A quick healthy fudge like brownie alternative that is no bake, super dense, a little sweet with a surprising spicy kick at the end! 

With the holidays right around the corner, we are all looking for some recipes to make; whether they are healthy, indulgent, simple, dessert ones, main dishes or whatever they are; we always need something and usually last minute! That is how it goes for me at least and when that is the case, it then needs to be easy to make, only require a few ingredients, and obviously taste good! I feel that I am always "stuck" making the dessert recipes with my family because they probably know they are going to have some type of healthy spin on them yet still taste like the real deal...so I decided to make these super fudge-y / dense brownies that are a little sweet with a major spicy kick at the end....and you don't have to bake them! Which is ideal when there are what feels like 100 things going on in the kitchen during the holidays! 

...of course I added in some collagen in the recipe and I used Vital Proteins Marine Collagen. I use this every single day whether it is in my smoothies, energy bites, soups, coffees, salad dressings or waters. Just about anything you can think of, you can sneak this in there! I think if you search "collagen" on my blog over 7 or so recipes will pop up using this! Like this, Golden Mylk smoothie, or this sweet potato salad, and even this dark chocolate avocado pudding!  I use it to strengthen my digestive system, my nails, hair and feel that it was truly helped in repairing / improving my leaky gut and my severe digestive issues! The great thing, is that it is tasteless, so it will not change a thing in the recipe or in any recipe that you use it in! 

Back to these brownies. They are so chocolatey. Sweet. Fudge-y and perfect for the holidays or just when you need something! They almost remind me of a Mexican Hot Chocolate, but in a raw brownie form! They are easy too. You need any type of nuts as the base; I prefer almonds/walnuts, cacao powder, cinnamon, almond butter, dates, cayenne pepper, cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, cacao nibs and the collagen! I am sure that you have most of these ingredients on hand! Then you blend it all up, roll it out and done! Raw brownies, done in less than 10 minutes. 

Dessert
Yields:
Prep time: 10 minutes
Total time: 10 minutes (unless you place in the freezer for 30 minutes or so to harder before cutting)

What you need:

1/2 cup walnuts
1/2 cup almonds
1/2 creamy almond butter
2 scoops collagen (optional, but added benefits!)
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
pinch of sea salt
pinch of nutmeg
1/3 cup cacao powder (or sub chocolate protein powder!)
3 dates, chopped & pitted
1 tbsp vanilla
small handful of cacao nibs, for topping

What you need to do: 

1. In your food processor blend together the walnuts and the almonds until finely ground. I left mine a little chunky. 

2. Add in the dry ingredients (cacao powder, sea salt, cinnamon, cayenne pepper, collagen, nutmeg). Give it a quick pulse

3. Add in the dates, vanilla, and the almond butter and blend together until fully combined and a dough is formed. 

4. In a square pan (brownie pan or a bread baking loaf) that is lined with parchment paper, add the mix and press firmly until the dough is even. Sprinkle with cacao nibs or toppings of choice. 

5. Cut into squares OR place in freezer to harder for a few minutes to make it slightly easier. 

Store in an air tight container in freezer for longer or in fridge for up to 2 weeks. 

NOTES:

The collagen is optional, but you will get added benefits from using it! 

Adjust the measurement of cayenne pepper to your liking! You won't taste it right away, but it will be more of an after taste, so start small! 

You can sub almond butter or sunflower seed butter or completely leave this out all together and use about 1 cup of dates to hold everything together. 

To make them completely nut free, sub the nuts with seeds!