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This sweet potato blondies recipe will change the way you think about sweet potatoes! With their rich, smooth, and fudgy texture, no one will believe how these delicious dessert bars are made.
I love getting a little creative in the kitchen and using sweet potatoes for something a little extra. If you’ve tried my sweet potato muffins or sweet potato chocolate cake, you’ll understand how amazing vegetables can be in dessert recipes.
Sweet potatoes not only enrich this dessert with a healthy dose of essential nutrients and fiber, they also create a wonderfully sweet and creamy base for these blondies.
Table of Contents
Why you’ll love this recipe
- It’s incredibly easy. Only four simple ingredients and minimal prep time are needed to make these wonderful sweet potato blondies.
- No flour. Naturally gluten-free and lower in calories, these blondies have all the structure they need from the sweet potato.
- Vegan. This baked dessert doesn’t contain eggs and is dairy-free which makes it perfect for vegans and non-vegans alike.
Ingredients needed
As mentioned earlier, this recipe calls for just four simple ingredients. Well, three, if you omit the optional sugar. Here is what you’ll need:
- Sweet potatoes. Roasted and mashed into a smooth puree.
- Almond butter. Smooth and unsweetened. You can use both homemade or store-bought almond butter.
- Cocoa powder. Unsweetened. Helps develop that rich blondie flavor and balance the moisture of the bars. Not enough is used to turn this into a brownie.
- Sugar. You can skip the white sugar if you prefer your desserts to be less sweet in taste.
How to make sweet potato blondies
Step 1 – Preparation. Start by preheating the oven to 350F degrees and lining a small cake pan with parchment paper. A loaf pan will work too. Wrap your sweet potatoes in foil and bake for 45-60 minutes, or until it is fork tender. Let it cool slightly, then scoop out the flesh and mash it in a bowl.
Step 2 – Mix the wet ingredients and dry ingredients. Melt the cashew butter in the microwave or on the stove. In a large mixing bowl, mix the sweet potato puree, melted nut butter, cocoa powder, and granulated sugar.
Step 3 – Bake the blondies. Pour the batter into the lined cake pan. Bake the blondies for around 20 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
Step 4 – Slice and refrigerate. Remove the blondies from the oven and allow them to cool completely before slicing them into squares. Resist the temptation to devour the blondies as soon as they’ve cooled, instead, refrigerate them for an hour or two before eating to set their shape.
Recipe tips and flavor variations
- Try different nut butters. If you don’t have almond butter, use cashew or peanut butter instead. Note that the flavor of peanut butter will be more noticeable in the blondies.
- Add some mix ins. Chopped nuts are a great addition to the mixture if you’re looking for some more texture and added nutty flavor. Pecans, almonds, walnuts, and even hazelnuts will work well. You can also stir through or top the blondies with dark chocolate chips. If you’re anything like me, you can’t resist adding chocolate to your desserts.
- Spice up the mix. Use spices to create a deeper flavor in your blondies. Cinnamon and nutmeg will work incredibly well in this recipe. You can also add a pinch of sea salt to balance the sweetness.
- Take care when cutting slices. Allow the blondies to cool completely before you slice them. Always use a sharp knife to get perfectly clean slices. Clean the knife after each cut.
Storage instructions
To store: You can store sweet potato blondies at room temperature for up to 3 days. Room-temperature blondies are extra gooey. Store blondies in an airtight container in the fridge to increase their shelf life and help them hold their shape.
To freeze: You can also freeze sweet potato blondies. Wrap the cooled slices in foil and then place in an airtight container. They will last 2 to 3 months in the freezer.
More blondies and bars to try
Frequently asked questions
Overbaking the blondies results in a dry and crumbly texture. A good rule of thumb is to remove the blondies from the oven when a toothpick comes out clean.
The texture of blondies will always depend on the recipe and their baking time. Ideally, a blondie should be moist in the middle. If your blondies are too gooey, you can try baking them for a little longer.
You can make these sweeter by adding more granulated sugar or by using sweetened almond butter. A splash of maple syrup also works.
Sweet Potato Blondies
Ingredients
- 1 cup sweet potato mashed
- 1/2 cup almond butter can sub for cashew or peanut- The latter will be more obvious
- 2 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup sugar optional*
Instructions
- Preheat the oven the 350 degrees, grease a small cake pan or loaf pan and set aside.
- In a small microwave-safe bowl or stovetop, melt your nut butter. In a large mixing bowl, add the sweet potato, nut butter, cocoa powder and granulated sweetener and mix very well.
- Pour the mixture into the greased pan and bake for around 20 minutes or until cooked through. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before slicing into pieces (I recommend refrigerating them for an hour or more before eating)
I will use peanut butter instead of slmond butter. As I really like sweet-salty mix combination.
Really enjoyed this recipe. Had fun experimenting with it. Used a combo of sun butter, almond, tahini and regular butter. Added some oat flour and flax meal for some structure, vanilla and cinnamon. Used brown sugar as my sweetener. Came out great. Will definitely try without the sugar next time, maybe replace some of the potato with banana for sweetness.
This was great, but it was definitely a brownie. Next time I am definitely leaving out the cocoa powder.
try purple sweet potatoes or the white ones
Such a great idea, Nancy!
