The experts at Love Your Gut have shared a delicious new gut-healthy recipe to enjoy with loved ones over the festive season.
Dark chocolate in particular has been shown to have many health benefits, primarily due to its polyphenol content that benefits the composition of the microorganisms in the gut.
According to Dr Joan Ransley, a 100g bar of dark chocolate has around 11 grams of fibre, which is like a super fuel for the gut.
So individuals should aim for 70 percent cocoa in the chocolate they buy.
This food dish only takes 15 minutes to prepare with a cooking time of 20 minutes. Even better, it makes 16 individual pieces.
Method:
Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark four. Line a 20cm square cake tin with baking parchment. Put the roughly chopped dates, butter, and eggs into the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth.
Add the ground almonds and process briefly. Transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl.
Dice the pears into one-centimetre cubes and stir them through the mixture together with the chopped macadamia nuts.
Break up the chocolate and place it in a small heatproof bowl set over, but not touching, a pan of simmering water. Allow the chocolate to melt completely and fold it into the brownie mixture.
Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 15 to 20 minutes; remove from the oven when a skewer inserted into the centre comes out cleanly.
Cooks can also use chopped walnuts, Brazil nuts, or pecans, which work well in this recipe instead of macadamia nuts.
Meanwhile, fresh or frozen cherries can be used instead of pears.
