Sweet Potato Brownies (No Added Sugar)
Fudgy chocolate brownies sweetened entirely by roasted sweet potato — no sugar, no flour.
Contains eggs and almonds (tree nuts) — not suitable for those with those allergies. To make it nut-free, swap the almond butter for sunflower seed butter. Dark chocolate contains caffeine and theobromine, so these are lightly stimulating in large amounts — go easy for young children close to bedtime.
About this recipe
Rich, chocolatey brownies with no added sugar and no flour — roasted sweet potato does all the sweetening. Bound with almond butter and eggs and studded with chopped dark chocolate, they come out moist and slightly cake-like. A treat you can feel good about handing the kids.
Ingredients
- 2 cups mashed roasted sweet potato (about 2 medium — roast, don't boil, for the sweetest result) (beta-carotene · fiber)
- 1 cup 100% almond butter (check the label reads only "almonds" — no oils or sugar) (vitamin E · healthy fats)
- 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa or raw cacao powder (label should list only cocoa/cacao, with no added sugar) (cocoa flavanols)
- 4 eggs (protein · choline)
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract (use real vanilla, not imitation) (aromatic)
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt (minerals)
- 1 clean dark chocolate bar (70%+), chopped — a bar like Hu rather than chips, since most chocolate chips add oils and sugar (cocoa flavanols)
Method
- 1 Roast 2 medium sweet potatoes whole at 400°F until soft and collapsing, with syrup caramelizing at the ends (about 45–60 min). Let cool, then scoop out 2 cups of flesh and mash smooth. Roasting rather than boiling is what concentrates the natural sweetness, so no sugar is needed.
- 2 Lower the oven to 350°F. Line a 9x13 pan with parchment.
- 3 In a food processor or blender, blend the sweet potato, almond butter, cocoa powder, eggs, vanilla, baking soda, and salt until completely smooth. A processor gives the fudgiest texture.
- 4 Fold in the chopped dark chocolate by hand, then spread the batter evenly into the pan.
- 5 Bake 25–30 min, until the top is set but the center still looks slightly soft. The batter sits deep in a 9x13, so if the edges are done but the middle is still wet, tent with foil and give it another 5 min rather than raising the heat.
- 6 Cool completely in the pan before cutting — this is what lets them firm up and slice cleanly. They come out moist and slightly cake-like.
What you'll notice
- Naturally sweetened by roasted sweet potato — no added sugar
- Beta-carotene (vitamin A) and fiber from the sweet potato
- Plant fats and vitamin E from the almond butter
- Cocoa flavanols plus protein and choline from the eggs
- Freezes well for ready-to-go portions
Tips & storage
Roast the sweet potatoes until they are really soft and caramelized — a little overdone is better than underdone here, and it deepens the natural sweetness. Choose a cocoa or cacao powder whose only ingredient is cocoa/cacao (avoid any "processed with sugar" blends), and use pure vanilla extract rather than imitation for the fullest flavor. Using a chopped dark chocolate bar instead of chips keeps the whole batch free of the added oils and sugar most chips contain. These bake up moist and slightly cake-like — for firmer, chewier squares next time, cut the baking soda to 1/2 tsp and blend in 1/2 cup almond flour.
Cool completely, then store airtight in the fridge up to 5 days — they firm up nicely when cold. Freeze cut squares up to 3 months and thaw at room temperature.