Pumpkin Pie Brownies

I know we're so far away from Halloween and all the pumpkin goodness that comes along with it but I couldn't help making these scrumptious pumpkin brownies. I got the recipe from Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero's cookbook "Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar." I swear those two have never disappointed me.

I had my boyfriend's two nieces taste test them and they said they were very, very good. I was afraid that they would turn out dry because most vegan brownies are but these were so moist. If any of you are like me and can eat pumpkin pie any day of the year, this is a must try recipe.

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Makes 8 Brownies

Ingredients
For the Brownie Layer
* 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted
* 1 cup canned or pureed pumpkin ( not pumpkin pie filling )
* 3/4 cup sugar
* 1/4 cup canola oil
* 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
* 3/4 cup flour
* 1/4 cup Dutch cocoa powder
* 1 Tb tapioca flour ( or arrowroot powder or cornstarch )
* 1/4 tsp baking soda
* 1/4 tsp salt

For the Pumpkin Layer
* 3/4 cup canned or pureed pumpkin
* 2 Tb tapioca flour ( or use arrowroot powder or cornstarch )
* 1/2 cup non-dairy milk
* 1/3 cup sugar
* 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
* 1/4 tsp ground ginger
* 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
* A pinch of ground nutmeg
* A pinch of ground allspice

To Decorate
A handful of chocolate chips


Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a 9 inch spring form pan, or use a 9 inch square pan, preferably lined with parchment paper.

To Make the Brownie Layer
1. Melt the chocolate. Either use a double broiler. Which consists of a set of fitted glass pots that safely melt chocolate without the risk of burning it. You can also fake this setup by resting a small pan inside a larger one filled with enough water to cover the bottom of the small pan, but not so much that it will overflow. An easier, faster way to melt chocolate is in a microwave. Heat chocolate in a microwave safe glass bowl for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes at 60% heat ( low power ) - just enough to make chips soft and easily form a melted mass when stirred. Because it burns so easily, never use high microwave powder when melting chocolate.

2. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the pumpkin, sugar, oil, and vanilla. Sift in the flour, cocoa powder, tapioca flour, baking soda, and salt and stir to combine, then mix in the melted chocolate.

To Make the Pumpkin Layer
1. Mix all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir until thoroughly combined.

To Assemble
1. Use a spatula to spread the brownie layer mixture into the prepared baking pan, taking care to bring the batter to the edges of the pan. Pour the pumpkin layer over it, leaving a little room at the edges if you can. Bake for 30 minutes, until the pumpkin layer looks fairly firm ( a little jiggling is okay ) and has cracked at the edges a bit.

2. Let the brownies cool for 20 minutes and then transfer the pan to the fridge to set for at least an hour and a half. Once set, decorate with chocolate chips, slice into wedges and serve.