Squidgy almond toffee brownies with a good nutty crunch and an almost toffeeish texture. Unusually for a brownie recipe, it’s made with egg yolks only. It’s best to spread the batter as thinly as possible as it’s this that helps to make them so gorgeously chewy.
What could I do with the three egg yolks I had left over from making the chocolate meringue? I’ve just realised that was over two months ago now – oops. I needed to come up with something fast as egg yolks don’t keep very long at all. I had a quick hunt on the net for a suitable recipe, but other than mayonnaise which I wasn’t geared up to do, I couldn’t find anything.
Then I read Liz’s post on George Cadbury with the consequence I had brownies on the brain. So, as I hadn’t yet tried making Chantal Coady’s brownie recipe from Real Chocolate, I thought I’d try that. Or rather an adapted version of that.
Almond Toffee Brownies
I made a third of the quantity and used my leftover egg yolks rather than two whole eggs. Following on from a comment by Hazel who says she always makes her brownies with ground almonds rather than flour, I did just that. It makes them gooier apparently. So, instead of chopped walnuts I included even more ground almonds as a substitute.
For the majority of my almond bakes, I grind my own almonds in a coffee grinder. I can then use skin-on almonds and also control the texture to some extent. If you can grind your own, these brownies are best with coarsely ground almonds. This gives them some texture and a bit of crunch.
The result is really delicious. And I mean really delicious. A squidgy brownie par excellence. It has a good nutty crunch and almost toffeeish texture; the latter partly due to me spreading the batter quite thinly. I didn’t have a brownie tin small enough for the quantity of almond toffee brownies that I made. This was a very happy accident indeed.
We very indulgently enjoyed a couple of these for almond toffee brownies for dinner with more raspberries, as an after meringue treat. They are officially my favourite brownies ever. Next time I have some spare egg yolks I shall make these again for sure.
Oh! And did I say, they’re naturally gluten-free too?
And one more thing, they work exceedingly well in this chocolate brownie ice cream.
Other Almond Recipes You Might Like
- Almond rye shortbread with whisky raspberry cream
- Easy vegan honey & almond granola (vegan)
- Galette des rois (vegan)
- Green beans with almonds & crème fraîche
- Green smoothie bowl with pear, avocado and almonds (vegan)
- Plum almond tart
Keep in Touch
Thanks for visiting Tin and Thyme. If you make these almond toffee brownies, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. And do please rate the recipe. Have you any top tips? Do share photos on social media too and use the hashtag #tinandthyme, so I can spot them.
For more delicious and nutritious recipes follow me on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest. And don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to my weekly newsletter. Or why not join the conversation in our Healthy Vegetarian Whole Food Recipes Facebook Group?
If you’d like more brownie recipes, follow the link and you’ll find I have quite a lot of them. All delicious and nutritious, of course.
Choclette x
Almond Toffee Brownies. PIN IT.
Almond Toffee Brownies
Almond Toffee Brownies
Ingredients
- 120 g unsalted butter
- 45 g cocoa powder
- 3 eggs yolks
- 225 g golden caster sugar (I used homemade vanilla sugar and omitted the vanilla extract)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 110 g ground almonds (grind your own to a coarse texture, if you can)
Instructions
- In a small pan, melt the butter over a moderate heat along with the cocoa powder. Stir until well combined.120 g unsalted butter, 45 g cocoa powder
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk the eggs yolks with the sugar and vanilla extract until they are pale and creamy. Electric beaters are good for this.3 eggs yolks, 225 g golden caster sugar, 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Fold in the almonds.110 g ground almonds
- Add the cocoa mixture and pour into a greased 20 cm (8″) tin or a 23 cm x 18 cm (9″x7″) tin.
- Bake in a preheated oven at 180℃ (160℃ fan, 350℉, Gas 4) for 12 minutes.
Notes
Nutrition Estimate
Sharing
Friday 26 November – I’ve just joined in the KitchenMaid’s Blog Hop. I’m not at all sure what it is or how it works, but thought I’d give it a try.
Jacqui – Only Crumbs Remain says
Ohh its so hard to beat a good brownie and these are glute free so i can make them when my sister comes to visit.
Choclette says
Yes these brownies make a lovely gluten-free treat.
Henk Kooiman says
‘Oliebollen’ (lit. translation = oil-balls) are a big thing here in The Netherlands. Traditionally they are baked on the 31st of December. The batter is made with fresh yeast and quite loose (fluid) and filled with raisins and currants. The balls are shaped with two spoons and deepfried in sunflower oil. After cooling down they are dusted with powdered sugar. If you do it right, which is not the easiest thing, they are very delicious. My friend is an expert, so I’m safe. I only assist with making the batter 😉
Choclette says
Ooh, they do sound good Henk. Thanks for enlightening me. I never deep fry at home, but do enjoy the occasional deep fried treat.
