Today my kids have no school. So what to do in order to keep them entertained and far from devices? While the part with "no devices all day long" is impossible to achieve, at least let's squeeze this timing between small brackets. So I started baking and asked for their help. "What are you cooking?", they asked. Deal breaker question. If I might have said "baked fish", or "beef stew" or any other savory dish, their answer would have been "No, thx!". But I'm older then them and 2 steps smarter:D "Brownies!". You could hear their tinny little feet rushing towards the kitchen. Now don't jump to blame me that I'm feeding them excess of sugar, chocolate and so on. I told you I'm 2 steps ahead of them (not for long :)) ). 

My healthy version of brownies is enriched with sweet potatoes for a boost of natural sweet taste, without the high number of calories, richness of antioxidants, fiber, vitamins and minerals. By using sweet potato in the batter, I reduce the amount of flour, I take out the need of adding eggs and I have the perfect result of divin gooeyness. One more secret: I use maple syrup instead of sugar and again a lot of benefits while fewer calories. 

"Is this a healthy choice?" Tudor, my younger one, asked. "Yes, Tudor, today we spoiled our brain and body with a healthy version of brownies."

This recipe is dairy-free, vegan and could be easily adapted to gluten-free (just change the white flour with gluten-free flour and make sure the dark chocolate is also gluten-free).

Ingredients for 6:

For the sponge:

• 500 gr. boiled and mashed sweet potatoes (around 2 medium potatoes)
• 150 gr. white flour (or gluten-free flour for a gluten-free brownie)
• pinch of salt
• 50 gr. raw cocoa powder (check for gluten-free for a gluten-free brownie)
• 100 ml sunflower oil
• 200 ml maple syrup

For the chocolate sauce:

• 100 gr. dark chocolate (check for gluten-free for a gluten-free brownie)
• 20 ml. maple syrup
• 1-2 tbsp water

Method:

1. Peel, cut into small cubes and boil the sweet potatoes for 20 min. Once boiled, drain and mash them.
2. Preheat the oven at 190'C.
3. In a bowl, add the flour, salt, cocoa powder.
4. Put the dry ingredients over the mashed sweet potatoes and add the sunflower oil and maple syrup. Mix everything well. Don't expect to have a soft batter, it should be sticky and consistent. 
5. Oil a baking pan (a square one of 23X23 cm would be fine, but whatever baking pan you have at home is ok, as long is small to medium size, so you won't end up with a really thin brownie).
6. Put the batter in the baking pan and arrange evenly, using a spatula.
7. Cook in the preheated oven for about 40 min. Take out and let cool.
8. While the batter is cooling, put water in a pot and put it on the stove on high heat to boil. Once it stars boiling, reduce the heat to medium.
9. In a glass bowl, put the dark chocolate and transfer on top of the boiling water (bain-marie). Mix with a wisk when it starts to melt. 
10. When the chocolate has melted, while still being on bain-marie, add the maple syrup and mix. If the sauce thickens, add 1 or 2 tbsp. of water. Continue mixing until you have a silky smooth chocolate sauce. 
11. Take the brownie out of the pan and pour on top the chocolate sauce. Cut into medium pieces and enjoy!