Elmo's Sweet Potato Biscuits

 There isn't a child in my home who still watches Sesame Street, but that didn't matter to me when I saw the new book- B is for Baking . This cookbook uses the characters from Sesame Street and I couldn't resist it.  I have had C is for Cooking for quite a few years and we use it all the time.

 I made Sweet Potato Biscuits last fall that we really loved and I noticed the version in B is for Baking was a little bit different and that it didn't use butter at all.  I was intrigued and decided it would be the first thing that we tried from this cookbook.  I made them on a night that we had a family favorite for dinner.  Whenever I make this stew, we have some sort of bread/biscuit to go with it and  I  knew these sweet potato biscuits would be great with it.  They didn't have the exact texture of a normal biscuit, but they were soft and fluffy and we loved them.   I froze a few of the leftovers and we made breakfast biscuit sandwiches the next week.  I will be making these again!

Elmo's Sweet Potato Biscuits

from  B is for Baking by Susan McQuillan

1 large sweet potato, cooked and mashed to equal 1 cup

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup whole-wheat flour

1/4 cup cornmeal

1 Tbls baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 large egg

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup skim milk

2 Tbls honey

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

In a small bowl, whisk together dry ingredients (ap flour to salt).  In a medium bowl, with a wooden spoon, stir together egg, oil, milk, and honey.  Stir in the mashed sweet potato.

Gradually add the flour mixture to the sweet potato mixture and stir until just combined.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface.  With your fingers, gently pat the dough out to a 9*12-inch rectangle.  Cut into 12 squares.  Places biscuits on an ungreased baking sheet about 1 inch apart.

Bake 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Cool slightly on rack and serve warm.

 

Brussels Sprout-Sweet Potato Hash

I saw this recipe on facebook and loved the idea of a savory, veggie-filled breakfast. Since now I like sweet potatoes, I was really excited to try this dish. I also love brussel sprouts, so I knew this had to be good.

This quick breakfast was delightful. It took a few minutes to prep the vegetables, but once they were ready, the whole thing came together really fast. Because the sweet potatoes are finely shredded/grated, they really don't take that long to cook. I added a fried egg on the side and decided to add this to my weekly breakfast menu. It's fast, nutritious and soo good!

Here is the recipe for Brussels Sprout-Sweet Potato Hash

Cranberry Whole Wheat Buttermilk Biscuits & Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Black Beans

Once again horrible, quick photos. You will have to overlook them please, because these two things are very tasty.

First up, Cranberry Whole Wheat Buttermilk Biscuits. My son chose dinner the other night and he wanted fried eggs, sauteed swiss chard & spinach, and biscuits. I know for a fact that these were not the kind of biscuits he wanted, but I was ready to try them, so I made half of them without the cranberries. This recipe uses whole wheat pastry flour and it makes a very tender, delicious biscuit. My daughters and I thought the ones with cranberries were very good and my son enjoyed those that were cranberry free.

Second, this Sweet Potato & Black Bean Salad. I'm happy to say that I have completely overcome my dislike of sweet potatoes. The key for me is to combine them with savory and/or spicy ingredients. I made this salad for a Christmas party and it was really delicious. Pretty simple too. I didn't follow the directions exactly because I wanted to add the lime juice and olive oil bit by bit, so I could adjust the taste and I also wanted the little bites of jalapeno to be in there, not pureed. I loved this salad. Many people requested the recipe. It is a fun, healthy alternative/salad that can be shared at this time of year.