Henk Kooiman says
Recently made this one again for a glutenfearing person. Of course I had a piece myself too and was again surprised by how good it tasted ! I stuck to the hazelnuts, liqueur and cornflour. For festive reasons I poured ganache on top of it after baking. Simple elegance was how it looked and it made many people happy.
All the best for the New Year Choclette !
We’re now getting ready to make ‘oliebollen’ for tonight, which is a tradition in The Netherlands (although more and more people are buying them instead of making them these days ….).
Choclette says
I really think I must try making these again Henk, you make them sound so good. What are oliebollen? They sound quite intriguing. I wish you a very Happy, Healthy & Fulfilling New Year and may your bakes just get better and better 🙂
Henk Kooiman says
You are right about all those different variables playing a role in baking. This often makes it difficult to reach perfection, if you are aiming for it at all. In this case using some corn flour and a smaller tin may have played a vital role. But sometimes magic happens: the hazelnut-variety is in all aspects a 10 out of 10 ! This time at least. I’ll whip some cream this afternoon to have with my second slice. I’ll keep you posted on future attempts, which may turn out completely different. But, as I wrote before: nothing will ever go wrong with these ingredients put together.
Henk Kooiman says
With the whipped cream it was like tasting a little peace of heaven (as I imagine it to be) !
Now in the oven is a hazelnut-version of this recipe. I added 20 grams of corn flour for firmness and 30 grams of a strong hazelnut liqueur to enhance the taste. Sugar was 50/50 light brown sugar and organic crystallized sugar. I used the same 17 cm square baking tin. In my oven at 150 degrees Celsius, approx. 25 minutes.
I will let you know about the result. Thanks again for the inspiration. I think it is a recipe that has a good effort-quality-ratio, if I can put it that way.
Choclette says
Haha, I like your idea of heaven. A hazelnut version sounds pretty heavenly to me. I think the hazelnut brownies I made were my favourite, though it’s hard to have a favourite. I like my brownies quite squidgy, so I’m not sure about adding cornflour, but I’m interest to hear what you think.
Henk Kooiman says
Just had one for breakfast ! Should have waited, as cakes with almonds always get an even better taste after a day or two, but couldn’t resist. Very simple to make. I used a smaller tin, so these brownies were thicker than the ones on the photo. The taste is – nothing can go wrong with these ingredients put together – absolutely delicious. Consistency could be a bit more firm, so I would be inclined to add one or two tablespoons of corn flour. I used 2 whole eggs. What happened was that the cake was rising beautifully while baking and then collapsed in the middle when cooling down, which was to be expected of course. The sides are higher and have a different texture which in fact makes it more interesting to eat. Definitely a recipe to repeat. Interesting to try out different sizes of trays and see the effect on the texture. Maybe mine were also different because I misread the recipe and mixed the cocoa powder with the almonds instead of melting it together with the butter. Automatically I did what seemed more logical to me. Anyhow, this afternoon I will have another piece and probably have some whipped cream with it ….
Choclette says
Thank you so much for your wonderful feedback Henk, it’s always good to hear. The trouble with baking is that there are so many variable – size of eggs, oven temperature, size of tin, how much stirring occurs and more. Did these firm up the next day. I usually find brownies to be quite soft after baking, but they firm up quite well by the next day.
Jo Hutchinson says
a squidgy brownie is always a winner.
Heather Haigh says
Always on the lookout for gf recipes – this sounds great – thanks.
Angie Hoggett says
wow these look delicious, thanks for the recipe!
Herbert Appleby says
these look and sound wow!! shared here https://twitter.com/SmokinHerbz1/status/402564494255071232
Maya Russell says
I wish I had one right now. They look nice.
JaynesDen says
These look delicious. The perfect mid afternoon treat.
olivia280177 says
I love almond flavour stuff, mmmmm Dime bars, these do look lush.
Maya Russell says
An ingenious way to use up eggs. I’ll remember the recipe thanks!
Herbert Appleby says
I wish had some of these with my coffee every morning what a perfect combination of ingredients!!
Choclette says
Northern Snippet – thanks for letting me know. It’s always good to hear that things have worked for others AND been liked 🙂
Northern Snippet says
Just wanted to pop back and say I made these and they were delicious!
Choclette says
Sophie – thank you. I have another brownie post in the making now – possibly even better.
Sophie says
Your almond chocolate brownies look so heavenly, my friend!MMMMMMMMMMMMM,..tasty & fab food!
Choclette says
Liz – thanks – I have you to thank for these (and Hazel)
Hazel – no need to apologise. Thanks for the tip
Hazel says
Ahh how lovely of you to mention me in your post! I feel very privileged 🙂
Once you go gooey with brownies… you never go back!
Yum yum YUM!
P.S. Sorry I have only just read this – I have been away for a few days!
Liz says
I do love a squidgy brownie…and these looked great!
