One diet that has been proved to be one of the best around at the moment is Slimming World. Both my mum and nan have been on this for the past few months and you can already see amazing results. Although you are allowed 'syns' -things which aren't so good for you, the equivalent of Weight Watchers' 'points'-, they try to have as few as possible. So, as Christmas came and went and the healthy routine returned, the tin of leftover chocolates became a diet 'no-go-zone'.
The main thing is swapping the sugar for a sucralose-based sweetener, and using whisked egg whites as a light raising agent. Here are the ingredients:
- 6 eggs (separated)
- 150g Splenda (or other sweetener)
- 60g cocoa powder (not hot chocolate)
- 1tsp vanilla essence
- Fry Light
First of all, preheat the oven at 180ºc, spray a baking tin with Fry Light and line it with greaseproof paper. Then whisk the egg whites until they form soft peaks.
In a separate bowl, combine the egg yolks, sweetener, vanilla essence and cocoa powder. Try to use a good quality cocoa powder as it makes up in taste for the lack of sugar. Whisk it until it is all combined well. The mixture can get quite tough- if this happens keep adding bits of the egg white until it becomes smoother and easier to whisk. Next, gently fold in the rest of the egg whites, pour into the tin and bake for 25-30 minutes.
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| Not sure how many syns 'reindeer' are. |
When done and left to cool, I made a frosting to go on top. For this I used 4 tbsp of Quark (free on the Slimming World diet), 2 tbsp of cocoa powder, 2 tbsp of sweetener and 1 tsp of vanilla essence. Although the icing is of course optional, when on the brownies it is virtually free of syns so you may as well take advantage!
This mixture made roughly 25 brownies when cut into fairly small squares, making each one 0.5 syns on both a red day and a green day- hardly anything seeing as you're allowed 5-15 syns per day!
Great recipe :) . What size tin did you use? And is it just the cocoa powder that makes up the syns here?
ReplyDeleteThank you! I just used a standard 20cm sandwich tin, and yes all the syns are in the cocoa powder :)
DeleteWas it a square or round tin ???
DeleteI used a round tin as that's all I had, but either would be fine.
DeleteI tried these last night - oh my goodness, best brownies ever?! I had to use sugar instead of sweetener (didn't have enough sweetener - fail!) but these are just soooo gooey :) Thank you for the incredible recipe, everyone will be getting low syn brownies from now on and they'll never know! ;) xx
ReplyDeleteHow much sugar did you use? :D
DeleteI tried this recipe, thanks! I found that although I put less Splenda in (as generally I don't like the taste so never use as much as recipes call for) it still came out tasting far too sweetener-ish for my liking. I really liked the consistency of the brownie so thank you for that, I will just keep experimenting to get it to my taste.
ReplyDeleteI halved the amount of sweetener and its perfect! Massive hit with my hubby!
ReplyDeleteExcellent! I might try this next time I make them!
DeleteAre these 0.5 on extra easy?
ReplyDeleteYes they would be the same amount of syns :)
Deletecould you please tell me the points (how they work out for whole cake and frosting please ) x
ReplyDeleteWell it would be 12.5 syns whole (0.5 times 25) without the icing.
ReplyDeleteI'm getting cocoa when i go shopping tomorrow, can't wait to try these!! :)
150g of sugar translates to 15g of sweetener due to the difference in weight. :)
ReplyDeleteI love them, best naughty but nice thin I've made on slimming world, you definitely don't know there's no sugar, or butter in them, I've made them for friends and family too and they all liked them, even the kids
ReplyDeleteBrilliant, I'm so glad! I reckon they're just as sweet (if not sweeter) than regular brownies :)
DeleteCan't wait to try this recipe x x
ReplyDeleteSo do I need to use 15g of sweetener or 150g?????
You'll need around 150g of sweetener :)
DeleteThanks Hun x x
DeleteCan you confirm if it is 0.5 syns INCLUDING the frosting, or just the cake bit?
ReplyDeleteThanks!!
They would be 0.5 syns including the frosting. The icing as a whole would be around 4-5 syns I think, so split between 25 brownies it equates to hardly anything :)
Deletewhat size tin did you use?
