Today’s guest post comes from the super lovely Rose of The Clean Dish and she is sharing this sweet but healthy valentines-day worthy recipe. I just adore this recipe and I cannot wait to make this myself. 

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Hey there! My name is Rose; I am the author of The Clean Dish – a real food blog where you find grain free, gluten free and processed sugar free recipes! I am super excited to be guest posting for Beth today here at Tasty Yummies! I am a military wife and German national (I feel obliged to mention this so hopefully, you will forgive me any linguistic inaccuracies 🙂 ). I love fresh, locally sourced food and making things from scratch; nothing gives me more pleasure than to enjoy a home cooked meal with family and friends. Come visit me at the Clean Dish and see what I’ve been up to in my kitchen lately – I would love to have you 🙂

I had a hard time deciding whether I should bring you something sweet or savory! Right after Christmas, I didn’t even want to look at sweet stuff, not to mention make anything sweet but January has been a healthy month for me so far; I have recovered from my sugar overdose and this recipe I have for you is one I have been working on for a while so it’s time to get it out there!

These Tiramisu Double Chocolate Brownies Grain-free Tiramisu Double Chocolate BrowniesSpeaking of mascarpone; since I am a part time vegan (you know, I enjoy organic grade meat on occasions and would *never* give up cheese!!) I haven’t really made anything containing mascarpone in over 3 years – since I came to the US. And boy, was I shocked to find that 8oz of mascarpone cost $7 in this country!! That’s way too much, if I may say so. So I decided to compromise: I used equal parts mascarpone and cream cheese (instead of mascarpone only) with an amazing outcome: It tastes almost exactly like tiramisu cream except it’s a little firmer so it’s perfect for brownie frosting!

A note on the cream: The original Italian recipe for tiramisu cream calls for raw egg yolks. I recommend you only use raw egg yolks if you are certain they are fresh! I personally have never had any issues and I buy my eggs at the supermarket (we currently do not have direct access to farm fresh eggs, sadly!) so I think it’s perfectly safe if you ensure freshness.

[print_this]Grain-free Tiramisu Brownies
Yields 10 Brownies
Prep time 20 minutes
Cook time 30 minutes

Ingredients Brownie Base

• 2 1/2 cups cashew flour
• 1/2 cup coconut flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1 cup bitter sweet chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup freshly brewed espresso (add 1 sachet instant coffee and dissolve for a more intense coffee flavor)
• 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• 1/4 cup raw virgin coconut oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 tablespoon unsweetened apple sauce
• 2 eggs

Ingredients Tiramisu Cream

• 8oz mascarpone
• 8oz cream cheese
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 3 egg yolks (only if you have fresh eggs; it will taste good without yolks, too)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract (in place of Amaretto)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350F and line a baking dish with parchment paper (I use a square spring form, 9×9″ – similar to this).
Add coconut oil to a small saucepan and melt over low heat.
In a large bowl, mix all dry ingredients for brownie base: cashew flour, coconut flour, baking soda, cocoa powder and chocolate chips.
Using a medium sized bowl, mix all wet ingredients for brownie base: espresso, maple syrup, coconut oil, vanilla extract, apple sauce and eggs.
Make sure the eggs are mixed in well and there are no strings. If necessary, use a hand mixer.
Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix (by hand) until well incorporated. The batter will be thick, that’s ok!
Fill brownie batter into your baking dish and bake for approximately 25-30 minutes. Do the tooth pick test: If you stick a tooth pick down the middle and batter crumbs stick to it, you need to continue baking.
Allow brownie base to fully cool off.

Mascarpone and cream cheese should be at room temperature. Combine all Tiramisu Cream ingredients and mix with hand mixer until you have a smooth cream.
Spread on top of your now cold brownie base and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Brownie base by itself keeps for up to 5 days. Tiramisu cream containing egg yolk should be consumed within 2 days.
Tip for utilizing egg whites – try my grain and dairy free Strawberry Meringue Roulade!
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