Recipe – Sweet Potato Brownies

A great healthy alternative to all the sugar laden brownies. It’s gluten-free; does not have much sugar and is made from a healthy vegetable. A dessert that is delicious and good for you? Desserts don’t get any better than this!

Eastern View

Sweet Potatoes are unique among comfort foods for their ability to pacify Kapha and ground Vata. Vata benefits from heavy, oily, and warm food; and sweet potato has those qualities. Unlike dairy products, potatoes, and other common comfort foods like pasta, sweet potatoes feel light in the stomach, while still being nourishing.

Sweet potato is supportive for digestion and contains ample fiber to encourage good elimination. Besides simple starches, sweet potatoes are rich in complex carbohydrates, which means these roots can satisfy the appetite for long stretches.

Despite the name sweet, it is a beneficial food for diabetics as preliminary studies reveal that it helps to stabilize blood sugar levels.

Sweet potato is rich in beta-carotene, a Pitta pacifying precursor to vitamin A. Sweet potato comes from the morning glory family of which many members of this family contain psychotropics and hallucinogens.

Coconut

It has the following qualities… sweet, cooling, heavy and it balances Vata and Pitta and increases Kapha in excess.

Coconut is a highly regarded food, with a predominantly sweet taste, it has a sweet post-digestive effect that balances Vata. Although it is relatively heavy and difficult to digest, it is useful in small amounts to nourish and invigorate the body and promote contentment and calmness in the mind – due to its sweet taste.

Coconut is grounding and a mixture of heavy, oily, and sweet qualities will pacify the central nervous system. A natural stress-buster and as many of us are prone to reacting highly to stress, the coconut will help ground any anxiety. In this dish, the coconut is not only delicious and versatile, but also heals the digestive system and promotes a better metabolism by grounding, nourishing, and cooling.

Western View

Sweet potatoes pack a powerful nutritional punch. They have got over 400% of your daily needs for Vitamin A, as well as loads of fiber and potassium. They have got more grams of natural sugars than regular potato but more overall nutrients with fewer calories.

Sweet potatoes are considered low on the glycemic index scale, and recent research suggests they may reduce episodes of low blood sugar and insulin resistance in people with diabetes.

According to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, fewer than 2% of US adults are meeting the daily 4,700 mg recommendation for potassium.¹

One medium sweet potato provides about 542 milligrams. Also of note, high potassium intake is associated with a 20% decreased risk of dying from all causes. Among younger men, diets rich in beta-carotene may play a protective role against prostate cancer, according to a study conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health’s Department of Nutrition. Because of its high fiber content, sweet potatoes help to prevent constipation, gas and bloating and promote regularity for a healthy digestive tract.

Because of its high fiber content, sweet potatoes help to prevent constipation, gas and bloating and promote regularity for a healthy digestive tract.

Choline is a very important and versatile nutrient in sweet potatoes that helps with sleep, muscle movement, learning, and memory. Choline also helps to maintain the structure of cellular membranes, aids in the transmission of nerve impulses, assists in the absorption of fat and reduces chronic inflammation.²

According to Duke ophthalmologist Jill Koury, MD, vitamin A deficiency causes the eye’s photoreceptors to deteriorate, damaging normal vision. Correcting vitamin A deficiencies with foods high in beta-carotene will restore vision. Also of note, the antioxidant vitamins C and E in sweet potatoes have been shown to support eye health and prevent degenerative damage.

Coconut

It is a gluten-free, alkaline food high in saturated fat and fiber. With so many people having digestive problems because of a sensitivity to gluten. They need fat to combat their natural tendency towards dryness. Coconut also contains protein and some important minerals – calcium, iron, potassium, and magnesium. Due to its high-fat content, it is low on the GI index and will decrease the overall GI of any meal when added. That means coconut is a wonderful addition if you tend towards high blood sugar.

Obesity is currently one of the biggest health problems in the world. While some people think obesity is only a matter of calories, others (myself included) believe that the sources of those calories are important too.

The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition states that the medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) in coconut oil can increase how many calories you burn compared to the same amount of other fats.³ The European Journal of Clinical Nutrition reports on one study that found 15-30 grams of MCTs per day increased 24 hour energy expenditure by 5%, totalling about 120 calories per day.⁴

Almost 50% of the fatty acids in coconut oil is the 12-carbon lauric acid. When lauric acid is digested, it forms a substance called monolaurin. The Journal Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy show that both lauric acid and monolaurin can kill harmful pathogens like bacteria, viruses, and fungi.⁵ These pathogens can affect our immune system but lauric acid has been shown to kill the bacteria Staphylococcus Aureus (a very dangerous pathogen) and the yeast Candida Albicans, a common source of yeast infections in humans. That means the fatty acids and breakdown products in coconut can kill harmful pathogens, potentially helping to prevent infections.

Sweet Potato Brownies

Ingredients

• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed
• 12 Medjool dates
• 1 cup dark chocolate (or use 6 tablespoons raw cocoa powder and 2 tablespoons coconut oil)
• 2 tsp coconut oil melted
• 6 tsp maple syrup
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup ground hazelnuts or almonds
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 2 Tablespoons cocoa powder (raw)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon or cardamom

Icing

• 2 tsp coconut oil
• 2 tsp almond butter
• 1 tsp maple syrup
• 2 tsp cacao powder

Directions

• Preheat oven to 325F.
• Steam the sweet potato.
• Break the chocolate into pieces and melt over a saucepan of hot water.
• Drain the sweet potato and mash well, set aside to cool.
• Take the chocolate off the heat and add melted coconut oil and maple syrup.
• Stir the chocolate mixture into the sweet potato mash, then add all the other ingredients.
• Bake in a lined tin for 30 minutes or so until crusted on the outside but softer in the middle.

While the brownies are cooking, make the icing by simply melting all the ingredients together and stirring well, then place in the freezer for 15 minutes and then the fridge for 15 to finish firming.

Remove the brownies from the tray and leave to cool completely before icing otherwise your icing will melt! Spread the icing on top, cut into squares. Another option is to sandwich with cream cheese frosting.
Enjoy!