Vegan Sweet Potato Brownies
These healthier vegan sweet potato brownies are super easy to make with just 7 healthy ingredients!
If you’re looking for a healthier brownie that still delivers on texture and flavour, you’re going to love these vegan sweet potato brownies! The best part is if you have cooked or canned sweet potato on hand, the brownies are quick and easy to whip up.
This recipe is lightened up by using sweet potato and almond butter to replace oil and butter and they’re made with nutritious whole grain spelt flour. Though made with these healthy swaps, you wouldn’t know – they’re still super decadent, moist and fudgy!
Enjoy these delicious chocolate brownies anytime of day for a sweet treat or snack!
Why You’ll Love these Brownies
- They’re vegan, oil-free and can be nut-free. Great for those with allergies!
- They’re easy to make in about 30 minutes in 1 bowl with just 7 simple ingredients.
- They’re made with whole grain spelt flour.
- They have a decadent, fudgy texture.
- Kids and adults love them and they’re great for sharing – no one will guess the ingredients!
- They’re amazing served warm with your favourite vanilla ice cream.
- They’re under 100 calories per serving so suitable for an everyday dessert.
Ingredients & Substitutions
Complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in recipe card. This sections covers a few notes on ingredients and possible substitutions.
- Sweet Potato: You’ll need cooked, cooled and mashed sweet potato or you can use canned sweet potato. You could even used canned pumpkin!
- Coconut Sugar: This can be substituted with another granulated sugar such as cane sugar.
- Almond Butter: Any nut or seed butter works as long as it’s not too dry. You can use peanut butter, tahini, sunflower seed butter, etc.
- Milk: Any non-dairy milk such as almond milk, cashew milk or soy milk works.
- Vanilla: Enhances the flavour of the brownies but is optional if you don’t have any on hand.
- Baking Soda: For leavening. Don’t skip this ingredient.
- Cocoa Powder: Any cocoa powder works. If you can find dark cocoa powder, it will add the best chocolate flavour! Raw cacao powder would also work here.
- Spelt Flour: This can be substituted with whole wheat flour or all-purpose flour. This recipe has not been tested with gluten-free flrou.
- Chocolate Chips: Recommended but optional! Use vegan chocolate chips or dark chocolate chips to keep the recipe vegan.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Recipe Note: You’ll need cooked, mashed sweet potato for this recipe or for convenience, you can use canned sweet potato puree.
To cook, peel and chop a large sweet potato into 1 inch cubes. Steam for approx. 7 minutes or boil for approx. 15 minutes until they can easily be pierced with a fork. Strain, mash (you’ll need 1 cup) and proceed with recipe.
Sweet potato can also be cooked in the microwave, Instant Pot or baked in the oven (how-to here).
Before You Start: Preheat the oven to 350 F and line a 8 or 9-inch square baking pan with parchment paper or give it a light coating of non-stick cooking spray. You can also lightly grease with oil or butter.
Step 1. Add the mashed sweet potato, coconut sugar, almond butter, milk and vanilla (if using) to a large mixing bowl and mix until thoroughly combined and smooth.
Step 2. Add the rest of the ingredients to the bowl and mix well until you have a smooth, uniform batter. If you’re adding chocolate chips or any other add-ins such as walnuts or pecans, add those in now as well.
Step 3: Transfer the mixture to a baking pan (sprinkle more chocolate chips on top if you like!) and bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes at 350 F.
Let the brownies cool in the pan for at least 15 minutes before slicing or better yet, cool in the fridge for an hour for the best fudge-like texture!
Notes & Tips
- The batter does contain gluten, so try to avoid over mixing. As soon as the flour is incorporated stop mixing and only fold a few times to mix in the chocolate chips.
- You can slice the brownies after cooling for 5-10 minutes but the longer they cool, the fudgier, firmer and yummier they’ll be!
FAQs
Yes, no problem! Just pop it open, scoop out 1 cup and proceed with the recipe.
I haven’t tested it but because spelt is a form of wheat, you should be able to do a 1:1 substitution with whole wheat or all-purpose flour.
Yes. To make nut-free brownies, use tahini or sunflower seed butter instead of almond butter.
Sweet potato brownies aren’t considered a health food but this recipe is made with wholesome ingredients making them healthier than your standard brownie.
They’re made with whole grain spelt flour, almond butter instead of butter or oil and coconut sugar instead of white sugar. Sweet potato also adds plenty of nutrition!
These sweet potato brownies are also under 100 calories per serving so are easy to fit into a calorie-reduced diet or daily treat.
Not really, no! The mashed sweet potato blends beautifully into the other ingredients you can’t really taste it in the baked brownies. They may taste a little like sweet potato when they’re fresh from the oven but as they cool and firm and the flavours settle, you can’t taste it.
Variations
- Peanut Butter Sweet Potato Brownies: Use peanut butter instead of almond butter.
- Pumpkin Brownies: Use canned pumpkin instead of sweet potato.
- Nut-Free Brownies: Use tahini or sunflower seed butter instead of almond butter.
- Chocolate Ganache Layer: For an extra treat, add a layer of this chocolate ganache over your brownies after baking and cool in the fridge until firm. You can also just add a layer of melted chocolate chips on top.
- Walnut Brownies: Add 1/2 cup chopped walnuts when you add the chocolate chips.
Storing Instructions
- Let cool completely before storing.
- Fridge: Up to 1 week in a sealed container. I love them straight from the fridge…so fudgy!
- Freezer: Can be frozen in a sealed container or freezer-safe bag for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature or in the fridge or microwave before enjoying.
- Room Temperature: I’d recommend storing them in the fridge but they’re ok at room temperature for a couple days if you’re taking them to-go.
