Almond Fudge Brownies with Ribera del Duero & Blackberry Coulis

I’ve purchased blackberries multiple times now to make a dessert I’ve been meaning to try. However, I keep eating them with my homemade kefir for breakfast, before I get around to buying the rest of the ingredients that I need.

But today, after opening up a bottle of Senorio Real, a Ribera del Duero, for lunch, I figured I could make a wine sauce with them. We get our Spanish wines every year when we travel by car to Spain; and last year, we finally made a switch from Riojas to Ribera del Duero. (I have to admit, I like the Riberas better. The Senorio Real is particularly fruity, with undertones of blackberry and vanilla. So, it was a perfect match for the fruit itself.)

The coulis can be used to accompany a dessert, such as the brownies I made today, or as a sauce for red meat, poultry or game. The delicate, yet slightly acidic flavour of the blackberries is balanced with the sweeter palate of the wine and makes a good combination for either savoury or sweet dishes.

The brownie recipe below is made with ground almonds, and is flour-less, gluten-free, dairy-free, and refined sugar-free. I couldn’t stop eating the dough by the spoonfuls before baking! And the best part of that is that I didn’t feel guilty at all, as it’s a healthy and nutritious treat all in one!

Almond Fudge Brownies with Ribera del Duero & Blackberry Coulis

For the Brownies, makes 6-8:

Ingredients

  • 250g ground almonds
  • 250g raw honey
  • 50g cocoa powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
  • Seeds of 1/2 vanilla bean
  • 2 egg whites

Process

In a bowl, mix the almonds, honey, cocoa, and spices. In another bowl, beat the egg whites, until stiff peaks form. Fold into the almond mixture and blend well. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

On a sheet of wax paper, spread out the dough into a square of about 1.5 cm in height. Allow to sit to “dry” for another hour.

Preheat oven to 200C. Bake for 15-20 minutes. The inside should be soft and moist, whilst the outside should be dry and of a harder texture.

Let cool, cut into desired shape and serve with Ribera del Duero & Blackberry Coulis.

For the Coulis:

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup Ribera del Duero or another young, fruity red wine
  • 6-8 tablespoons raw honey
  • 300g fresh blackberries
  • 1/2 vanilla bean, outer skin (from above recipe)

Process

In a saucepan, bring the wine and honey to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, and add the berries and the vanilla bean. Bring back to a simmer and cook for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and allow the mixture to cool completely at room temperature.

Remove the vanilla bean and with a hand blender, puree the rest of the mixture. I allowed mine to cool in the fridge for about an hour before serving. You may also want to pour through a sieve to remove any seed pieces. I didn’t.

*****

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13 Comments

  1. 9.18.12

    Looks delicious, I love blackberry coulis!

  2. 9.18.12

    I love the combination of berries and chocolate -they complement each other so well. How good does your dessert look? And how beautiful the berries are.

  3. 9.18.12

    What a lovely recipe! Healthy, and it sounds easy to make.

  4. 9.22.12
    thesaffrongirl said:

    Thank you for all the compliments!

  5. 9.27.12
    Anna said:

    Oh my! Those blackberries are to die for! Love the combination of brownies and berries.

  6. 9.30.12
    Nic said:

    Yum, I love chocolate brownies and I love blackberries, what a great combination!

  7. 2.16.13
    Chocolate chick said:

    I’m looking forward to trying this, I spotted it on another website but am glad to find your paleo blog as I love to cook devise, share recipes myself.

    • 2.16.13
      thesaffrongirl said:

      Hi Chocolate Chick! Thank you for stopping by and I’m happy to hear you’ll be trying this. Please let me know what you think! Do you have a blog, as well?

      • 2.21.13
        Chocolate chick said:

        Hi there, I do have a blog and like yourself am also very into health and good food. Mine is http://www.oliveoilandlemon.ie and my personal trainer other half also worth a look at http://www.dominic.ie
        Hope you stop by and see you soon!

      • 2.22.13
        thesaffrongirl said:

        Very cool! I’ll check them both out!

  8. 2.20.13
    Cheryl said:

    Hi- Recipe sounds yummy! Looking forward to trying it this weekend. A few questions though- I live in the US often use Almond Meal or Almond Flour in recipes that call for ground almonds. Have you ever used this for these brownies and if so, did it work? Also, what type of pan did you use to cook them in at this temperature? ie: Metal, Glass or Stoneware?
    Thanks for your help. Healthy eating!

    • 2.20.13
      thesaffrongirl said:

      Hi Cheryl! So glad you’ve stopped by and are going to try this recipe. Almond meal and almond flour are both ground almonds, although almond flour is slightly more finely ground I believe. I’ve only ordered almond “flour” while visiting in the US and found it finer than the ground almonds I purchase here in the UK. But there’s really no difference. I even make French macarons, which require a very fine ground almond, with home-ground almonds, when I don’t have the store-bought kind, and they turn out just fine. There should be no difference when interchanging them, especially if you measure by weight and not volume. As for the pan, I use a metal pan. Hope that helps! Let me know how it turns out!