Sweet Potato Pound Cake
Last week was really hot in my area and I went on a mini-rant about how over it I was. I shared a recipe that was geared towards warmer weather.
This week, it’s a tad bit cooler, but still warm. But you know what? I’m gonna go ahead and share a recipe that is right up the alley of autumn anyway, because I just can’t wait any longer.
Maybe if I put out autumn foods more, it’ll attract more autumn weather to where we are–or not, but I can at least try. And even if it doesn’t bring the autumn vibes my way, I’m still sending good food vibes y’alls way no matter what the weather looks like in your part of the world.
That way, everyone wins.
I know at this time of year everyone loves to throw pumpkin into everything. Personally, I think pumpkin spice is overrated. And when it comes baking, I actually like to take a recipe that calls for pumpkin and swap it right out for sweet potato.
When they’re roasted & mashed, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, yams, and even butternut/kabocha squash take on a very similar consistency. The flavors are different, but they function the same way scientifically during the baking process.
So, what I did here is incorporate a roasted/mashed sweet potato into a pound cake recipe, then added a lot of the autumn spices that are usually given to pumpkin baked goods. The orange zest is there to give it a boost of freshness. If you prefer to use pumpkin, butternut or kabocha squash instead, that’s fine. I promise it won’t mess anything up.
You should know that I originally intended to give this cake a glaze. If you’ve been following this blog for a while, then you know that I usually do. But by the time the cake was done cooling and I had gotten out all of the ingredients for a glaze, I hesitated, looked at it for a long moment and thought, “You know what? Nah. It’s fine.”
Apart from the flavor, the sweet potato keeps the cake itself really moist. The spices complement the sweet potato and give your taste buds a hug. They don’t need any help from a sweet icing and I’m glad that I followed my instincts and didn’t try to give them any.
This is autumn in one delicious bite. Or several, depending on how much of it you eat. And I think you’ll eat plenty.
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Sweet Potato Pound Cake
Recipe Adapted from Land O Lakes
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup brown sugar (light or dark, doesn’t matter)
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup mashed sweet potatoes
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon fresh orange zest
- 1/4 cup milk
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease and flour a 12 cup Bundt pan (or two 9 inch cake pans) and set aside.
In a medium size bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices together. Stir with a fork until combined, then set aside.
In a glass measuring cup combine the milk with the vanilla extract and set aside.
In the bowl of a standing mixer (or using a handheld one) use the paddle attachment to cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing just until the yellow disappears. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl as you go to ensure even mixing.
Add the mashed potatoes and orange zest, mixing just until combined.
Continue to mix at a low speed as you add the flour mixture and the milk mixture. (Start and end with the flour.)
Spoon the batter into the cake pan(s). Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan on a wire rack for about 20 minutes, then turn the cake out of the pan and allow to cool completely.
Sharing at this week’s Fiesta Friday #246, co-hosted this week, by Mollie @ The Frugal Hausfrau and Mila @ Milkandbun.
Nice
Thank you 🙂
hi Jess!
Another tasty-looking cake! and with all those spices in it .. mmmm yummy! I’m sure everyone at the FF party enjoy it 😀
Cheers
Mila
Thanks Mila!
Hey Jess,
I love this pound cake! The richness from sweet potato with the richness from the cake – yum. Definitely on my holiday bake list!
Thanks Lily, I hope that you enjoy it–it’s a great cake 🙂
I love pound cake and haven’t seen a pumpkin version yet so am loving your beauty here!
Thank you Julie–I prefer sweet potato to pumpkin myself, but pumpkin can be easily substituted 🙂
This looks so delicious and moist. I have nominated you for the Blogger Recognition Award! Congratulations Jess! https://lisasalsworld.ca/2018/10/22/blogger-recognition-award/
Thank you Lisa 🙂
This is a perfect fall recipe! Looks absolutely delish, Jess! I love the idea of the sweet potato – and wouldn’t this be a great recipe to use any leftover sweet potato!!
Thanks for sharing your creation at Fiesta Friday!!
Mollie
Leftover sweet potato is exactly how this happened–thank you Mollie 😀
Oh wow, looks delicious 😋
Thanks!
Sweet Potato Pound Cake sounds divine! I’d love a piece of this. Can you send it to me via UPS? LOL
Would if I could lol thank you 🙂
I am preparing this cake as I write this comment hopefully it turns out tasty and beautiful I will let you know in the next comment how everything turned out have a blessed day everyone.