Purple Sweet Potato Brownies

vegan brownie made with purple sweet potatoes, sugar free and oil free.

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Hi there, friends ...

Today I have a pretty cool recipe to share with you all.

One thing I know for sure is that, when I think of a delicious decadent chocolate brownie, I do not think about sweet potato (or any other potato for that matter) .. I just think of sweet, chewy, and chocolate-ty goodness.

Purple Sweet Potato Brownie (vegan, sugar free, oil free) | SproutingZen.com

However, this past week I found myself with a big bag of purple sweet potatoes that I bought at Trader Joe's because... how could I pass up buying PURPLE sweet potatoes. They looked too cool. But, here they were, slowly aging away on my kitchen counter.

I had heard of black bean brownies (still haven't tried it) and so I decided to do a quick search on sweet potato brownies, more specifically purple sweet potato brownies!

And what do ya know?! It's actually a thing! You CAN make brownies out of sweet potatoes! Pretty cool stuff and I had to try it.. so I did.

Purple Sweet Potato Brownie (vegan, sugar free, oil free) | SproutingZen.com

My recipe is a twist of a simple recipe off of this site which is also the brand of purple sweet potatoes that I bought so there you go. Feel free to check out their version or try my own. I'm sure it'll be fantastic either way.

The recipe is pretty straight forward and simple to follow. All you need is an oven, a stove (to boil or steam the sweet potatoes), and a food processor.

Also, I know this is a lotttt to ask for, but, the brownies get better with time as they set in the fridge. So, try your hardest to let them cool down and maybe even wait to eat them the next day. Okay who am I kidding, we ate most of them on day 1 but seriously, they tasted much better on day 2 and day 3!

Purple Sweet Potato Brownie (vegan, sugar free, oil free) | SproutingZen.com

Okay friends, get cookin' and remember if you try this recipe tag me at @sproutingseneats so that I can see your creation!!!

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Purple Sweet Potato Brownies

Purple Sweet Potato Brownie (vegan, sugar free, oil free) | SproutingZen.com

A quick and easy healthy brownie recipe with no added sugar and no oils! Sweet, but not too much, with a perfect soft chewy texture.

  • Prep Time: 30 minutes
  • Cook Time: 45 minutes
  • Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
  • Yield: 9 brownie squares 1x
  • Category: desserts
  • Method: baking
  • Cuisine: vegan desserts

Ingredients

Scale
  • about 7 to 8 medium sized purple sweet potatoes*
  • 1 cup of oat flour*
  • 1 cup of cacao powder
  • 1/2 cup of apple sauce
  • 2 tbs of agave (or sub for whichever sweetener you prefer)*
  • 1 tbs of psyllium husk (optional)*
  • 1 tsp of vanilla extract
  • pinch of himalayan salt
  • 1/4 c to 1/2 c of chopped walnuts (will be used for toppings)

To make frosting (optional)

  • about 1/2 cup of sweet potatoe puree (make sure to separate this amount before you mix it in with the cacao and other ingredients)
  • 1/2 cup of date paste (1 cup of water blended with 5 or 6 dates)
  • 1/4 cup of coconut milk (if you do not have coconut milk on hand simply omit and just use date paste mixed with the sweet potato)

Instructions

  1. Wash, peel and boil sweet potatoes (you can also steam or bake your potatoes but if you are in a time crunch boiling is the quickest method.)
  2. While potatoes are boiling – preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and prepare oat flour by processing oats in a food processor until it becomes a fine flour. Place flour in a mixing bowl.
  3. To the mixing bowl – Add 1 cup of cacao, 1 tsp of vanilla extract, 1/2 cup of apple sauce, 1 tbs of psyllium husks, and 2 tbs of agave or your favorite sweetener, and pinch of salt. Combine by hand until evenly mixed.
  4. Once sweet potatoes are soft, drain and let cool for a few minutes. Then place in food processor and process until it is a smooth paste, trying not to leave any big chunks behind.
  5. Scoop out about 1/2 cup of puree and place it to the side (we will be using this to make the frosting). Place the rest of the sweet potato puree into mixing bowl and combine with all other ingredients, then pour mixture into an oven-safe pan.*
  6. In order not to use any oil or butter – you can place a piece of parchment paper on the bottom of the glass dish so that your brownies do not stick to the dish.
  7. Bake in oven at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 45 minutes. And in the mean time prepare the frosting by mixing together (by hand) the 1/2 cup of  sweet potato puree with date paste and thick coconut milk. Place in the fridge to set.
  8. Once brownies are finished, allow some time to cool down, and cover with frosting and chopped walnuts! Serve and Enjoy! 🙂

Notes

  • I weighed my potatoes and it was about 23oz or 1.5 lbs
  • You can process oats in a food processor to make oat flour
  • You can probably use date paste instead of agave by blending 1 cup of dates and 1 cup of water in the blender and using that paste as your sweetener.
  • psyllium husk is optional – I used it instead of baking soda or baking powder but feel free to experiment.
  • I used a square 8×8 glass dish and was able to make 9 brownies out of that.
  • The taste of these brownies improved as the days went by so if you can prepare a day before and allow to sit in fridge overnight before serving.

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About Jen

A former registered nurse turned stay-at-home-mama, yoga teacher, and holistic health + wellness enthusiast. I share my homemade healthy recipes + natural living content to help women and moms live healthier and happier lives.

6 Comments

  1. Oakley @ Frieda's on November 24, 2017 at 4:26 pm

    So happy you’ve found us! We do LOVE our Stokes Purple sweet potatoes and are happy to share the purple love with everyone! Purple power to the people!

    • Jen on November 25, 2017 at 9:19 pm

      I am also so happy that I found YOU! First time trying purple sweet potatoes and was super impressed. Now I want to do all sorts of purple stuff with them. Haha. Thank you for offering a great food product. Have a beautiful weekend.

  2. Andrea on November 26, 2017 at 11:59 pm

    The colour of these brownies are GORGEOUS!! I will have to find some an make these for the family. Such a healthy recipe too, love it!

    • Jen on November 27, 2017 at 10:45 pm

      Thanks Andie! That purple color is what drew me to them in the first place. So pretty!! I’m a sucker for colorful food haha.

  3. Paige | A Paige of Health on November 30, 2017 at 2:06 pm

    Hi Jen,

    Oh my goodness this looks amazing. I’m looking forward to trying these over the holidays and sharing with my (non-plant based) family. Found you through FBP!

    Cheers,

    Paige

    • Jen on December 4, 2017 at 11:02 pm

      Hi Paige!! Yessss I hope you try these and let me know how it goes. Your instagram is amazing. Gonna hop over to your blog to check it out now. Thanks for stopping by!! 🙂

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