I had the idea in my head to make these vegan sweet potato brownies for a little while now. And I am SO glad I went and made them. These are ULTRA fudgy! And you'd never even guess they have sweet potato in them. In fact I served them to someone without telling them and he had no idea. He was actually quite surprised. The peanut butter swirled into these brownies makes them even better, in a way that only peanut butter can.
Do you ever make things that are healthier and then you're amazed at how tasty it is? I find this especially true with desserts. Even though I've been baking and cooking for so many years now, I'm still amazed. And these vegan sweet potato brownies have done just that- AMAZED me!
I love how rich and fudgy they are, and the PB swirl is out of this world GOOD. It adds some saltiness, creaminess and of course that unique peanut butter taste.
I guess the question should really be, why not sweet potato? Sweet potatoes are delicious, they add fibre, creaminess and plenty of vitamins and nutrients. Plus, they also add natural sweetness to the sweet potato brownies recipe as well. In order to make sure that it's fully incorporated, mash the sweet potato very well. You definitely don't want chunks of sweet potato in your brownies. If you want, you could even pop them in a blender or food processor to smooth them out completely.
Here is everything you'll need for these decadent and delicious vegan sweet potato brownies.
You could substitute dark chocolate chips for this recipe as well. Just be sure to use dairy free/vegan chocolate if needed. I love this brand of dark chocolate!
To help melt the chocolate, I like using some coconut oil to smooth it out. This also adds to the richness of the vegan sweet potato brownies too.
This is the brand of coconut oil I use and love.
For these healthier brownies, I use coconut sugar. Coconut sugar adds a little more depth of flavour, more so than what traditional white sugar can offer. You can opt to use brown sugar if that's what you have on hand. I haven't tested it with maple syrup or other liquid sweetener so I'm not sure if that would work.
Cocoa powder is what makes these brownies taste like a brownie! I recommend using Dutch processed cocoa powder. I don't recommend cacao powder as it will be a little too intense and the colour will be a lot darker.
My go-to flour when baking is almond flour. I find that it results in soft desserts and is my favourite grain free flour to use. Check out how I use almond flour in these delicious brownie cookies.
Obviously a main ingredient in these sweet potato brownies is sweet potato. You'll need about 1 large sweet potato, which turns into 3/4 cup mashed sweet potato. You may have a little leftover, try freezing it for a smoothie!
You could use another nut or seed butter in these healthy brownies, but I personally love using peanut butter. It adds so much flavour and it also looks really pretty all swirled into the brownies. I like using all natural peanut butter and tested this recipe with this all natural brand.
To add even more chocolate to these brownies (they are brownies after all), I used some chocolate chips on top.
The brand I like to use for chocolate chips are these ones from Enjoy Life.
I am a salty girl, and to me brownies (and mostly all desserts) just taste better with a pinch of salt on top. It helps to cut the sweetness. I like using Maldon flaky salt on top, and adding them right after baking, while they're still hot from the oven. You could omit the flaky salt if you don't have it though.
Making these healthy sweet potato brownies is pretty easy! Here is everything you need to do.
Steam your peeled sweet potato until very soft. I find it easiest to peel and then dice it into chunks. From there, you'll steam the sweet potato. Mash the sweet potato with a fork or a ricer/masher. Mash until it's very soft and no chunks of sweet potato remain. You could also blend this or purée it until very smooth. This can be done in advance too!
In a small bowl, beat the peanut butter, coconut oil, coconut sugar and salt together. I just have a standard handheld mixer and that worked just fine!
Next, in a double boiler (or in bursts in your microwave), melt the dark chocolate with coconut oil.
Once that's melted, go ahead and add in the remaining coconut sugar, vanilla, cocoa powder, almond flour, and mashed sweet potato. Give that a good stir to ensure everything is mixed.
Then pour in about 3/4 of the peanut butter mixture and stir to combine.
Pour the batter into your prepared baking dish. For the swirled effect, add about four thick lines of the remaining peanut butter mix. And take a knife and drag that line in opposite directions each time. Trust me, it doesn't need to look perfect! Add the remaining chocolate chips on top and place in the oven to bake for about 30 minutes.
Remove from the oven, let it cool slightly and then top with some flaky salt. Let it cool on a wire rack, then slice and serve!
These brownies are seriously fudgy, sweet and rich, just as a brownie should be. No, these aren't your typical brownie recipe, as these are made gluten free, sugar free and grain free. But, I promise you, they're delicious just as they are. I often find as you're adjusting to less traditional and sweet desserts, you may want to use more sugar. I think these are still plenty sweet with the sweet potato, coconut sugar and the chocolate chips. However, if you have a BIG sweet tooth, you could always add a bit more sweetness.
Absolutely! In fact, as I sat here typing this blog post up, I had one from the freezer. It tastes delicious from the freezer. Just let it come to room temperature for 5-10 minutes before eating.
To freeze them, all you need to do is place the squares in a plastic bag, or in a sealed container in your freezer. It should last in there for about 1 to 2 months. Although, I don't think they'd last that long ;)
If you make these healthy vegan sweet potato brownies, I'd love to hear from you. Feel free to tag me on Instagram, and/or leave a comment, rating or review below.
I love no-bake desserts so much, feel free to check out these other options:
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These fudgy and rich vegan sweet potato brownies are made without refined sugar and a delicious peanut butter swirl.
I used an 8 x 8 pan, a 9 x 9 may also work, the brownies will just be a bit less thick.
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