Here is the recipe for Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Black Beans
* I didn't puree the dressing, I just added the jalapenos, lime juice and other ingredients
the the roasted veggies & beans
* I used less olive oil than called for, both when roasted the sweet potatoes and when dressing the salad


Here is the recipe for Cranberry Whole Wheat Buttermilk Biscuits
* I used low-fat buttermilk
* I only added frozen cranberries to half of my biscuits

Sweet Potato Casserole Cookie Bars

I still had some sweet potato puree left in my fridge and decided to try out these beautiful cookie bars I saw on Pinterest. Mine are not quite as delicately cut, but here they are none the less. This is a basic cookie batter and then sweet potato puree is folded in at the end. I only made 1/2 of the recipe and it still made quite a bit. My daughter declared that they are delicious and the rest are headed to work with my husband. These would be a great addition to any Thanksgiving dinner or fall outing.

Have a great Thanksgiving! I hope you get to share it with your family and friends!

Here is the recipe for Sweet Potato Casserole Cookie Bars
* I omitted the ancho chili powder
* I substituted 1 tsp of pumpkin pie spice for the canela
* I made 1/2 recipe

Sweet Potato Biscuits

I've made Sweet Potato Biscuits before and they were good, but I never had much luck getting them to rise very high. I made a version of this soup (with adaptations) last night and had a bunch of sweet potato puree thawing in the fridge, so I decided to try a new recipe. I used reduced fat buttermilk instead of skim milk, because I like the way buttermilk works in baked goods, especially biscuits. I wasn't sure what to expect, but these biscuits were light, fluffy and very delicious. I thought about adding some spices, like cinnamon or nutmeg, but since we were enjoying them with soup, I left them alone.

Sweet Potato Biscuits

adapted from Cooking Light

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup yellow cornmeal
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup chilled butter
  
• 1 cup mashed cooked sweet potato
• 1/2 cup reduced fat buttermilk
  
• 2 tablespoons honey

Preheat oven to 400°.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt in a bowl; cut in butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add sweet potato, milk, and honey; stir just until moist.

Turn dough out onto a heavily floured surface; knead lightly 5 times. Pat dough into a 9-inch square; cut into 16 squares. Place biscuits on a baking sheet. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes or until golden.

Crustless Sweet Potato Pie with Hazelnut Streusel

When my sister was visiting, we also made this Sweet Potato Pie with Hazelnut Streusel. I haven't ever made sweet potato pie before, but I figured this was a good recipe to start out with. My sister isn't a fan of pie crust and we were looking to save time, so we made it without the crust.
It was easy and delicious. The streusel gave a nice crunch to the whole thing and we didn't miss the crust at all.

Here is the recipe for Sweet Potato Pie with Hazelnut Streusel
* I added some oats to the streusel

Sweet Potato Graham Muffins

Like I mentioned before, when my sister was here for a quick visit, we had huge sweet potatoes that we needed to use, so it was basically sweet potato weekend. I had seen this muffin recipe from Whole Foods and thought it looked great. My sister was excited about it too, so on Sunday morning before church, we whipped them up. I made a few changes, mostly because I've discovered that with muffins, you can exchange most of the butter/oil for low-fat or nonfat buttermilk and still get a nice, moist, delicious muffin. I like muffins that are healthy tasting and not too sweet and that's exactly what these muffins were. Now, if you care about the taste of your graham crackers, I would use a brand that you think tastes great, as they are crushed up in the batter and also on top. This is no time for a cheap store brand (unless they taste amazing).


Here is the original recipe for Sweet Potato Graham Muffins
* I used 1 1/2 Tbls canola oil instead of the butter
* I used 1 cup nonfat buttermilk instead of the yogurt
* I added 1 tsp ground cinnamon to the dry ingredients
* I added 1 tsp vanilla extract to the wet ingredients

Sweet Potato-Peanut Bisque

My sister came to visit for a quick weekend trip and I told her to find some recipes that use sweet potatoes, because I had a couple of extra large ones that really needed to be dealt with. She emailed me the recipe for this soup and I thought it sounded pretty interesting. When she was here, we decided to make this for lunch on a rainy day.

