Raspberry Chocolate Brownies

I’ve made these raspberry chocolate brownies a few times recently, and they always got down a treat.

They’re not too sweet, lovely and gooey, and to top it all, they have my favourite food combination of chocolate and raspberry. Inspired by the book Harry Eastwood’s Red Velvet Chocolate Heartache, using vegetables such as sweet potato, beetroot, courgette, and carrot is something I love to do when baking. By adding the vegetables you don’t need the butter which is fab! Plus, you get some extra goodness even in a treat.

So you can forget about feeling guilty for eating a piece of cake, here are some health benefits instead. Sweet potatoes have a lovely natural sweetness, and they are rich in fibre great for the digestive system and high in beta carotene, which is converted to vitamin A by our body and great for healthy skin, good vision and the immune system. Dates are a fantastic natural sweetener which also contains a wealth of minerals such as calcium, phosphorus and magnesium which work together to build strong bones.

Raw cacao is a truly powerful superfood which has more antioxidant flavonoids than blueberries, red wine and green teas, making it a hugely beneficial food for the cardiovascular system. By increasing levels of specific neurotransmitters in our brains, such as serotonin, endorphins and anandamide cacao can help promote a positive outlook, lift our spirits and promote relaxation. Additionally, pure, raw cacao has extraordinary potential for helping to support weight loss which is quite the opposite from the everyday milk chocolate bar!

Raspberry Chocolate Brownies Recipe

Ingredients:

110g ground almonds A pinch of Himalayan salt 1 cup cooked and mashed sweet potato {2 medium-sized sweet potatoes} 1/4 cup raw cacao powder 12 medjool dates 2 tbsp maple syrup 2 generous tbsp almond butter 1 tbsp coconut oil 1/3 cup frozen raspberries

Firstly, soak the dates and make sure the stones have been removed 2-3 hours before.

Heat the oven at 180, and grease and line a baking tin.

Peel and steam or boil the sweet potatoes. While they are cooking in a food processor whizz up the dates, coconut oil, almond butter and maple syrup. Once the potatoes are soft, run some cold water over them, add them to the food processor, and mix them with the other ingredients.

Add the dry ingredients to a bowl and mix the wet mixture well. Add the raspberries and mix through.

Scoop into the prepared tin and bake for 30 min until cracks appear on top.

Remove from the oven and let cool; they are gorgeous warm too. You can sprinkle some cacao and ground almonds on top to make them look pretty.