Hi there! I made these tonight & they dont look at all like yours. Mine are darker brown. And unfortunately the cocoa taste is overwhelming. I even tried to add some vanilla protein powder just to try & subdue the cocoa flavor. I put in 2 tbsp, which is what i thought the T stood for, but this must be a mistake. Was I supposed to only put in 2 teaspoons of cocoa?
Hi there! I’m not sure what happened there- It definitely is 2 Tablespoons and it would be overpowering- Because it is supposed to depict a dark, rich taste 🙂
First of all, thank you for even responding to me! I see what you mean. I guess because they were called blondies and yours are definitely blond, I didn’t expect such a chocolatey taste. I wonder why yours aren’t dark brown with all that cocoa powder? Mine are dark, like a brownie. Not a blondie, lol.
Do you think pumpkin could be substituted for sweet potato?
Hi there- Absolutely 🙂
Trying these right now. In the oven… Mouth watering…
Oh mad! Let me know what you think, Rob- If you can, let them cool completely before enjoying, or even better, after sitting in the fridge, the texture is unreal! 🙂
Is the cocoa powder a necessity? I’m allergic. Any substitute for it?
Hi Pamela! You could a dash of cinnamon and definitely add the granulated sweetener of choice 🙂
you legit have the best recipes ever.
I actually never even knew that savoury sweet potato were a thing until a little while ago. I always had mine with almond butter, maple syrup, and cinnamon. Oh… unless dipping priest in ketchup counts as savoury 😛
That’s crazy that sweet potato fries are a recent development in Australia! But thank goodness they can now experience the awesome sauce.
YESSSSSSS!
I tend to go into sweet potato “phases”, but I always love a good baked sweet potato that is peeled and mashed with Greek yogurt, fruit, peanut butter, and chocolate on top! Sounds weird but it tastes like cake to me! These sweet potato blondies look incredible indeed!
Thanks so much, Cassie!:)
Disappointed in Australia for only recently coming through with sweet potato fries. They made VEGEMITE before they had sweet potato fries.
Absolutely want some of these in my face right now. I could use sweet potatoes as a face mask, right?
You totally could. Cucumbers, sweet potatoes, cottage cheese, Delizah…
Dude! Sweet potato fries are the best! I mean I guess I could part with them long enough to make some of these blondies…but thats a seriously tall order. Hope you had a great weekend!
Not even kidding you, they only became a ‘thing’ last year in Australia…..geebuz.
So I’m one of the freaks that love them with brown sugar. I boil them, peel them, slice and cook in a skillet with butter and sprinkle in some brown sugar. It’s so good! And as fries, yes!
Okay, I am inviting myself over to try this- But please make your creamy rice too. and mac and cheese. And well…just everything.
Sweet potatoes = Yum! Such a great recipe!
Thanks so much, Taylor!
Dear Arman, I love the idea of using sweet potatoes. Add a pinch of your favorite autumn spices and you have sweet potato pie bars! I know I would enjoy these thoroughly. Take care my friend, Catherine
Thank you so much, Catherine! I’d send you over a box in a second haha!
These look SO good! Such a fun addition to Thanksgiving 🙂
Right? Thanks so much, Rachel!
I’m actually a big fan of going savory with my sweet potatoes and think longing of your pancake recipe with cauliflower and spinach. Maybe I should move to Australia. I’d fit right in there.
My mum would feed you eggplants in various forms 😀
Ha! I still remember the first time I had sweet potatoes in a sweet form with marshmallows and brown sugar. I love sweets (obviously) but I just couldn’t wrap my head around the idea of SPs actually being sweet. Which is also why I am still yet to try anything involving a sweet form of pumpkin. #australianproblems
Right? Seriously, I still find the pumpkin thing odd, unless it’s in baked goods or mixed in a non-pumpkin-y way!
The first time I ate a sweet potato was in the states when I had it as a side with steak… And it came slathered in cinnamon sugar – I was shocked! Haha!
I still 99% of the time eat sweet pots savoury – my fav is with tahini. But if someone handed me one with marshmallows on it your damn right I would be looking for the fork!
Hahahahahaha touche!
These look so good; I could eat the whole pan! I love my sweet potatoes but usually with a tiny amount of butter and lots of cinnamon.
mmmm that sounds delicious, Joanne!
Niki and me agree on the sweet potatoes. Actually, I’m not the biggest fan of them in general – hi, odd blogger out – but if I eat them than rather in curry. I still haven’t gotten over the disgust about a “frosting” made from sweet potatoes, dates and cocoa. Trust me that you don’t want to eat that – and much less call it frosting.
Speaking of cocoa I’m a huge snob. Bensdorp is my brand of choice and no other beats it.
Back to your blondies: reading through the post I actually found myself thinking the potatoes mixed with nut butter and baked could be delicious. Maybe as a side for a savoury dish?!
Oh I’ll have to see if I can convince Juli to bring me some of that next week- I trust your cocoa tastebuds!
love sweet potatoes – baked, roasted in wedges, mashed, with peanut butter, with avocado, in salads, stir-frys ===should I continue? lol
Haha they are so versatile- Lucky I’ve got a few more goodies to share!
Ooh these sound delicious! I LOVE sweet potatoes. Though I’m from the States I cannot stand the marshmallow sweet potato concoction, so unnecessary.
YES!!!! Thank you! Seriously…S’mores me, not sweet potato me!
Although I do like them caddied at Thanksgiving, I think roasted into fries is still my favorite! But, I haven’t tried them in blondies – looks delicious and so easy 🙂
These are soo good- You’d love them!