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| Brownies with carob flour as well as chocolate are gluten-free. |
Instead of brownies, shall we call them “morenitos,” in honor of their Spanish ingredients? I made them with a new-to-me product, gluten-free carob flour. The carob, also known as locust bean or St. John’s bread—algarrobo in Spanish—is the seed-bearing pod or bean of a tree native to Mediterranean lands. Carob is used as a substitute for chocolate, which it somewhat resembles in flavor, and as a thickening agent (carob gum) in processed foods. Powdered carob makes a good substitute for flour in gluten-free cakes and cookies.
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| Carob pods dangle from branches. |
The edible pod has a leathery husk enclosing a sweet pulp that surrounds the seeds. The pulp is dried and ground to powder. The seeds contain a substance useful for gelling foods. Historically, carobs were known as famine food, consumed by humans only when other food was scarce. They continue to be valued as animal fodder.
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| Split pod shows pulp. |
I first tasted carobs as a child at Sunday school at my synagogue (Illinois) when it was distributed on Tu Bishvat, Jewish arbor day, along with other fruits from Israel such as figs and dates. When I came to Spain I discovered the tree with its dangling pods growing on rough hillsides and on small farmsteads. The pods were harvested in the fall, brought to town on burros, and heaped at a collection point where they gave off a strong, not entirely pleasant smell before being trucked away to be used as animal feed. More recently, I went out to dump compost in a bin at the edge of my property and discovered a couple of Moroccan youths up in the algarrobo tree knocking off the pods and bagging them. Still valuable enough to “steal.”
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| Powdered carob. |
Although this recipe has hardly any of the ingredients of traditional brownies—carob flour replaces wheat flour; cacao is reduced; sugar eliminated (the sweetness of carob plus dates makes sugar unnecessary), and olive oil takes the place of butter—the result is surprisingly similar.
I bought the carob powder at a health-foods stall in my local market. It is organic and untoasted. Supposedly raw carob powder is more bitter than the toasted, but I did not find it bitter at all. I have not tested the recipe with toasted carob powder. The non-gluten flour I used was a mixture of rice, potato, and chickpea flours. These brownies are more cakey than fudgy. As with all brownies, they are exceptionally delicious served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, dollop of whipped cream, or, my choice, unsweetened Greek yogurt.
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| Deep chocolaty flavor is even better with a dollop of yogurt. |
Gluten-Free Carob Brownies
Morenitos sin Gluten de Algarrobo
Makes 16 (2-inch) brownies
2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
¾ cup pitted and chopped dates
3 large or 4 medium eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup carob flour
¼ cup gluten-free flour
½ cup unsweetened cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2-3 tablespoons water
1 cup chopped walnuts
Preheat oven to 350ºF. Prepare an 8X8-inch cake pan oiled and lined with parchment.
Combine the oil and dates in a blender and blend until smooth. Beat in the eggs and vanilla.
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| Batter is chocolaty. |
Sift together the carob flour, gluten-free flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Pour the oil-egg mixture into a mixing bowl. Stir in the dry ingredients until thoroughly mixed, adding enough water to lighten the batter. Fold in the walnuts.
Spread the batter in the baking pan. Bake until a skewer comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool the brownies completely before cutting into squares.
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| Carob pods (algarrobos). |
More gluten-free baked goods:
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