ReplyDeleteI used a standard 20 cm sandwich tin but you could use anything :)
DeleteI'm a bit confused (it doesn't take much lol) 150g of sweeteners is two full jars!! That seems like a lot or am I reading it wrong :-/
ReplyDeleteI made it following the recipe, 150g sounds alot but it's right, they look lovely
DeleteI know it looks like a lot but yes! You might get away with using about a jar and a half though :)
DeleteSound good, but what temperature do you bake them at?
ReplyDelete180 degrees or gas mark 4 :)
DeleteCan I just confirm that it is actually 150g of sweetner needed as that is 2 whole jars??
ReplyDeleteYep it is, I know it sounds a lot! I can usually get away with using about one and a half jars though so maybe try that :)
DeleteHi, I don't like sweetener, can I use Half Spoon sugar from Silver Spoon?
ReplyDeleteyou probably would be able to use it, although I'm not sure on the quantity you'd need for the recipe. I think that half spoon is 1 syn per tsp so it'd increase the amount of syns in the brownies too.
DeleteHi, could this mixture be used in individual forms like muffin cases ect?
ReplyDeleteHiya, I haven't tried doing this but I don't see why you wouldn't be able to :)
Deletei found the texture tastes more like a cake rather an brownies anyway so it would work as cupcakes or buns i would of thought :)
Deletehas anybody tried making these in the microwave ?
ReplyDeleteMade these and loved the consistency but they were a bit bitter - any suggestions?
ReplyDeleteTry adding a bit more sweetner to cancel the bitterness out
Deletecould less cocoa powder be used at all? and why does it have to be sucralose sweetener? thanx :) also for the frosting i think 2 tbsp of cocoa powder is a lot. i use half tsp in me porridge and thats enough lol.
ReplyDeleteMy wife just made these as she has a craving for something sweet after Christmas, and we have to say they were disgusting! FAR too sweet and we used 150g of Splenda. Before Christmas, one of our members made them and they were lovely and thick, soft and delicious! My wife isn't useless in the kitchen and I can't help but think there's something wrong. Could it be that we should only use 15g of Splenda?
ReplyDeleteThe recipe is 2 jars of sweetener (150g) but you could maybe get away with 100g of sweetener if this recipe was too sweet for you
DeleteI would certainly choose to cut down the sweetener, ive done them with using 75g of sweetener and it was still to much, ive sent a friend away to use 60g of sweetener and she said its way to much, maybe it is ment to have only 15g and not 150g x
DeleteI will definatly be making these tomorow I shall be at morrisons at 8am. Lol
ReplyDeleteI would certainly choose to cut down the sweetener, ive done them with using 75g of sweetener and it was still to much, ive sent a friend away to use 60g of sweetener and she said its way to much, maybe it is ment to have only 15g and not 150g x
ReplyDeleteI am really interested in trying these as a new joiner to sw however not so keen on potentially wasting all those ingredients if they are going to taste awful! Not sure why some people think they taste amazing and some people think disgusting - quite a difference! Any further updates gratefully received ;)
Deletejust made these as im new to sw but to be honest found them disgusting, they just taste really horribly of sweetner!! consistrency was lovely though and they looked and smelt nice but think this just ment i was even more gutted when they taste so horribly, does using alot less sweetner change the taste at all? reluctant to waste so many ingredients on a trail and error basis
ReplyDeletei used 60g sweetener and used plain and milk cocoa they were lovely :)
ReplyDeletemade these today and thought they were delish would defo make ago maybe with a little less sweener next time.
ReplyDeleteHi guys, thanks for letting me know about the different amounts of sweetener you have used and how it's turned out. If you want to use a lot less sweetener or just aren't too keen on the taste, maybe adding a teaspoon (or a couple) of sugar will improve the taste for you. A teaspoon of sugar is 1 syn (I think). Keep letting me know how your attempts go and what you find works best :)
ReplyDeleteI think these are fab. I used 150g of sweetner and think they were perfect tbh. made them like chocolate fudge brownies. But I now use 100g just to save on swetner a bit. still really nice. Must be nice though my kids are constantly nicking them. xx
ReplyDeleteHi, has anyone tried these with stevia based sweetener like Truvia? It's very sweet so you wouldnt need much but it tastes much more like sugar and is granulated rather than powdery. Its expensive but much better for you I believe.Does volume impact on the bulk and quantity?
