These epic gingerbread sweet potato brownies are some of the best brownies I've ever made. With a base of roasted sweet potato and healthy fats like coconut, Styrian pumpkin seeds and avocado, the fudginess and spices combine to make the most comforting, nourishing and delicious snack, or even breakfast, ever.
Preheat the oven to 400 F, then line the brownie pan with the parchment paper. This pan will be used for both roasting the sweet potato and the final brownies. Right away, chop up your sweet potato into rough disks, about 1 cm thick. Spread them out on the baking sheet and roast the sweet potato pieces until oozing, 30-35 minutes.
While the sweet potatoes are roasting, prepare the rest of the ingredients. In a food processor, blend the dry ingredients into a fine crumble: Styrian pumpkin seeds, shredded coconut, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, clove, bicarb soda, sea salt and collagen. Add the wet ingredients to the dry crumble: coconut oil, avocado, egg, vanilla and maple syrup. Blend it all into a thick brownie batter. Set the food processor aside.
Once the sweet potato chunks are well roasted, remove and let them cool to room temperature, 10-20 minutes. In the food processor, introduce the sweet potato and blend to combine evenly with the brownie batter. Keep the brownie pan lined with parchment paper intact to bake the brownie batter.
The batter will be really thick so you'll have to spread it out in the pan. If you plan on making the chocolate drizzle, make sure to create some grooves on the top of the brownies for the drizzle to settle in the grooves when you pour it later.
Bake the brownies at 400 F for 20 minutes. Remove and let cool. Serve warm if you like, but I HIGHLY recommend freezing them for best texture. Once brownies are cooled to room temperature, transfer the baking tray to the freezer to solidify for about 1 hour.
Make the chocolate drizzle. In a small saucepan, combine the coconut oil, cacao powder, maple syrup, vanilla, and sea salt. Heat on medium-low and stir until melted down and combined. Remove and set aside.
Once the brownies are solidified, remove the tray from the freezer and lift up the parchment paper to remove the brownies from the tray. Slice into even pieces to make about 16 bars. Drizzle the chocolate syrup over the brownies, ensuring it pools into the grooves you created. Since the brownies are chilled, the chocolate will solidify into a nice crunchy shell.
For best taste and texture, refrigerate brownies overnight. Enjoy!
Notes
Refrigerating or freezing the brownies overnight ensures the BEST taste/texture, though they're perfectly fine fre$h out the oven.
Chocolate drizzle is optional. Feel free to top the brownies with toasted chopped nuts such as macadamias, hazelnuts, or extra pumpkin seeds. Goji berries, dried flower petals from the garden, and cacao nibs are all fair game.