Dark Chocolate Sweet Potato Fudge Brownies

Photo by Haute Inhabit

Brownies. Loved by all for their soft chewy texture and rich chocolate flavor. My personal favorite brownie recipe used to be one from Ina Garten. I remember my mom making these brownies during the holiday season – the recipe called for 1 pound of butter and tons of sugar. And the best part was when my mom cut off the ends so she could serve them in even squares. I was always more than happy to take care of those ends for her! They were my favorite part of the batch!! No guilt in eating those end pieces right? Ahhh was I wrong!Like with most typical recipes I knew there had to be a way to create a healthier version of this classic holiday dessert. I discovered a way to not only do away with the “bad stuff” but also to pack these brownies with tons of “good stuff.”Now, I don’t know how to make a dessert without adding a vegetable. But hey, what’s wrong with that?! Sweet potato is the perfect addition to a brownie recipe because it adds moisture for a richer texture – a no brainer! 

Aside from those delicious brownie ends my mom use to toss me, my other favorite part was her secret ingredient: brewed coffee. It complimented the chocolate so well. You could just barely taste it but it offset the sweetness and gave the brownies an even deeper taste. So I obviously had to include that element as well.Another great aspect of this recipe is the Tiger Nut Flour. The tiger nut is actually a vegetable, not a nut.  Tiger nuts soak up all the moisture from the sweet potato and work as the perfect “flour” in this recipe.

It was no surprise that when I made these brownies the first thing I did was cut the ends off to make them even :). I was so nervous I was going to mess them up that I had my mom help me cut them! She was a little skeptical at first about my take on her favorite brownie recipe. But I was confident that these would be great, if not better than hers. As we both took a bite we looked at each other in shock. OMG these were incredible! Although it rarely happens, I actually wrote down the recipe as I went along. So now I can share it with you!

Recipe pre-heat oven 350 degrees:

Dry Ingredients:

• 1 cup Tiger Nut Flour  * see notes below
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking powder

Wet Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cup dates (soak in warm water to soften – around 5 minutes)
• 1 cup pureed sweet potato (I used canned)
• 1/4 cup almond milk
• 1/4 cup brewed coffee (you can omit this and use more almond milk)
• 1/4 cup apple sauce
• 1/4 cup almond butter (or any nut butter)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 organic egg (1 chia or flaxseed egg can work as well)

Fold in optional– 1/2-3/4 cup stevia sweetened chocolate chips.

Glaze– Melted stevia sweetened chocolate and topped with 1/4 cup slivered tiger nuts for extra crunch 

Directions:

1. In a food processor combine flour, cocoa powder and baking powder. 
2. Add sweet potato, dates, almond milk, coffee, apple sauce, almond butter and vanilla extract. Mix until everything is smooth and evenly combined.
3. Lastly add in your egg–do not over mix.
4. Fold in chocolate chips if adding.
5. Line a 9 inch baking pan with parchment paper and spray with non stick spray. Spread mixture into pan (You do not need to line the pan with parchment. I just like to avoid the brownies sticking to the pan and make them easy to pop out.)
6. Cook at 350 for 35-45 minutes until edges are browning. 
7. Let brownies completely cool and cut into even squares around 8 large squares. 
8. Optional glaze with melted chocolate and sprinkle with slivered tiger nuts 

*You can use this with any other flour you like if you do not have Tiger Nut Flour. I have tried it with oat/almond flour and it worked out great.

Ps. be sure to check out my interview and recipes on Haute Inhabit. I shared three of my all time favorite cookies for the holidays and she took these amazing photos!Vitamin Packed Black Bean Fudge Cookies
Secretly Healthy Chocolate Hazelnut Truffles