This soup is pretty easy to make, but as I was throwing it together, I was getting a little worried about the final product. V8, green chiles, sweet potatoes and peanut butter?? I was a tad bit hesitant to try it, but once I did, I realized that it was fabulous. It was spicy, creamy, and had great flavor from the sweet potatoes. As I was eating this, I realized that I no longer despise sweet potatoes. In fact, I can honestly now say that I like them. Thank you Sweet Potato-Peanut Bisque!

Here is the recipe for Sweet Potato-Peanut Bisque
I added chopped peanuts as a garnish

Turkey and Pinto Bean Chili (kinda)

It's that time of year again- Chili season! For some reason, once the weather turns a little bit cooler, it just feels like time to make chili. I'm pretty sure that I'm not the only one who feels that way.
I usually make a vegetable-heavy chili, sometimes with ground turkey and sometimes meatless with a few different kinds of beans. I saw this recipe in Everyday Food Magazine and it looked really delicious. I wasn't planning on adding anything extra, but I had some sweet potatoes in the fridge that needed to be used and well, an extra can of beans never really hurt anybody, right?

This was delicious!

Emeril's Turkey and Pinto Bean Chili
from Everyday Food
makes 6-8 servings

4 slices thick-cut bacon, diced
2 medium onions, diced
1 large red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and diced
1.25-1.5 pounds ground turkey
3 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
2 teaspoons dried oregano
coarse salt and ground pepper
1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained
2 cans (15.5 ounces each) pinto beans, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
shredded cheddar cheese and sour cream (optional)
* I added 1 1/2 cups chopped sweet potato with the ground turkey and 1 can drained & rinsed black beans with the pinto beans + a little extra water :D

In a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot, cook bacon over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until bacon is crisp, about 8 minutes. Add onions and bell pepper and cook until vegetable soften, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. Add ground turkey, chili powder, cumin, garlic, oregano, and cook about 6-8 minutes, until lightly browned and cooked through. Continually break meat up with wooden spoon. Season with salt and pepper.

Add tomatoes with juice, beans, and 2 cups water. Bring to a boil then reduce to a rapid simmer. Partially cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens. (This could take anywhere from 20-45 minutes, or more.)

Serve topped with cilantro and shredded cheese and/or sour cream, if desired.

Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club- Sweet Potato and Black Bean Empanadas

This month's Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club theme was chosen by Jerry. He wanted us to have a menu full of spooky foods, that were either orange or black.

He started us off with 'Dracula's Revenge' (Baked Penne with Sausage and Garlic),

Sandi added Devilish Eggs,

Jamie picked Devilishly Devine Peanut Butter Caramel Corn,

I went with Sweet Potato and Black Bean Empanadas,

Val chose Roasted Squash (Pumpkin) Soup with Turkey Croquettes (Ghosts),

and Roz finished the meal with Chocolate Spiderweb Cookies.

I first noticed these empanadas last year and eagerly tore the page from my issue of Cooking Light. I haven't ever really been a big fan of sweet potatoes, but this savory take really made me think that it could be the turning point. Somehow, I never made them, but when the orange and black food theme came around this month, I knew they would be perfect. Orange because of the sweet potatoes and the black beans for the black part. I figured my kids would be scared to eat them, so that could count for the spooky part.

The dough for the empanadas is really easy to mix together, but it does need to chill for an hour, so make sure to add that time to your prep. The filling is fairly easy to make, if you already have your sweet potato cooked, mashed and/or pureed. I had pureed a bunch of sweet potatoes that I baked in the oven a few weeks ago and frozen the puree in little ziploc bags, so all I had to do was defrost it and I was ready to go. I made a change to the filling, just because I wanted my kids to be able to handle the heat factor- I reduced the amount of chili powder by about half.

