national brownie day: gluten-free kabocha swirl hazelnut brownies

Happy National Brownie Day! I've decided that I will only make food on the national food days written on my Pop Pilates Calendar, just to prevent myself from overeating. So I've made Kabocha Swirl Hazelnut Brownies! I purposely left over some kabocha puree for today, and I thought I'd put into good use the raw hazelnuts from Sprouts that have so far been left untouched.

This recipe is one of the few that I'm really proud of :) I looked for gluten-free brownie recipes but in the end, chose to improvise my own. And they turned out delicious! Smooth and creamy, the kabocha swirls balance out the rich dark chocolate brownie. Pumpkin (or in this case, kabocha) and chocolate is a combination that should be recognized like peanut butter and jelly. Even though fall's nearly over, anything pumpkin flavored just evokes holiday feel and warmth.

The chewiness and decadence of these brownies make you feel pretty guilty after you've consumed one or two (or four) and gushed them down with some almond milk, but these brownies are healthier than your conventional full fat, full sugar, full flour brownies. I replaced butter with olive oil, granulated white sugar with brown sugar, and flour with the ground nut meals.