Black Bean Brownies (lower carb, gluten free)

In my many experiments with lower sugar, lower carb baking, I decided to check out a few cookbooks that were recommended in the Living Without Magazine.  I ended up with one I didn't request, 1,000 Gluten-Free Recipes by Carol Fenster.  Heck, 1,000?  I decided to look through it anyway.  As in a previous cookbook I reviewed, anything bread or dessert related goes back to a basic flour replacement recipe that the author has developed, a combination of sorghum flour, rice flour, and cornstarch.  Those ingredients aren't as lower-carb friendly, so I looked carefully through to find a recipe that would base the flour on something else.  I didn't see quite as many along those lines as I was hoping, for instance I don't think there was a single recipe using chickpea flour, but I did come across a few desserts that had other base ingredients.

One recipe that intrigued me was for black bean brownies.  A co-worker recently had me taste cupcakes she made where garbanzo beans were used in place of flour, and this recipe uses a similar strategy.  I decided to make a tweak of the recipe and this is what I'm posting.  There was a lot of sugar in the original recipe, so I've tried compensating for that.  I also left out the xantham gum, because I thought I had some but didn't.  It must have been discarded in the Great Pantry Purge of 2012, when we threw away everything past its date!  If you have xantham gum powder sitting around, adding a teaspoon to the recipe will probably do a bit for the texture.

I also discovered that my beautiful Cuisinart is broken, but I figured out a way to trick it into thinking it is latched.  Sigh.

These brownies are very cakey.  Please try this recipe!  Tweak it and report back!

Black Bean Brownies

1 15-oz can black beans, drained and rinsed (reduced sodium if you can find it)
3/4 cup brown sugar Splenda for baking
3 eggs
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup chickpea flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp some kind of liquid (the original recipe had 1/4 cup maple syrup) - soy milk, applesauce, banana, etc.

In a food processor, puree black beans, scraping down sides.  Pulse in brown sugar Splenda and eggs until smooth.  Add remaining ingredients and mix.  Pour into prepared 9" pan.  Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, and cool for another 20.  

(The original recipe from 1,000 Gluten-Free Recipes had 3/4 cup sugar and 1/4 cup maple syrup.  If you are only looking for vegan gluten-free but don't need lower sugar, I think I'd go back to that original idea.  Brown sugar Splenda seems much better than the white for aftertaste, but you can still taste it.)