The dough was really easy to roll out and I decided to use a fork to seal my empanadas instead of using an egg white. When I tasted one of these, I was really surprised by how good they were. The combination of spices, cilantro, black beans, etc. really took away the sweetness that usually bothers me with sweet potatoes and added a nice spice/warmth. I really, really liked these. One of my daughters also surprised me by absolutely loving them. She liked them so much that she asked me to pack a couple for her lunch the next day. My other 2 children were not big fans, but they ate them anyway. I thought they were good warm or cold. I had a few leftover and ate one cold the next day for lunch. It was fabulous. So, I am happy to report that this recipe has really changed my outlook on sweet potatoes. I hope you check out the rest of our fabulously spooky menu!

Fudge Brownies- using sweet potato puree

I can't remember how I found this recipe for brownies, but I was excited because I had lots of sweet potatoes and didn't know exactly what I was going to do with them. My son loooves brownies more than anything and I thought this would be a good way to make a slightly healthier brownie for my kids to enjoy. I cooked a bunch of sweet potatoes in the oven and then pureed them in my food processor. I made these brownies and the Sweet Potato Hummus on the same day, so at least I made my kids eat veggies and hummus before we moved onto the sweets. :D

I had some leftover peanut butter frosting from this Peanut Butter Cake in the fridge and for some reason, I just can't let a little leftover frosting go to waste. Does anyone else have this problem? The frosting I slathered on top probably killed the whole healthy idea, but sometimes, a brownie just needs a little frosting.

My kids didn't know that these had sweet potato puree in them and thought they were great. I am not a brownie fanatic, so I didn't mind that these brownies taste and texture was a little bit different than a normal one. They were still very good and quite fudgy.

Here is the recipe for Fudge Brownies
* I reduced the sugar by about 1/4 cup

Lentil and Sweet Potato Stew

I mentioned a couple of days ago that sweet potatoes are not my favorite thing to eat. Well, this stew almost changed that for me. This stew was spectacular. It really is a simple recipe, but the lentils and veggies just really taste so good together. My 4 year old was really excited to eat this and gave 2 thumbs up for this one. It fits this time of year and tastes great re-warmed the next day.

Here is the recipe for Lentil and Sweet Potato Stew

Sweet Potato Hummus

I have been looking for new ways to enjoy sweet potatoes since we have received so many in our produce co-op. Sweet potatoes aren't something that I really love, so I was looking for creative ways to eat them, that didn't included making them sweeter (like some dishes do around the holidays with marshmallows and brown sugar). I found a couple of really great recipes and this was one of the first ones I wanted to try out.

I love hummus and have made many variations
of it over the years. I wasn't sure how adding sweet potatoes to chickpeas and tahini would taste, but it turned out that this Sweet Potato Hummus was really delicious. It did have a sweeter aftertaste than usual hummus, but it was a really nice variation that we enjoyed. I made some whole wheat pita chips in the oven and we also used fresh veggies as dippers.

Here is the recipe for Sweet Potato Hummus
* I roasted and pureed 3 large sweet potatoes on the day I made this hummus, before I read the instructions, so I just used an estimated amount of that puree when mixing up the hummus

Baked Curry Sweet Potato Fries

I don't really like sweet potatoes that much. I love what sweet potatoes can do in baked goods, but I've never cared for them at Thanksgiving, especially when they are made even more sweet by adding sugar, marshmallows, etc. I don't mind an occasional baked sweet potato or sweet potatoes that are mixed in with other things, but I know that they are healthy choice, so I want to like them more.

I saw this recipe over at Joy the Baker and I knew that if anything could help me to like sweet potatoes more, it would be turning them into fries and using curry powder to flavor them.
I've used the egg white technique before in helping an item crisp up in the oven- on these Spiced Pecans, so there wasn't anything really too new in making these fries. I already know that roasting veggies in the best way to cook them, so I was pretty sure these fries were going to be spectacular.
And they were. I made them for lunch one day and they were so good. I love the flavors of the spices and the yogurt dip was the perfect thing to go with them.

My photo doesn't properly showcase how yummy these turned out, so make sure to go and look at the Joy's post and pictures.

