Sweet potato cake is a quick and easy dessert you would love to bake for your family and friends. It is budget-friendly; hence you can whip it up anytime you would crave the delight that sweet potato cake brings.
This dish offers the mouthwatering goodness of baked sweet potato which is mild in taste. Moreover, the delicate flavor of the cake is boosted with the maple syrup icing that tastes so sweet and sugary. Sweet potato cake has a smooth, moist, and soft texture that can easily be devoured in one sitting.
This tender and moist cake pass the elegant vibe for a family dinner; thus, you can serve it as dessert when the family has already eaten the main course for the evening. You may also serve the sweet potato cake a few hours after midday as your family's snack. If there are children in your family, you may cut some slices of this cake and include them in their lunchboxes for school.
The taste of sweet potato cake with maple icing does not only rely on the sweetness and flavorings of the ingredients. It also has condiments that spice up the flavor, like ground ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. These ingredients create a lovely flavor to the cake.
Where Sweet Potato Cake Has Started
There is no known exact date when the sweet potato cake came from. However, many assumed that the dish was of Dominican Republic origin. In the Dominican Republic, sweet potato cake is called Pan de Batata. This cake is usually served during the holiday seasons in the said country. Pan de Batata or sweet potato cake has a very exotic and spicy taste. It also shares the aroma of cinnamon, cloves, and ginger.
The history of Dominican sweet potato cake began with sweet potato cultivation while the Dominican Republic was still under Spanish colonial rule. The Dominican Republic has a rich source of sweet potatoes, that’s why it is no longer a surprise that they would make a dish made up of the said ingredient for their usual holiday seasons. The abundance of sweet potatoes leads people to cultivate ideas on where to use the extra crops they harvest. Fortunately, sweet potatoes go well with other holiday delicacies when they are baked as cakes.
Why Does This Sweet Potato Cake Recipe Works?
Cakes are made differently, to think that there are hundreds and even thousands of cake flavors and variations one may try to bake or eat. Consequently, it is also one of the recipes that anyone can find on the internet since a lot of food blogs dedicate their content to making different procedures and experimentations in pastries. However, out of all the numerous recipes you can find on the internet, nothing beats this particular recipe as the most suggested one!
- Ingredients are easy to find.
- Steps are quick and easy to follow. You may serve this mouthwatering dish without any hassle at all!
- Anyone in the family will surely love it.
- This cake is budget-friendly and freezer-friendly.
What's In This Sweet Potato Cake Recipe
All-Purpose Flour. All-purpose flour will help in structuring your sweet potato cake. It also adds soft layers to the cake.
Spices. Add a dash of interesting spice to the sweet potato cake by adding ground ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. The flavor of the cake will be more pronounced when these spices are added.
Baking Powder and Baking Soda. Your cake will be a huge fail without these two necessary ingredients. Baking powder helps in increasing the volume of the cake and lightens the texture. Baking soda, on the other hand, acts as a leavening that allows the cake to rise.
Sweet Potato Puree. The base flavor for this recipe is this sweet potato puree. It tastes mild, starchy, and sweet that will surely satisfy those who will have a slice of the finished sweet potato cake.
Granulated Sugar. Add the right amount of granulated sugar for a sweeter outcome of the baked good.
Vegetable Oil. Make sure to use vegetable oil since it adds moisture to the cake.
Eggs. Prepare eggs at room temperature since they add structure, leavening, color, and flavor to all baked goods, sweet potato cake included.
Vanilla Extract. Another sweetener and flavor additive, drop some vanilla extract into the mixture! Vanilla Extract is also a good addition to your maple glaze later.
Maple Syrup. The base ingredient and flavor for the icing of this cake is maple syrup, and it has a flavor similar to the combination of vanilla and caramel so expect a burst of sweetness!
Milk. Milk helps to add consistency to the icing, just make sure to be mindful of the amount you put.
Powdered Sugar. Like milk, powdered sugar does not only add sweetness to the icing but also gives consistency to the mixture of the glaze.
Pinch of Cinnamon. So as not to have a pure sweet icing, put spice to the mixture by adding a pinch of cinnamon.
How to Make the Best Sweet Potato Cake with Maple Icing?
- Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F. Grease a bundt cake pan with butter.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk eggs, vanilla extract and sugar using an electric hand mixer.
- Add oil and potato puree; keep mixing.
- Now, add in the flour, baking powder, spices, baking soda and salt, mix until incorporated.
- Pour the batter into the bundt cake pan and bake for 40-45 minutes.
- Allow the cake to cool completely before getting it out of the pan.
- Making the glaze: Mix all the glaze ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat, whisk until combined.
- Put the cake on a serving plate, pour the warm glaze over the cake, then top with crushed pecans.
- Cut the cake and serve.
Top Tips!
- Measure properly the ingredients, especially the flour, to avoid epic failures in baking, such as having a dry cake.
- Let your cake cool down first before adding the glaze it lest you ruin the texture of the cake.
Recipe Variations
- You may use any food extract instead of vanilla extract, such as almond extract.
- If you prefer a pure sweetness for the glaze, you may skip cinnamon for your maple icing.
Serving Suggestions
Many would suggest a good cup of tea as a pair for the sweet potato cake perfect during the morning. But, you may also serve it with hot black coffee.
Recipe FAQs
Using a bundt cake pan makes baking easier since you don't have to layer the baked goods anymore. They also are easy to slice, serve and store.
You can either boil or bake the sweet potatoes until they become soft, peel, then mash them using a fork, and you’ll have homemade sweet potato puree at your fingertips. Easy-peasy, you don't have to run to the store anymore.
More cake recipes
- Lazy Cake - No-Bake Chocolate Biscuit Cake
- Coffee Cake With Coffee Cream Frosting
- Lemon Poppyseed Cake
- Chocolate Sour Cream Bundt Cake With Ganache
Sweet Potato Cake with Maple Icing
Ingredients
- 1 ⅓ cups All Purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup sweet potato puree
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ⅔ cup vegetable oil
- 2 eggs , room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For The Maple Glaze
- 3 tablespoon maple syrup
- 3 tablespoon milk
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- pinch cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F. Grease a bundt cake pan with butter.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk eggs, vanilla extract and sugar using an electric hand mixer.
- Add oil and potato puree; keep mixing.
- Now, add in the flour, baking powder, spices, baking soda and salt, mix until incorporated.
- Pour the batter into the bundt cake pan and bake for 40-45 minutes.
- Allow the cake to cool completely before getting it out of the pan.
Making the glaze
- Mix all the glaze ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat, whisk until combined.
- Put the cake on a serving plate, pour the warm glaze over the cake, then top with crushed pecans.
- Cut the cake and serve.
Notes
- Measure properly the ingredients, especially the flour, to avoid epic failures in baking, such as having a dry cake.
- Let your cake cool down first before adding the glaze it lest you ruin the texture of the cake.
- You may use any food extract instead of vanilla extract, such as almond extract.
- If you prefer a pure sweetness for the glaze, you may skip cinnamon for your maple icing.
Nutrition
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This cake is amazing, so soft and fluffy it is also healthy and delicious. My husband and I love to serve it in breakfast with coffee.