Choclette says
KitchenMaid – up for trying most things once (well, on reflection, maybe some things)
Catherine – it was a good suggestion substituting almonds for the flour – would probably never have thought of that on my ownsome!
Oxslip – love the sound of squidginess.
Maggie – thanks. The season of raspberries already seems such a long time ago.
Anne – thank you. Yes, there is a limit to how much mayonnaise one wants to make.
Foodycat – Thank you. I think the secret might have been in grinding these myself so there was quite a bit of “texture” too.
BVG – I’m very glad to be able to return the complement. You’ve so many recipes I want to make.
Baking Addict – I find brownies very hard to wean myself off!
Baking Addict says
I must must try this! I’ve been on a bit of a brownie binge lately.
Brownieville Girl says
I’m always looking for a good way to use up the yolks when I make pavlova – I’ve just found it!!!
Thank you so much for this recipe.
Foodycat says
Wow! These sound amazing! I love the idea of using ground almonds instead of flour. So there is nothing really to make them rise? No wonder they were so fudgy and gorgeous!
Anne says
Am salivating over the description of these, they look so mmmmm too!
Very handy for using up leftover yolks too, always at a loss what to do with them!
Maggie says
I love a squidgy brownie and they look extra special with raspberries to eat alongside them.
oxslip says
I think this brownie illustrates that the best recipes are often the simplest, 5 amazing ingredients to make a tin of delicious chocolate sqidginess. Yum
Catherine says
brownies for dinner – love it! Hee hee! Also loving the almond instead of flour, those brownies must taste divine!
The KitchenMaid says
Hurrah! Thanks for joining my little blog hop – you did good, as they say. The point of blog hops is that you can ‘hop’ from one to another – by posting the link to your blog on my post, you have hopefully got lots of new visitors (who will be swooning at this recipe and all your back catalogue!)
Choclette says
MoonSmile – thank you and you’re welcome.
Manu – they were really really good.
Jac – thanks, using almonds rather than flour often works well. Luckily it did this time too 🙂
Gillian – why do you steer clear of almonds?
Dom – thanks for your commendation. One of the better cakes I’ve made so far is a chocolate and almond one with no flour.
Suzler – nice to hear from you. Keep trying to find your blog but am not very often successful.
Johanna – the need to find gluten free recipes seems to be on the increase. I quite often use spelt which people who are intolerant to wheat can often manage.
Chele – you really have set yourself a challenge trying to be good before Christmas when there is so much baking and making of goodies to do.
Sushma – thank you
Kath – let me know what you think. Last week I made chestnut brownies and think they might be even better. It’s so hard to tell which is best, because I can’t try them all at the same time.
Joanna – I did make challah on my bread making course, but nice as it was, brownies are a lot easier – don’t say I never take hte easy way out!
Ananda – the great thing about brownies are that they are so quick and easy to make that if you fancy some you can whip them up in no time at all.
Cakelaw – meringue and brownies every time 🙂
CityHippy – sounds like a lovely thank you present.
BlackBook – thank you
Nic- thanks, had a good chuckle at that.
nic@nipitinthebud says
I’m in serious danger of becoming a chocolate monster if I keep reading your blog – especially the extra cheeky little temptations at the bottom of the post … ‘you might also like this’. Naughty Choclette {wink}
blackbookkitchendiaries says
this is so pretty:) i love it. thanks for sharing.
cityhippyfarmgirl says
They look delicious. I have been thinking about making some brownies as a thankyou for some people I have been working with. They might just be the ones to do it!
Cakelaw says
This is a fab way to use up egg yolks – these brownies look super chocolatey and delicious.
Ananda Rajashekar says
have been craving for brownies for while now…sounds easy and delicious slurp 🙂
Joanna says
Choclette, I was going to say you could make a challah type dough, that is best made with egg yolks and not whole egg… BUT… look at those brownies! Who wants to eat bread when they can have brownies like that…. they sound FAB!
Kath says
It sounds like you may have found the holy grail of brownies. I am going to give them a try.
Sushma Mallya says
looks so tempting & very delicious
Chele says
Sigh! They look ever so tempting … and here is me trying to be a good girl in the lead up to Christmas (who am I kidding!!!) going to have to make these now ;0)
Johanna GGG says
brownies with a toffee flavour sound excellent – I am always up for a flourless cake with almonds so I imagine I would love these – great save on the egg yolks – they always bamboozle me!
Suzler says
They sound lovely! I’ll have to give that a go.
Dom at Belleau Kitchen says
They look lovely, I love using almond instead of flour as it really gives a deeper, marzipan quality to cakes… nice work my friend!
Gillian says
I usually steer clear of almonds but if you say these are toffee-ie then I will try. I suppose ground almonds will be fine too.
Jacqueline says
Those sound great Choclette, especially the texture you described, nom nom!
manu says
OMG Sounds so good!
MoOn says
This is a recipe to keep, thanks for sharing it 🙂