Black Bean Brownies

My boyfriend was recently diagnosed with Type 2 adult onset diabetes so our eating lifestyle has changed dramatically in the past few weeks.  We realized that my gluten-free pastas and breads have the same or a few more grams of carbs than regular pasta/bread.  I'm determined to find recipes or figure out how to make low carb gluten free pasta and bread that we both can enjoy.

Last night, my boyfriend came across a recipe for Black Bean Brownies - low in carbs and gluten free.  We  made a few substitutions to reduce the sugar levels, using Splenda Brown Sugar and dark chocolate chips.  I just took the brownie out of the oven, and I think it tastes pretty darn good - hard to believe there's no flour.

Black Bean Brownies

1 15-oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
3 eggs
3 Tbsp canola oil, plus more for brushing
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
Coarse salt, a pinch
½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
2/3 cup brown sugar, packed (substituted with Splenda Brown Sugar mix)
½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (substituted with dark chocolate chips)

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly brush an 8" x 8" baking pan with oil.

In food processor, process black beans until smooth. Add the eggs, oil, cocoa powder, salt, baking powder, vanilla extract, and sugar; process until smooth. Add 1/4 cup chocolate chips and pulse a few times to fully mix. Transfer the batter to the pan and sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup chocolate chips on top of the batter.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted at the center comes out clean.

Homemade GF Lasagna

I used the remaining ricotta and spinach filling from my ravioli dinner to make GF lasagna with Tinkyada noodles.  First I cooked one pound of lean hamburger and one pound of Italian sausage.  Then I added the remaining marinara sauce I cooked for the ravioli dinner and mixed well.

Next I used the meat sauce to create the first layer.

Then a layer of mozzarella, the GF Tinkyada noodles and lastly a layer of the ricotta and spinach mixture.

I was only able to fill the lasagna pan with two sets of the layers  (topping with more mozzarella) as the pan wasn't very deep.  I covered the top of the pan with aluminum foil for the first 45 minutes then removed it for the remaining 10 minutes in the oven.

My boyfriend again gave his approval. 

I still had a bit more filling left and noodles so I baked up a vegetarian version for a coworker in a smaller dish and added pesto and a little more garlic.