Tasty Tuesday - Vegan Chocolate Shakeology Review

This Tasty Tuesday adventure is a little bit of a "Special Edition" - Followin' up on my new Shakeology flavor, Vegan Chocolate! 

Dan actually tried it before I did, and while he questioned my decision to experiment with a "whole bag", he, to my complete surprise (and probably his, too), likes it better than non-vegan chocolate. That's not to say one is better than the other, just different. 

For instance, we both feel that the vegan formula tastes more like dark chocolate, a tiny bit less sweet than the other. And while non-vegan might be a little more smooth, I wouldn't call vegan gritty by any means, however there is a slight difference in texture.

Let's talk about how we usually enjoy our Shakeology. I'll describe us as "purists" - we love the flavor and the nutrition it has on it's own, so we add very little. Plus, we're lazy, and I love the convenience and speed at which I can have it shaken and be walking out the door in the morning.

Generally, we make it with LOTS of water (about 18 oz) and many times a splash of organic whole milk, maybe a couple ounces at most. Keeping that in mind, it's easy to compare one chocolate flavor to the other because it's changed very minimally and we make it pretty consistently the same. 

So...

Super Bowl Sweeties - Flourless Chocolate Brownie Cupcakes, hold the frosting

Hmmm...so, this year "our team" didn't make it to the Super Bowl. It was close and I know some people are still sore about it, but it happened. And it's just football. Yep, I said it. It's. Just. Football.

Anyway, while we're not crazy football fans in our house, but any excuse to get together and have a little fun as a family is fine with us :) Since we try to make healthy choices and eat clean, we had a mix of foods and games and fun going on! Sure we had snacks like a clean, fresh spinach dip, but life is about balance, and we enjoyed hot spinach and artichoke dip, chex mix, cheese and sausage. And naturally a mix of goodies, too, like molasses cake, chocolate brownies and rhubarb bars. 

I wasn't sure if these flourless brownie cupcakes qualify as a sweet treat or an appetizer...I mean, hummus is made with chickpeas, right? Let's face it, you can't exactly dunk a carrot stick in a brownie. Either way, these cupcakes are moist, chocolatey and super easy to make. Oh, and they're delicious, too!

What You Need

1 (15 oz.) can chickpeas/garbanzo beans, drained & rinsed
3 large eggs, farm fresh if you have them
½ cup pure maple syrup, Mmmm!
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
3 Tbsp. organic extra virgin coconut oil (no need to melt)
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
Optional: handful of milk or dark chocolate chips

Put It Together

Toss all ingredients except chocolate chips into a 4 cup measuring cup OR your blender or food processor. If using a measuring cup, blend until pretty smooth with a hand/stick blender (if using a blender or processor, do the same).

Pour into lined cupcake pan, sprayed with organic olive oil if you have it. Garnish with 3-5 chips per cupcake, bake in preheated 400 degree oven 12-15 min or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from Beachbody Blog:

http://www.beachbody.com/beachbodyblog/nutrition/flourless-brownie-muffins