A healthy alternative to traditional chocolate cupcakes, these vegan triple chocolate sweet potato cupcakes combine simple ingredients and are frosted with two-ingredient sweet potato frosting. They are decadent and fudgy without being overly sweet.
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Why you will love this recipe
You probably won't believe me if I told you there are sweet potatoes in this recipe - they're hiding in the cupcakes as well as the frosting. I love disguising vegetables into desserts like this; they taste nothing like you'd expect. People are surprised and impressed to hear what the main ingredients are.
Sweet potatoes can make the most luxe chocolate cupcakes and frosting. If you have children or you wanting to limit your refined sugar intake, this recipe is a great alternative to sugar-laden conventional chocolate cupcakes.This recipe is:
- Vegan
- Lower in refined sugar
- Healthy-ish
- Chocolatey and decadent
- Made with simple ingredients
- Easy to make ahead
- Great for kids birthdays or a healthier treat
My family loves them; this is my favourite way to get a somewhat healthier chocolate cupcake fix without sacrificing taste and texture. These vegan triple chocolate sweet potato cupcakes hit all the marks.
Ingredients & Substitutions
For the list of ingredients including the amounts, please see the recipe card. Here is a synopsis of the ingredients needed and any notes on substitutions.
Spelt flour or whole wheat flour: this is the base for the cupcakes. I have successfully made this recipe with regular and whole spelt flour as well as whole wheat and all purpose flour in equal measure.
Flax Meal: ground flax seeds are called flax meal. This ingredient acts as a binder similar to how eggs would. I prefer to use brown flax seeds over golden flax because it tends to gel faster and better than the latter. Ground flax seeds are a common egg substitute in vegan recipes. If you don't have ground flaxseed, use 1 tablespoon of whole chia seeds or 2 teaspoon of ground chia seeds.
Sweet potato puree: This recipe will require either store bought sweet potato puree or homemade. I provide instructions below on how to make sweet potato puree at home. If you plan to make your own, it does require a bit of planning, however, sweet potato puree can be made in about 30 minutes or a few days in advance (see below section on make-ahead and storage options).
Cocoa powder: for this recipe you can use either dutch process or regular cocoa powder.
Granulated sugar: this is needed only for the cupcake base; the frosting is sweetened solely with sweet potatoes and semi-sweet chocolate morsels.
Baking soda & Baking powder: the leavening agents used in this recipe.
Salt: to balance the sweetness and enhance the flavours.
Unsweetened almond milk: I prefer the taste of almond milk, however, I have also used lite coconut milk, oat milk, and soy milk for this recipe. You can use whichever dairy-free milk or plant-based milk you prefer, however, full-fat coconut milk will be too thick for this recipe.
Olive oil: to add moisture and lightness to the cupcakes. You can use any neutral flavoured vegetable oil you prefer (avocado, vegetable, canola etc.).
Semi-sweet dark chocolate chips: these are needed for the cupcake base as well as for the sweet potato frosting.
How to make vegan chocolate sweet potato cupcakes
In total, this recipe takes about 45 minutes to make, however, this does not account for the time involved in making sweet potato puree (so add another 30 minutes to the total if you go this route). For the full detailed instructions, please see the recipe card. Once you have sweet potato puree, the cupcakes come together in about 15 minutes and bake for roughly 30 minutes. For the detailed instructions, please see the recipe card.
STEP 1: Preheat the oven and line a muffin tray.
STEP 2: In a medium bowl, mix together the flax meal and water, set aside for 5-10 minutes. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
STEP 3: To the flax mixture, add the olive oil, plant-based milk, sweet potato puree*, and vanilla extract; mix until well incorporated. Add the sweet potato mixture to the flour mixture and stir just until the flour is incorporated.
STEP 4: Mix in the chocolate pieces until evenly distributed, then spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tins, about ⅔ full.
STEP 5: Bake in the preheated oven for 28-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre of a cupcake comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool completely before frosting.
STEP 6: In a medium saucepan, add the sweet potato puree (see notes below on how to make this) and heat until warmed through.
STEP 7: remove the sweet potato from the heat and add in the chopped chocolate stirring continuously until the chocolate is melted and incorporated evenly.
