Homemade brownies will be so tasty if you add 1 unusual ingredient

What if we told you that by adding one unusual ingredient, you can satisfy your family's sweet cravings - while also sneaking some protein and fibre into a rich dessert? Naturally high in fibre and protein, black bean brownies are an ingenious way to add nutrients to what might otherwise be considered a purely decadent indulgence.

Black bean brownies keep the gluttonous, sinful feeling of a chocolate brownie alive, while tucking in a few beneficial components. Of course they're not to be substituted for a proper, healthy and nutritious diet - but there's no harm in your dessert having some nutritional value too. The brownies' chocolatey goodness will win over picky eaters at home.

And while adding savoury black beans to a sweet dessert recipe might seem highly unusual, it's well worth taking the leap of faith with this recipe.

Submitted to Taste of Home by home cook Kathy Hewitt from Cranston, Rhode Island, the amateur chef says of her 'Black Bean Brownies' recipe: "You'd never guess these rich, velvety chocolate treats contain a can of black beans. Who would have thought black bean brownies would be so amazing?"

A lighter version of the traditional chocolate brownie, Kathy's recipe was tested by the Taste of Home Test Kitchen and proved its mettle. The recipe is both dairy and gluten free and can even become a vegan offering by substituting the eggs. Here are the ingredients Kathy used:

• 1 can (15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips, divided
• 2/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons canola oil
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 1/2 cup baking cocoa
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

First, preheat your oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. Then, combine the black beans, 1/4 cup of chocolate chips and the canola oil in a food processor. Cover the mixture and process it until it's thoroughly blended.

Next, add in the eggs, baking cocoa, baking powder, brown sugar, vanilla extract and salt, to the blended mixture and cover and process it until it has a smooth consistency.

Transfer the blended mixture into a square, parchment-lined, 8-inch baking pan, and follow it up by sprinkling in the remaining chocolate chips over the top of the mixture.

Bake in the oven at 350 degrees fahrenheit for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack, cut your brownie block into bars and serve.

For an indulgent treat, serve the brownies warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of salted caramel sauce on top.

You can also toss in different types of chips to create multiple variations of this recipe. Feel free to diverge from chocolate chips and go for a mix of your favourites like peanut butter, vanilla, white chocolate, or butterscotch chips. Add in larger chunks of chips for a bigger chunk of chocolate in your bite.

The eggs (or one egg) in the recipe can also be substituted with a banana for an enhanced flavour and a dash of added sweetness. 1 egg can be substituted by 1/4 cup of mashed banana.

Gushing over the black bean brownie recipe, one cooking enthusiast divulged: "My family really likes these brownies. I have made them many times, and adjusted them to our taste. I make them with only 1/2 cup white sugar and use dark chocolate chips since we like dark chocolate and it lowers the sugar content even more. We like them this way and use them as a snack bar rather than a dessert."

While another home cook wrote: "These worked perfectly! I did not use chocolate chips, but they still tasted fine. Would of never guessed they had black beans in them!"