For more sweet potato desserts, don’t miss these sweet potato cookies, sweet potato smoothie and sweet potato chia pudding.
You might also want to bake some extra sweet potatoes for these sweet potato breakfast bowls, black bean stuffed sweet potatoes or buffalo chickpea stuffed sweet potatoes.
Did you try this recipe?
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I’d love to hear about it! Click here to leave a review and be sure to tag me @runningonrealfood if you post it on social media.
Vegan Sweet Potato Brownies
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 25 mins
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 16 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Decadent but healthy sweet potato brownies that are super easy to make with just 7 ingredients! Enjoy any time for a snack or serve warm with dairy-free ice cream for a delicious dessert.
Ingredients
- 1 cup peeled, cooked and well mashed sweet potatoes (240 g)
- ½ cup + 2 tablespoons coconut sugar (80 g)
- ½ cup drippy almond butter (120 g)
- ½ cup plant-based milk (100 g)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract, optional
- 1 ½ teaspoon of baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (30 g)
- ½ cup spelt flour (55 g)
- ½ cup dairy-free chocolate chips, optional (85 g)
Instructions
- Prepare Sweet Potato: If you don’t have sweet potato on hand, you’ll need to prepare that first and allow time for it to cool. Either peel, cube and steam for 15 minutes before mashing and cooling or bake in the oven on a baking pan, poked with a few holes, until fork tender. Let cool then scoop flesh out of peel, mash and cool.
- Preheat Oven: Preheat the oven to 350 °F (180 °C).
- Prepare Baking Pan: Prepare an approximately 8-9 inch square baking pan with a light coating of non-stick spray, lightly grease with oil or line with parchment paper.
- Mix Wet Ingredients & Sugar: Add the mashed sweet potatoes, coconut sugar, almond butter and coconut milk to a mixing bowl and mix well until completely combined and smooth.
- Mix Batter: Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until the flour is incorporated. Fold in the chocolate chips, if using. If you’re adding anything else, like chopped walnuts, add those now as well.
- Add to Pan & Bake: Transfer the batter to the prepared baking pan. Sprinkle more chocolate chips over top, if desired. Bake for 25 minutes.
- Cool Brownies: Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan for at least 15 minutes. The longer they cool, the denser, fudgier and firmer they’ll be, so completely cooling in the pan is ideal.
- Slice & Serve: Slice the brownies and serve as is or lightly warmed with a scoop of your favourite ice cream or whipped cream!
Notes
Coconut sugar can be substituted with cane sugar.
Nut-Free Option: Almond butter can be substituted with peanut butter or for nut-free brownies, sunflower seed butter or tahini.
Storing: Let cool before storing. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week, or freezer for up to 3 months. Ok at room temperature for a couple of days if taking to-go. If frozen, thaw at room temperature or in the fridge or microwave.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1
- Calories: 98
- Sugar: 6.5 g
- Sodium: 47 mg
- Fat: 4 g
- Carbohydrates: 14 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 3 g
Keywords: sweet potato brownies, vegan sweet potato brownies
Oh wow these do not taste like healthy brownies. They taste totally decadent. I would never guess what the ingredients are and for sure you cannot taste sweet potatoes or the lack of oil. This recipe is the absolute best. I can’t wait to make these for my picky granddaughter.
★★★★★
Thanks so much for the review and trying the recipe!
These are my go to week Day dessert. I don’t care who you are, vegan, vegetarian, dessert fan, whatever, you need these in your life.
★★★★★
So glad you love them, Kori!
My god these brownies are amazing!!! Bravo!
★★★★★
These brownies are so delicious. It’s nice to have something healthy for that sweet craving. Deryn’s recipes NEVER disappoint. Everything I’ve made so far have been super good. These brownie’s are a must try. Thank you so much for sharing your recipes. They help keep me on track. 🙂
★★★★★
Thank you so much, Valerie! I’m so glad you enjoyed them.
I was entering this recipe and am having a really hard time getting to your nutrition information – my calorie count is nearly 4x! All I did was sub for oat flour but that should be the same as spelt – am I missing something??
Did you put 16 servings? I checked again and everything is there. The chocolate chips are not included but that would only add 25 calories per serving. I would check your entries for accuracy. Nutrition information will always be an estimate but it shouldn’t be off by 4x. Thanks!
These brownies are boss! I used regular flour instead of spelt. So easy to make. I whipped up a batch while making dinner and they were done in time to eat as a dessert. 2 thumbs up from my fam.
★★★★★
Just made these for dessert tonight and they are wonderful! The texture is cake-like and so moist. You’d never know that they contain sweet potatoes. I subbed oat flour for the spelt to make them GF
★★★★★
These were the easiest to make brownies and delicious. I used fresh cashew milk for a creamy texture and whole wheat flour.
★★★★★
So happy to hear that, Luci! Thanks so much for the review!
Impressed. Lovely taste and texture no one would know it contains sweet potato!
★★★★★
Haha, they are sneaky! I’m so glad you enjoyed them. I appreciate the review, thanks!
Do I cook this batter?
Please see instructions in the recipe. Yes, bake for 25 minutes at 350 F!
These were great!
I subbed canned pumpkin, ww flour and PB. (AKA using what I had.) 😋
★★★★★
So delicious … definitely satisfied my craving for brownies!!
★★★★★
Perfect! So happy you enjoyed them, Teresa. They definitely satisfy a brownie craving, don’t they? 🙂
These are simply amazing! My brownie loving wife ate THREE within first hour they were made. I didn’t have have spelt flour, and we don’t have any issues with all purpose flour, so I just swapped it at a 1 for 1 ratio.
Fluffy and decadent without being heavy. Bravo!
★★★★★