STEP 8: Cool the frosting, stirring occasionally, until it reaches room temperature (it should have the same consistency of store-bought frosting- holding stiff peaks, yet soft enough to be spread or piped with ease). Spread the frosting on each cooled cupcake and enjoy.
Two-ingredient sweet potato frosting
Vegan chocolate sweet potato frosting is one of the most spectacular surprises. It's made by combining just two ingredients: chocolate and sweet potato puree. The texture of sweet potato frosting is spot on and it tastes just like the real deal, only slightly less sweet (traditional frosting are far too sweet for my taste, anyway).
Sweet potato frosting has been around for many years, but was made popular by Genevieve Ko with her School-Party Sheet Cake recipe. Her recipe was picked up by Food52 and this amazing two-ingredient frosting gained more well deserved recognition. It's really quite amazing!
How to make sweet potato puree
If you can't find sweet potato puree at your local grocer, you can make it at home. To make enough for this recipe, you will want to use about 3 medium sweet potatoes, or two large ones.
First, wash and peel the sweet potatoes. Carefully chop them into 1 inch pieces and place them into a steamer. Cook the sweet potatoes until they're easily pierced with a fork, then carefully transfer them into a food processor or immersion blender system and puree until very smooth. That's it!
Make ahead and storage options
If you're pressed for time, you can prepare the sweet potato puree and the cupcakes a few days in advance and keep them covered in the fridge until you need them.
The only portion of this recipe that needs to be made fresh is the frosting - you can make the sweet potato puree in advance, but wait to make the frosting until a few hours before you plan to serve.
Unlike conventional frostings, sweet potato frosting does not harden over, and it won't maintain its malleability/softness past a day. The key is to make and use the frosting the same day you plan to serve the cupcakes.
However, I have enjoyed this recipe up to three days later and find the texture of the frosting to be just as enjoyable. The frosted cupcakes can be kept covered in the fridge up to three days.
More Chocolate Recipes
If you enjoy this recipe, be sure to check out some of these favorites:
Double Chocolate Beetroot Cake [dairy-free & vegan]
Vegan Chocolate Bundt Cake with Peppermint Ganache
Vanilla Cupcakes with Chocolate Lavender Cashew Frosting [vegan]
Double Chocolate Chickpea Flour Cookies
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Vegan Triple Chocolate Sweet Potato Cupcakes
Ingredients
Chocolate Sweet Potato Cupcakes
- 2 tablespoon ground flaxseed
- 4 tablespoon water
- 1 ¾ cups spelt flour , or whole wheat flour
- ½ cup organic cane sugar
- 5 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¾ cup plant-based milk
- ½ cup olive oil
- ½ cup sweet potato puree, *see notes
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ½ cup semi sweet chocolate chips
Chocolate Sweet Potato Frosting
- 430 grams of sweet potato puree
- 10 ounces (1 ⅔) cups semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
Make the Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a 12-tin muffin tray with cupcake liners.
- In a medium bowl, mix together the flax meal and water, set aside for 5-10 minutes. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
- To the flax mixture, add the olive oil, plant-based milk, sweet potato puree*, and vanilla extract; mix until well incorporated. Add the sweet potato mixture to the flour mixture and stir just until the flour is incorporated. Mix in the chocolate pieces until evenly distributed, then spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tins, about ⅔ full.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 28-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre of a cupcake comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool completely before frosting.
Prepare the Frosting
- In a medium saucepan, add the sweet potato puree* and heat over medium low until warmed through, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and add in the chopped chocolate stirring continuously until the chocolate is melted and incorporated evenly.
- Cool the frosting, stirring occasionally, until it reaches room temperature (it should have the same consistency of store-bought frosting- holding stiff peaks, yet soft enough to be spread or piped with ease).
Assembly
- Spread the frosting on each cooled cupcake and enjoy.
Notes
Nutrition
This is an approximation of the nutrition offered in this recipe, and is created using a nutrition calculator. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee accuracy. If your health depends on nutrition information, please calculate again with your preferred calculator.
Disclaimer
all recipes on The Simple Green are developed and tested in a Canadian kitchen, at normal elevation, using electric appliances and ingredients available in Canada. Results may vary.