Craving Brownies?

Flaxseed can replace oil in many recipes

The next time you have an inextinguishable craving for brownies — make them with dark chocolate for the extra flavonoids (antioxidants). But did you know that you can substitute flax seeds for part of the oil in the recipe? Give it a try — you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

Flax seeds are powered packed with omega-3 fats and there’s strong evidence that these essential fats reduce your risk for heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis and cancer. Your body needs them to control brain and immune functions, blood clotting and cell growth. They’re also the components of cell membranes. For this reason, omega-3′s are also great for your skin! A sign that you’re deficient in this fat is dry skin.  

Two tablespoons of flax seeds contain 2.4 gms of omega-3′s — slightly more than a 4 oz. serving of salmon or 11 walnut halves (2.1 gms). Sprinkle these super seeds on your cereal, salad, in your yogurt, meatloaf, or homemade muffins…and in this case, your brownies! Here’s how…

The flax seed to oil substitution ratio is 3:1 and you can substitute 1/2 of the oil in your recipe with flax seeds. You’ll need to add more liquid, though, since you’re replacing a liquid with a solid. (Substituting the same volume of oil with water works well.) So, if your brownie recipe calls for 1/2 cup oil of oil, use these proportions instead:

• 1/4 cup oil
• 1/4 cup flax seeds x 3 = 3/4 cup Organic Golden Whole Ground Flaxseed Meal
• 1/4 cup water

Bake as usual per directions. Now for the good news. If your recipe yields 24 pieces, each brownie will provide you with 1.2 gms of omega-3 fatty acids…about what you need for an entire day!

THR Tip:  If you add 1/2 cup chopped walnuts to your batch, you’ll boost the omega total to 1.4 gms per serving. To take it another step further, you can use 1/4 cup of applesauce instead of the 1/4 cup oil and eliminate all the added oil altogether. Treat yourself and enjoy!