ReplyDeleteThanks!
I used Truvia and they were delicious. Making them again tonight :)
DeleteCould you add vanilla essence to sweeten flavour?
ReplyDeleteI'm sure that would be fine, although many people have commented on how sweet they are already!
DeleteCould i use drinking chocolate if i av no coco powder?
ReplyDeleteDrinking chocolate contains more sugar and calories than cocoa powder. You will also need a higher quantity of drinking chocolate in order to try and get the same taste. It would be better to use cocoa powder as it is better for you and has a much better taste when used for baking. Hope this helps :)
Deletei used drinking chocolate, turned out fine, and not bitter like normal coca powder does
DeleteHi, just to let you know - I've been using 30g of sweetener and it's still plenty sweet enough (I worked my way down gradually, so far I've not gone any lower).
ReplyDeletealso, I tried a stevia sweetener, they were disgusting, so I assume that's to do with whether you like that or not.
Hi just wondering have you any more recipes to help with a sweet tooth ,but yet are low in syns
ReplyDeleteHi! I'm hoping to make a low-syn orange/citrus cake soon and will post the recipe as soon as I can. There are other recipes out there like a weetabix cake- there's a good video recipe on YouTube. The Slimming World website also offer recipes like http://www.slimmingworld.com/recipes/strawberry-cupcakes.aspx and http://www.slimmingworld.com/recipes/lemon-drizzle-fairy-cakes.aspx . Hope this helps!
DeleteI made these last night without the topping. Only used 30g of sweetener. They went down well enough but I found it quite bitter.
ReplyDeleteI have a similar recipe I use to make a cake but it is 150 ml (2/3 of a cup) of sweetner not 150g and I add a few tsp of real sugar (syned - 1 syn per tsp) to improve taste :) hope this helps everyone
ReplyDeleteWhat are the syns for these on EE?
ReplyDeletei just worked it out, its only the coca powder that has a syn value which for the cake is 10 syns and the topping is 2 syns but divide it between the 25 squares it works out less than 1/2 a syn per square (obviously depends on how big of square you have)
DeleteCan you freeze the Brownies?
ReplyDeleteHi, I'm not sure on this. I've never frozen them (they've all disappeared before I've had the chance!), so I don't know. Sorry!
DeleteHi just seen this recipe and i want to make it, however i was wondering if you could use fat free fromage frais instead of quark, just because i have some that needs using and will save me buying anything for the recipe, thanks in advance
ReplyDeleteI have just made these and they are great for that little choco crave! i used cinnamon instead of the vanilla essence (because i didnt have any) and i used drinking chocolate instead of coca (doesnt make any difference, still very chocolatey), and the fromage frais idea works just as well as quark so a little bit runner but put them in the fridge and it goes thicker. GREAT RECIPE!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tips Rebekah! Adding cinnamon sounds like a lovely twist. I'm not sure whether drinking chocolate has more syns than cocoa powder, although I'm sure that if it does, these brownies will still be lower-syn than shop-bought ones! x
DeleteI'm not much of a baker so please can you tell me what I should do differently next time? After 25mins cooking I tested with a knife which came out clean so I took them out of the oven only to have them fall to about 2 thirds their height. Thank you very much.
ReplyDeleteDon't worry, this is supposed to happen! The egg whites mean that it'll rise a lot (much like a souffle) then drop when taken out of the oven. They should fall to the height of any other brownie, like in the photos! Hope this helps :)
DeleteI tried those and only used 30g of sweetener, I read on the packaging that it's twice the strenght of normal sweetener, so that might be why some people find the 150 way to sweet. I took into the consideration some of the other comments hence using 30g. I am very forgiving in terms of using diet foods, I get used to them fairly well but regardless of that I found those awful. I cannot understand why people seem to like them so much. The aftertaste of the sweetener, the sour-ish quark icing, I simply can't get my head around it. I think personally I would rather have one tiny square of proper brownie once in a while than 6 of these.
