Vegan Sweet Potato Brownies
These fudgy, gooey sweet potato brownies are made with almond butter, cocoa powder, and dark chocolate chips. Vegan and gluten-free.
I decided to create something in honor of two of my favorite things in the world.
I know what you’re thinking, how sweet of me to make something for my husband and Mr. Chow.
Close.
This recipe actually celebrates my relationship with sweet potatoes and nut butter — but Chow and the hubs reaped the benefits too.
Mr. Chow (a major fan of sweet potatoes) got a few taters chunks in the process. See, everyone benefits from my love affair with food.
See, everyone benefits from my love affair with food.
I tested them out on some friends this weekend and was quite pleased with their response.
One remarked, “I saw these brownies on your Instagram and I was expecting to be disgusted by the fact that they’re made with sweet potatoes, but actually, they’re REALLY good!”
It’s cool. I’m used to receiving skepticism about my unconventional creations. As long as the end result is a smiling face and a full stomach, I’m happy.
So now that you know that these are delicious, let me fill you in on their health benefits.
Thanks to the natural sweetness of the potatoes, these brownies don’t require a lot of sugar. I used a bit of real maple syrup and chocolate chips, and let nature do the rest.
Sweet potatoes are a great alternative starch for baking, especially for those who are grain or gluten-free. Their rich fiber and phytonutrient content helps support heart health, prevent disease, and keeps blood sugar stable.
Unsweetened cocoa powder adds the chocolatey flavor, and the natural almond butter gives them a gooey, fudgy bite. Almonds, with their cardiovascular disease-fighting benefits, are a fitting addition to this dessert considering it’s American Heart Month.
Flax eggs are the glue that holds these chewy treats together, and keeps them vegan-friendly.
Similar to most of my recipes, these brownies are incredibly easy to make. Just toss the ingredients in a food processor, sweet potato skins and all (hooray for fiber), and pulverize.
Pop em in the oven for 30 minutes and you’re done.
Lazy girl baking at its best.
- 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
- ¼ cup warm water
- 1 large sweet potato, baked (about 2 cups chopped)
- 1 cup almond butter
- ½ cup applesauce
- ¼ cup oat flour
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup dark chocolate chips (vegan) + more for topping
- Preheat oven to 350.
- Combine flaxseeds and water in a small bowl and let sit for 3 minutes.
- Blend all ingredients except chocolate chips together in a food processor.
- Stir in chocolate chips.
- Pour into a greased rectangular baking pan. Sprinkle with additional chocolate chips.
- Bake for 30 minutes.
- Allow brownies to cool for at least 30 minutes to firm up.*
- Store in the refrigerator.
ps – if you don’t have time to roast/cook your sweet potato, you can use canned sweet potato, or quickly cook your sweet tater in the microwave. If using canned, add an additional 1/4 cup of oat flour. If microwaving, you can ditch the oat flour altogether.
pps – if you’re afraid of microwaves, watch my video: The Truth About Microwaves >>
Wishing everyone a happy, healthy Heart Month!
PIN the recipe >>
Weigh-in: Are you making any sweet treats for Valentine’s Day? What is your initial reaction to sweet potato brownies?!
Caroline Shifflett says:
Vegan and GF?!?! Dreams do come true ;-)
-Caroline
http://www.chardonnaymoi.com
Betsy Ramirez says:
I love sweet potatoes! Never thought about adding them to brownies! YUM!
Cara @ Street Smart Nutrition says:
Looks delicious! Incredibly moist, my favorite kind of brownie!
Lindsey says:
These brownies look so fudgy and chocolatey!
Abigail says:
Ohhhh my, these look FANTASTIC!!! ❤
Anne|Craving Something Healthy says:
These look so good! What a great recipe!
abbey sharp says:
Honestly I could totally dig into these, they look rich and scrumptious, and the best part it their healthy too!!
Katie Cavuto says:
OMG — these look amazing!!
Erin Palinski-Wade says:
This looks so good! I need to try it!!
Kathryn Pfeffer says:
Going to try these out for my running group! I have been meaning to try brownies with sweet potato and these look amazing!!
Jackie Oikawa says:
Where r the eggs? Didn’t see in ingredient list, but was mentioned above!
Alina says:
There aren’t eggs. The “flax eggs” mentioned are the flaxseed mixture she used to replace actual eggs in a non-vegan brownie
Steve | HomeGymStuff says:
Oh my, these look amazing & perfect for my post-workout meal!
Whitney English says:
They are GREAT post-workout!! :)
Darcy says:
Say, what kind of almond butter do you use? I used no added oil, sugar or salt. It’s very thick. Worried that batter would not be salty or sweet enough, but salt seemed to be fine. They are in the oven right now…looks like a lot of oil…we shall see….
Whitney English says:
I just used the Whole Foods brand. Hope yours turned out well!
LG says:
Oh my my my! I just made these and HAD TO comment, they’re delicious!!! This is my new favorite treat and so easy to make! Thank you!!!
Whitney English says:
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for sharing!!! :)
Jennifer says:
These are delicious! Do you store them at room temp it in the fridge? Will they last longer?
Whitney English says:
I store them in the fridge – they will last longer!
Cindi Kuehnert says:
Can’t wait to try these but need clarification please;-) maybe I missed it but couldn’t find size of “rectangular baking pan” ..13×9?
Whitney E. RD says:
Yes, 13 x 9! Hope you like them!
Mae says:
What is the nutritional count. I’m on WW and would like to make these if not too many points.
Kelly says:
Sounds wonderful!
My husband has an enormous sweet tooth and we are both limiting our calories and carbohydrates. Is there anyway you can post nutritional information on this recipe?
Whitney E. RD says:
Hi Kelly! Glad you’re excited about the recipe! I’m sorry but I don’t post nutritional information on the website as I try to promote intuitive eating, and these numbers can distract from that for some people. You can easily input the ingredients into an app like MyFitnessPal though to get estimates though. Best, Whitney
Jordyn says:
Hello I was wondering if you can freeze them?
Jordyn says:
Hello I was wondering if you could freeze the brownies?
Sadia says:
Hi, Is there any way I can replace almond butter and coconut oil with something else? My little one is allergic to both.
Valerie says:
Just made these for the first time tonight and my only regret is that it took me so long!! They are SO delish! It’s super hard to come up with a vegan brownie recipe, not to mention on that’s a bit on the more nourishing side… This recipe is a gem and just delivers on all fronts! Loved it and will definitely be making again!
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