This Sweet Potato Blondie with Pecan Pie Glaze is the absolute best way to celebrate the most wonderful flavors of the harvest season. Can you think of a fall food more quintessential to the South than sweet potatoes and pecans? Me neither!
The Secret I’m Ready to Share
This idea came to me when I decided I was tired of choosing between a piece of sweet potato or pecan pie. Why not just combine them? And what a perfect little bite of Autumn they turned out to be! That was 16 years ago when I was just a 28 year old girl with a fried chicken stand and a dream.
The fried chicken stand didn’t end up working out, but this recipe was worth salvaging from that painful chapter. Closing a restaurant is hard on the ego and I found it to be extremely embarrassing. Now I can openly admit I was too young and too inexperienced to own a business at the time. But back then all I felt was humiliation.
As life tends to do, the years went by, my self-esteem slowly recovered and over time I noticed that all my clients were still requesting “those little sweet potato bites,” and in addition, the list of friends who had asked for the recipe continued to grow and grow.
I was so used to sharing every recipe, but something would always stop me when it came to this one. I’d say “sorry, this is the only one I can’t share.” and the friend would sigh a big, sad sigh, pause for a moment and then say “well, then you’re just going to have to make them for me. I need them!”
The Biggest Gift Is Gratitude
It was strange because I didn’t know what I was holding on to it for. I have no plans of turning this recipe into a shelf-stable product, so why not share and be merry? Especially around the holidays when we tend to be full of gratitude.
And I am extremely grateful. I’ve been working on this website for almost a year now, and it’s been the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done in my career. I’m so thankful to all my readers who’ve tried my recipes, and shared them with friends and left comments. I’ve gotten so much back in the process of giving things away. So here’s my biggest, best gift to all of you: my one secret recipe.
I am truly, truly grateful to you for all the love and support.
Ingredient Substitutions
- If you don’t want to purchase muscovado sugar, you can substitute:
- Blondies: ½ cup light brown sugar
- Topping: ⅓ cup brown sugar, 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- Not a sweet potato fan? Sub the same quantity of roasted pumpkin or butternut squash.
- If you’re not gluten-free, you can substitute the same quantity of all- purpose flour
Recipe Tips & FAQs
- Set yourself up for success the day before:
- Pre-toast your pecans
- Pre-roast and smash your sweet potatoes
- Pull out a stick of butter to bring to room temperature
- You can buy muscovado sugar here.
- I always test baking recipes with Land o’Lakes unsalted butter.
- If you don’t have a stand mixer, you can make them in a mixing bowl, it will just be more work. Make sure that butter is at room temperature for easier mixing!
- King Arthur Gluten Free Measure for Measure flour blend can be found at Publix and Whole Foods/Amazon.
- Toasting Pecans: If toasting them yourself, the best method is on a sheet pan in the oven at 225˚F for 3 hours. It sounds excessive, but the quality will be much better if you toast them slow and low.
- If you want it to taste more like a sweet potato pie and a pecan pie collided, up the smashed sweet potato to 2 cups. That will make the base more custard-like than cake-ish.
Serving Suggestions
- Holiday Table: Serve these blondies after enjoying these holiday sides
- Kale Salad with Parmesan Dressing
- Root Veggie Gratin
- Cornbread Dressing
- Sunday Supper: The perfect way to end this meal
Storage and Shelf Life
Make Ahead:
- Sweet potatoes can be cooked and smashed up to 3 days in advance.
- Pecans can be toasted up to 3 months in advance.
Refrigerate:
Can be stored in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Freezer:
Not recommended, because it will degrade the texture.
Final Thoughts
I’m wishing all of y’all a very merry and happy holiday season. Thanks so much for checking out this Sweet Potato Blondie with Pecan Pie Glaze recipe, I hope your community loves it as much as mine.
My one wish is that when you share this recipe, please also share EverydayAlchemy.com with your loved ones, and let them know that there’s lots of other great recipes for them to find here!
Have you tried this recipe yet? If so, please share your experience in the comments below. I honestly cannot wait to hear from you about this one! And don’t forget to sign up for the Everyday Alchemy newsletter here.
Sweet Potato Blondie with Pecan Pie Glaze
Special Equipment
- 9×9 baking pan
- stand mixer ( (can be made without one, but it's helpful)
Ingredients
- For the Blondies:
- 1 large orange sweet potato 1 cup cooked and mashed
- 4 ounces unsalted butter 1 stick, room temperature
- ½ cup light muscovado sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs 1 ½ jumbo eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ cup King Arthur’s Gluten Free Measure for Measure Flour Blend
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- For the Pecan Pie Glaze:
- 2 ounces unsalted butter
- ½ cup light muscovado sugar
- 2 tablespoons local raw honey
- pinch of sea salt omit if pecans are salted
- 1 tablespoon heavy cream
- 1 cup 2 tablespoons toasted pecans roughly chopped (see faq about toasting)
Instructions
- Bake the Sweet Potato: Preheat the oven to 350°.
- Wash and pierce the 1 large sweet potato. Wrap in foil and roast in the oven. When cool, run through a fine mesh tamis, or beat in a stand mixer until completely smooth.
- Make the Blondies: Blend ¾ cup flour and ½ teaspoon baking powder together.
- Cream the 4 ounces butter, ½ cup muscovado sugar and ½ teaspoon salt in a stand mixer.
- Alternate mixing in the 2 large eggs and the flour. Start with adding a 1/4 of the whisked eggs, then a ¼ cup of the flour. Repeat with the rest of the eggs and flour.
- Add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and a cup of mashed sweet potatoes.
- Pour the batter into a 9×9 baking pan, no need to grease it. Bake for 30-40 minutes at 350°, rotating halfway throughout. The top of the brownies should be firm, and a toothpick inserted should come out clean.
- Let the blondies cool completely before adding the pecan pie glaze.
- Make the Pecan Pie Glaze: Combine 2 ounces butter, ½ cup light muscovado sugar, 2 tablespoons honey and a pinch of salt. Once it boils, turn off the heat and add 1 tablespoon heavy cream and 1 cup 2 tablespoons chopped, toasted pecans. Pour and spread evenly over cooked blondie.
- Allow the topping to cool, then cut them into 1 ½ inch squares.
Hi, I’m Julia.
I’m a chef and wellness advocate passionate about helping others live well through nourishing food. I trained at the Culinary Institute of America and now work as a personal chef and community food advocate in Atlanta.
Want to know what inspired me to start Everyday Alchemy? Click the link icon below to read more.
These are AMAZING!!! Perfect dessert for the fall season!
Agreed! Thanks so much for trying them!
Had this at the market for the first time at the market and OMG! I cannot wait to try this recipe on my own.
Thank you Kaye, I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
I made these for my daughter’s teachers for Thanksgiving break, and they were a hit! I also brought them to my company party perfect little treats that fit everyone’s dietary needs.