Walnut Date Brownies

Each Monday, I restart my diet.!!! Being Sunday I thought I had better prepare for the week ahead. Sally James book 'Simply Healthy", was winking at me from the book shelf. My biggest weakness is morning tea. DH makes a mean coffee but something with it is essential. I thought that if I could have a tasty morsel for 100 calories or less, I might be satisfied. Sally has a recipe for Pecan Date Brownies for 75 calories, and as I love both walnuts and dates I substituted the Pecans with walnuts,and thought I would give it a go. Also it is chocolate based so DH might be satisfied also.

It cuts into 24 squares, easily adapted to TMX, contains no butter or oil.

185g. of pitted dates
60 g. walnuts, chopped by hand
125g. SR flour
1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soada
40g. cocoa powder (Dutch)
125g. apple sauce or cooked stewed apple
125 mls of butter milk or low fat milk
1 teaspoon of vanilla essence
4 egg whites
45g brown sugar.

Set oven to 170o FF. Line a 21 x 28 cm. baking tray with baking paper.

Place dates in bowl and pour boiling water over. Let stand for 20 mins.Drain and press out excess water. Add 1/2 the dates to the chopped walnuts, set aside.
Place remaining dates , with apple sauce, milk and vanilla in TMX bowl and zap on speed 7 for 10 seconds. Scrape down lid and bowl.
Add egg whites and sugar to bowl, INSERT BUTTERFLY. Beat at speed 4 for 1 and 1/2 mins.
Scrape down bowl, add flour cocoa and carb soda. Mix until just incorporated. 10 sec on speed 4.
Pour into prepared tin and spread to cover base.
Cover with reserved mix of walnuts and dates. ( You may have to chop dates if they are in large pieces.)
Bake for 20 to 30 mins, or until cooked when tested with a wooden tooth pick.
Stand for 10 min in tin, and then tip on to a wire rack to cool.

Cut in to 24 squares. Store in air tight tin.