ReplyDeleteIt seems a lot is down to taste and the sweetener you use; some sweeteners appear to give more of a bitter aftertaste than others. It's just a case of adapting the quantities (and brands) to your particular taste :)
DeleteNext time I was thinking of making a 'milk chocolate' version ( as my child finds this too dark chocolate intense ) and to help lessen the sweetner taste by adding either skim milk, quark or fat free natural yoghurt to the Brownie mixture. Has anyone tried this? And how did you alter the cooking time or temperature?
ReplyDeleteAre you planning on using drinking chocolate instead of cocoa powder to make them like milk chocolate brownies? If so you might need to adapt the quantities; you need more drinking chocolate to get the strength of flavour than you do cocoa powder. I haven't tried adding those ingredients but quark/fat free yoghurt sounds like it'd work fine, although might need a tad longer in the oven? (I'm not sure though as have never done this) Let me know how it goes! Hope this helps :)
DeleteThank you. I wasn't intending to use drinking chocolate as I thought it contained sugar just either milk, quark or yogurt. I'll let you know what happens :-)
DeleteOh sorry, I understand now! Yes drinking chocolate would make the syns go up! Hope you enjoy them :)
Deleteoften a pinch of salt will take away the bitterness of the cocoa powder!
ReplyDeleteGreat tip! Thank you for the advice!
Deletejust made up a batch of these but only had one tub of sweetener so used 75g-also it was a cheapy version.they looked gorgeous but when i tried them i was gutted-they were so bitter :( im not sure if i shouldve used splenda??theyre too bitter for me to eat.could you use option low cal hot choc instead of cocoa powder as theyre only a couple of syns per sachet i think?youd need about 6 of the lil sachets?
ReplyDeleteHi Sam, using hot chocolate will up the syns, and may not work as well as it is not designed for baking. If you fancy giving it a go though, I don't see why not; the colour of the brownies might be a bit lighter and not taste as 'chocolately' though. Reading the comments on this post, I do get the impression that different sweeteners give different tastes; hence why some found them fine and others found them bitter. I think it's a case of trial and error to find the one that suits your taste! I hope this helps!
DeleteHi, did everyone use a particular brand of sweetener? I tried Canderel Stevia at the weekend and they sort of tasted like melted plastic :( REALLY want these to work, so will press on with other types, but I just don't know which to choose?
ReplyDeleteHiya, I used Splenda with mine and they tasted fine- I was confused about all the comments saying these didn't taste nice. I think the kind of sweetener you use makes a huge difference. Hope this helps!
DeleteHi
ReplyDeleteI made these this evening with two pots of splenda and they came out tasting far to much like sweetner, ive thrown them away. Any suggestions on how to make them taste better? x
Hi! That's odd, I always find splenda the best sweetener to use. I would suggest using less sweetener if you make them again, maybe even halving it. It's all trial and error to get them to taste exactly how you like them- everyone's taste is different! Sorry to hear you didn't like them x
DeleteI've just made these brownies and followed the recipe without reading the comments. Its way to sweet for us and I am a big sweet lover (hence starting SW) I'm going to try again with less than half the sweetener next time. Hopefully with a bit of tweaking I'll be onto a winner.
ReplyDeleteHiya, it seems adjusting the amount of sweetener according to your taste is the way to perfect these. I guess everyone likes a different amount. The type of sweetener you use also effects the taste quite a lot.
DeleteI don't understand what I did wrong but I ended up with something more like a choux pastry for an eclair. Really nothing like a brownie at all!
ReplyDeleteHi, I was wondering what brand of cocoa you used?
ReplyDeleteI can't remember now as it was 2 years ago, but for baking I usually use bourneville as I find recipes always taste better with it :)
DeleteJust a gentle note which is very important-if you've ever done Slimming World you should know that it is definitely NOT a DIET. Nothing is excluded. It is a very sensible way of a healthy eating plan, which if everybody followed there would be far less diabetics and people with high blood pressure. It has been proved.
ReplyDeleteAnyone know how many syns this would be u see the new sweetener rules???
ReplyDelete