This recipe is gluten-free (just use gluten-free oats), vegan, and free of refined oil. It’s also packed to the frosting with unrefined, whole foods. Sweetened with dates, these brownies use sweet potatoes for the nutrient-dense filler and almond butter for the density.
But what’s a brownie without a topper? This chocolate date frosting is thick and creamy with only whole food ingredients. Date paste is the magic that creates a sweet, spreadable frosting to satisfy your sweet-tooth craving.
Serves 9
Recipe Ingredients
Brownies
- 12 Medjool dates, soaked 5 minutes and strained (keep the liquid)
- ½ cup smooth nut butter of choice (I used almond butter)
- 1 chia egg or flax egg (1 Tbsp. chia seeds or ground flax + 3 Tbsp. water)
- ⅛ tsp. sea salt
- ¼ cup raw cacao powder (standard cocoa powder works too)
- 1 Tbsp. tapioca flour (or tapioca starch)
- 1 cup oat flour (just blend 1 cup rolled gluten-free oats to a flour in your blender)
- 2 medium-sized sweet potatoes, poked with a fork (will become about 1 cup mashed)
Frosting
- ¼ cup date paste (left over from brownie mix, see directions)
- ½ cup nut butter
- 1 Tbsp. cacao powder
- 3 Tbsp. plant-milk (I used vanilla unsweetened almond)
Recipe Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 7 x 7 inch cake pan with parchment paper and set aside.
Cook your sweet potatoes: Either bake for 45 minutes (or until soft), flipping once, or steam the potatoes by peeling, then chopping them into ½” cubes and placing into a steamer for 30 minutes. Once cooled enough to handle, scoop out the meat and discard the peels.
Make the date paste: Blend all the Medjool dates with ½ cup of the leftover date-soaking liquid. Once smooth, remove ¼ cup of the date paste and set aside (for the frosting, baby!).
Add the nut butter, chia egg, salt, tapioca flour, oat flour, sweet potato and cacao powder to the date paste in the blender. Blend until smooth (use your tamper to help it along). Another option is to mix by hand in a big bowl.
Pour the mixture into the parchment-covered pan and bake for 30 minutes (or until a toothpick comes out clean).
Make the frosting: Blend the leftover ¼ cup of date paste with nut butter, cacao powder and plant milk until smooth.
Remove brownies from oven, let cool 10 minutes.
Flip upside down onto a serving plate and spread frosting over the top. Sprinkle with walnuts to finish.
Place it in the fridge for about 10 minutes to firm the frosting, then slice and enjoy!
Note: These can be stored in the fridge for up to a week, or in the freezer for months.
Nutrition facts per serving: Calories 389; protein 10 g; fat 17 g; carbs 49 g.
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