large or 3 medium ripe bananas, mashed |
| 2 tbsp maple syrup, raw honey or Palmyra jaggery |
| Pinch salt |
| 1 tbsp vanilla extract |
| 20g/scoop rice or paleo protein powder (optional) – whey protein doesn’t work well in this recipe |
Preheat the oven to 175 degrees C, and grease and line a 15 x 15 cm baking tin or similar. In a medium saucepan (or microwave) melt the nut butters over a gentle heat until softened, then stir in the mashed bananas, cacao/cocoa powder, vanilla and 2 tbsp maple syrup, raw honey or Palmyra jaggery.
Place in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, until just set and allow them to cool completely before cutting and enjoying – once they have cooled a little you can pop them in the fridge to speed things up and increase the fudgy quality.
