The Deliciously Ella Sweet Potato Brownies

I finally hopped on the bandwagon and tried the famous Deliciously Ella sweet potato brownies that everyone seems to rave about. Honest opinion? I wasn't obsessed with the flavor and texture of them, but these are almost completely added sweetener free and pretty darn healthy. That is the appeal of them though, right? Eating dessert without actually getting the bad side effects of it? I just think they taste a little more like a Luna bar then a brownie, but I'd make them again. That icing though... I'm planning on making just that and eating spoonfuls of it. It was AMAZINGGG. 

Sweet potatoes are the star of this recipe as they are the base of the brownie. Nothing like mixing some healthy starch and fiber into dessert right? This recipe also calls for almonds and coconut oil, so they're also a very good source of healthy fats. They're super simple to make and full of good for you ingredients... Read on for the recipe if you're willing to give them a try.

Ingredients:

• Brownies:
  • 2 medium sweet potatoes
  • 12 medjool dates
  • 6 tbsp maple syrup
  • 1/2 cup ground almonds
  • 2 tbsp melted coconut oil
  • 1/2 cup ground oats
  • 6 tbsp cacao powder
  • a pinch of salt
• Icing:
  • 2 tbsp coconut oil
  • 2 tbsp almond butter
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup
  • 2 tbsp cacao powder

Directions:

1. Preheat the over to 350 degrees.
2. Peel and cut the sweet potatoes into chunks and steam them until they are soft. I believe you could also boil them in water until soft too if you'd like.
3. Place cooked sweet potato and pitted dates in a food processor together and blend until well mixed.
4. Mix remaining brownie ingredients in a bowl together and stir.
5. Next, pour the sweet potato/date combo into the bowl with the remaining brownie ingredients and mix well. 
6. Grease or line a brownie pan with parchment paper, and pour the brownie mix into the pan.
7. Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes or until you can pierce the brownies with a toothpick and it comes out dry.
8. Remove from the oven and let it sit for about 10-20 minutes - do not touch it! It is important for them to cool down before you cut them up.
9. To make the icing, simply put all the ingredients into a bowl and melt them in the microwave (about 30 seconds to 1 minute). Stir well and place in the fridge for about 15-20 minutes to harden it up a bit so you can spread it! 
10. Allow the brownies to cool before icing, otherwise it will melt fast! Or just eat the icing on it's own like I plan to do. :) 

Sweet Potato Risotto (vegan & gluten-free)

I made this twice last week, and got so many requests for the recipe, that I bumped this post up so I could get it to you guys immediately! It's a wonderful side dish to steak, chicken, or pretty much any protein that you desire really. It also works well next to a salad, as a base for bowl, or just all by itself.  Everyone that has tried this has loved it. It's super easy to make, and it's much healthier than your normal, run of the mill risotto.

My secret is that I use organic sprouted brown rice or wild rice (always choose organic!), instead of the white rice usually used in risotto that has no nutritional benefits. I also sub out butter and/or cream for ghee or coconut oil, depending on what you prefer. Instead of parmesan you can also use nutritional yeast, but this time around, I decided to go the cheese route. There is no replacement for good old, regular cheese people!

Feel free to add, subtract, sub, and do whatever you want to this recipe. It's a great one to experiment with! We actually doubled it (2 cups of rice instead of 1 cup serving that the rice package suggests) because we love having left overs (meal prep anyone!?). The recipe below is just an estimate of what I threw in the pot, but you really can't screw this one up. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 2 large sweet potatoes/yams
• Organic brown rice (or whatever rice you'd like to use)
• 1 small red onion (or half a large onion), chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1-2 tbsp ghee or olive oil
• 1/3 cup dry white wine
• Chicken broth (vegetable broth for vegan)
• Parmesan cheese (nutritional yeast for vegan)
• 2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
• Paprika
• Cinnamon
• Salt & pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat over to 400 degrees.
2. Peel and cut the sweet potatoes into 1 inch cubes. Put in a bowl, pour melted coconut oil over, and dust with paprika, cinnamon, and salt & pepper (I used a generous amount of spices since I like a lot of flavor). Toss in the bowl until the potatoes are evenly covered with the oil and spices.
3. Place the sweet potato cubes on a baking sheet and put in the over for about 20-30 minutes or until lightly browned and soft.
4. While the potatoes are cooking, you can start on the rice! In a medium sized pot, heat the ghee (or olive oil) over medium heat.
5. Once it is melted and bubbling slightly, add the chopped onion and minced garlic cloves. Cook for a couple minutes until translucent/slightly browned.
6. Add the rice to the pot (all of it). Stir and coat the rice fully with the butter/onion/garlic mixture. Cook for a minute or two. Cover the rice with the white wine and again, cook for a couple more minutes.
7. Begin to add the broth to the rice about 1/2 cup at a time. Each time, you'll probably cook the rice for about 5-10 minutes in between pours. You're going to do this until the rice is fully cooked. I cooked about 2 cups of rice, so I used about 6 half cups of water total by the time I was finished.
8. While the rice is cooking, we're going to mash the potatoes! I used a food processor, but if you don't have one, you could just use a potato masher or a fork. You want to get it as pureed and smooth as possible. I'll add a little bit of broth to them before pureeing just to help the process a bit.
9. Finally, once the rice is cooked, add some parmesan cheese (or nutritional yeast), and stir well. Last step is to add the sweet potato puree.
10. Mix everything together well and serve! You can also sprinkle some parmesan cheese on top to make it look nice. Let me know what you guys think below!