Fudgy Sweet Potato Tahini Brownies
One-bowl sweet potato brownies made with tahini, cocoa, maple syrup and almond flour. Dense and fudgy with melty dark chocolate, and no eggs or butter.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 36 min
- Rest
- 2 h
- Serves
- 12
Fudgy Sweet Potato Tahini Brownies is a vegan dessert recipe made with sweet potato, tahini, maple syrup. It takes 51 minutes of hands-on time, plus 2 hours resting, serves 12, and each serving has 179 calories, 4 g of protein and 4 g of fiber.
Mashed sweet potato stands in for eggs and butter here. It binds the batter and keeps it moist, and tahini adds richness and a toasty, nutty flavor that goes well with cocoa. Almond flour sets the brownies without making them cakey. Chilling them before you slice is what gives clean, fudgy squares.
Ingredients
- 1 cup133 gsweet potato, cooked, peeled and mashed smooth (about 1 large), orange-fleshed; about 12 oz raw
- ½ cup120 gtahini, well stirred and runny
- ½ cup160 gmaple syrup
- 1 tsp4.2 gvanilla extract
- ½ cup43 gunsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ cup48 gblanched almond flour
- ½ tsp2.3 gbaking powder
- ¼ tsp1.5 gfine sea salt
- 3 oz85 gvegan dark chocolate (70%), chopped, check the label for milk solids
- 1 pinch0.4 gflaky sea salt, for topping (optional)
Kit: 8x8-inch baking pan, parchment paper, large mixing bowl, whisk or fork, microwave or oven
Tips
- Use runny, well-stirred tahini from the top of a freshly mixed jar. Thick, dry tahini from the bottom makes a stiff, crumbly batter.
- Measure the sweet potato after mashing. Too much makes the brownies gummy in the middle.
- Leftover cooked sweet potato keeps for 4 days in the fridge, so you can cook it ahead and make these in under 10 minutes of hands-on time.
Swap ideas
- Almond butter or cashew butter instead of tahini
- Milder and sweeter, without the slightly bitter sesame note.
- Coconut sugar (1/3 cup) plus 2 tbsp water instead of maple syrup
- A deeper, caramel-like flavor and slightly chewier edges.
- Canned pumpkin puree instead of sweet potato
- Works one-for-one but is wetter and less sweet, so add 3–5 minutes to the bake.
- Oat flour instead of almond flour
- Nut-free apart from the tahini, with a slightly more cake-like crumb.
The numbers
Nutrition per serving
179kcal per serving
Everything else · 12 servings per recipe
- Saturated fat
- 2.9 g 14%
- Sugars
- 10.6 g
- Sodium
- 91 mg 4%
- Potassium
- 240 mg 5%
- Calcium
- 90 mg 7%
- Iron
- 2.5 mg 14%
- Vitamin C
- 0 mg 0%
- Vitamin B12
- 0.02 µg 1%
% Daily Value on a 2,000 calorie diet. Calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for each ingredient; optional ingredients are excluded. Estimates vary with brands and portions.
Sources: Sweet potato, raw, unprepared (Includes foods for USDA's Food Distribution Program), Seeds, sesame butter, tahini, from roasted and toasted kernels (most common type), Syrups, maple, Vanilla extract, Cocoa, dry powder, unsweetened, Nuts, almonds, blanched, Leavening agents, baking powder, double-acting, sodium aluminum sulfate, Salt, table, Chocolate, dark, 70-85% cacao solids
Method
Cook the sweet potato. Prick it all over with a fork and microwave on high for 6–9 minutes, turning halfway, until a knife slides into the thickest part with no resistance. You can also roast it whole at 400°F for 45–60 minutes. Let it cool until you can handle it, then scoop out the flesh.
Heat the oven to 350°F. Line an 8x8-inch pan with parchment, leaving some overhang on two sides so you can lift the brownies out.
In a large bowl, mash 1 cup of the sweet potato with a fork until completely smooth, with no stringy bits. Whisk in the tahini, maple syrup and vanilla until glossy and evenly combined.
Sift the cocoa powder over the bowl, then add the almond flour, baking powder and fine salt. Stir until no dry streaks remain. The batter will be thick, like frosting.
Fold in about two-thirds of the chopped chocolate. Scrape the batter into the pan and smooth it into an even layer with a wet spatula. Scatter the rest of the chocolate on top and press it in lightly.
Bake for 25–30 minutes. They're done when the edges look dry and pull slightly away from the pan, the center no longer jiggles when you nudge the pan, and a toothpick comes out with moist crumbs but no wet batter.
Sprinkle with flaky salt if you like. Cool in the pan for at least 1 hour, then refrigerate for 30 minutes. They are very soft while warm and firm up as they cool.
Lift the brownies out by the parchment and cut into 12 squares with a sharp knife, wiping the blade between cuts.
Storage: Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. They taste fudgiest cold or just below room temperature. To freeze, wrap the squares individually and freeze for up to 3 months, then thaw in the fridge overnight.
Questions
- How much protein is in fudgy sweet potato tahini brownies?
- Each of the 12 servings has 4 g of protein, 4 g of fiber and 179 calories, calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for every ingredient.
- Is fudgy sweet potato tahini brownies vegan?
- Yes. It contains no dairy, eggs, honey or other animal products.
- How long does fudgy sweet potato tahini brownies take to make?
- 15 minutes of prep and 36 minutes of cooking, so 51 minutes of hands-on time, plus 2 hours of unattended resting.
- Can you make fudgy sweet potato tahini brownies ahead?
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. They taste fudgiest cold or just below room temperature. To freeze, wrap the squares individually and freeze for up to 3 months, then thaw in the fridge overnight.
- What can I substitute in fudgy sweet potato tahini brownies?
- Almond butter or cashew butter instead of tahini — milder and sweeter, without the slightly bitter sesame note.. Coconut sugar (1/3 cup) plus 2 tbsp water instead of maple syrup — a deeper, caramel-like flavor and slightly chewier edges.. Canned pumpkin puree instead of sweet potato — works one-for-one but is wetter and less sweet, so add 3–5 minutes to the bake.. Oat flour instead of almond flour — nut-free apart from the tahini, with a slightly more cake-like crumb..
- Does fudgy sweet potato tahini brownies contain tree nuts?
- Yes — the ingredient list includes tree nuts, in some cases as an optional ingredient you can leave out. Check the labels on the products you buy if you're cooking for an allergy.
Nutrition is calculated from USDA data for every ingredient — how we work it out.
Published September 25, 2026 ·American
