Holiday Candy Cane Brownies (Vegan)

So, I was so obsessed with my success with the previously posted vegan brownies that I had to develop a “candy cane” version.  I love mint chocolate.   Happy Holidays!

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour (or 1 cup whole wheat pastry, 3/4 cup all-purpose)
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 2 Tbsp ground flax seed + 3 Tbsp water
• 3/4 cup chocolate chips (make sure they are vegan)
• 7 Tbsp cocoa powder
• 3 Tbsp applesauce
• 3 Tbsp earth balance
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup finely crushed candy cane (I used my magic bullet with the grain blade)
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/4 cup roughly crushed candy cane to sprinkle on top

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a pyrex pan with coconut oil.
2. Combine the flour(s), baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
3. Combine the flax and water in a cup and set aside.
4. Melt earth balance.
5. In a large bowl, combine the chocolate chips, cocoa powder, applesauce, butter, and water. Toss together loosely.
6. Melt in the microwave in 30-second intervals until melted, stirring well after each 30 seconds.
7. Add the sugar and finely crushed candy cane to the chocolate mixture and mix well.
8. Mix the flax/water combo and the vanilla extra and stir until smooth.
9. Dump the flour mix into the chocolate mixture and stir with a large spoon until just combined.  It will be very think and turn into a large, doughy ball– that’s perfect!
10. When the batter is just about together, fold in the walnuts.
11. Flatten the batter into your prepared pan.
12. Smooth it out with a spatula.
13. Bake for 30 minutes.
14. Immediately upon taking brownies out of the oven, sprinkle additional crushed candy cane evenly on top– You want it to be very warm/hot so the crushed bits melt a bit to stick.
15. Let cool for 15 minutes before serving.
16. ENJOY WITH A GLASS OF ALMOND MILK!