Here is the recipe for Baked Curry Sweet Potato Fries from Joy the Baker
* I baked my fries at 425 degrees F

Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Maple Cinnamon Sage Brown Butter

I had to get to this last Thanksgiving side dish today- Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Maple Cinnamon Sage Brown Butter.
I never watch tv, especially during the day. For some odd reason, one day my kids wanted to watch something and I flipped by the Food Network. I saw that Giada was making some side dishes for Thanksgiving and we decided to watch for a little bit.
I saw her whip up this gnocchi and I was astonished because it really seemed like it took her a few minutes to get it ready. I realize that since it was tv, they edited out some of the steps, but it really didn't take long.
My kids told me they wanted me to make this gnocchi.

I had some sweet potato puree left from when I roasted sweet potatoes awhile ago and I had recently defrosted it for the Candied Sweet Potato Cupcakes. I didn't use all of the sweet potato puree for the cupcakes and I thought this would be a great way to use up the sweet potato puree I had left.
It really wasn't too difficult to mix the gnocchi together. You just add whole milk ricotta, cinnamon, salt and pepper to the sweet potato puree. Then you add flour, a little bit at a time, until you get the right consistency. That was the hardest part for me, is knowing when the gnocchi dough was the ready. I didn't want to add too much flour, but also didn't want to add too little. I am sure this is something you learn the more you make gnocchi.
The next step is dividing the dough and rolling it out into a long, snake-like rope. When I saw Giada do this, I couldn't help but think about play-doh. Then you have to shape the gnocchi.
My first batch were too big and wide, they tasted good, but looked horrible.
The second batch were the right size, but I cooked them too long, so they were mushy.
Finally, on the third batch I got it right. The shape was ok- not too big and not too small, and I cooked them just the right amount of time.
So, my analysis is, that they more you make gnocchi, the easier it becomes.

The sauce, is butter, which you brown and then you add whole sage leaves, cinnamon and pure maple syrup.

I wasn't really expecting my kids to like this dish. I made it purely out of curiousity for myself, well, and partly because my kids said they wanted me to make it, but they say that about almost everything.
I guess since my kids saw the tv episode where Giada made this, they were very interested in trying it.
They all loved it. I barely even got to have any, because they were scarfing it down.
I think this would be a really good way to serve sweet potatoes for Thanksgiving, with a twist.
Fairly quick and delicious.

Recipe for Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Maple Cinnamon Sage Brown Butter

MSC-Candied Sweet Potato Cupcakes

This months MS: Cupcakes Club cupcake was chosen by Karen, who blogs over at Karen's Cookies, Cakes and More.
Karen chose the Candied Sweet Potato Cupcakes for November. You can find the recipe on page 243 of Martha Stewart's Cupcakes.
These cupcakes are a play off of a popular Thanksgiving side dish, which combines sweet potatoes, pecans, and marshmallows. I am not really familiar with it because we never had it growing up, but I know those are the 3 ingredients.

The cupcake uses sweet potato puree from roasted sweet potatoes and since I knew quite awhile ago that this cupcake was coming up, I froze the leftover sweet potato puree I had from these Sweet Potato Biscuits, so I wouldn't have the extra step of roasting sweet potatoes (even though it isn't that difficult to roast a sweet potato, I planned ahead).
I made 1/4th of the recipe, which ended up being 6 cupcakes. I simplified the cupcake a step further by not making the candied pecans. I just toasted pecan halves in the oven and used those to top my cupcakes.
I was very skeptical about the marshmallow topping. The instructions said to make mounds of mini marshmallows, broil them, and then carefully transfer them to the tops of the cupcakes. I did just what it said and was amazed that perfect little browned mounds of marshmallows came out of the oven.
I quickly transferred the marshmallow mounds to the cupcakes and stuck a toasted pecan half into the warm topping. Perfect.
I upped the nutmeg in the cupcake and had a taste, which was wonderful.
I let my kids try one and they loved the marshmallow topping. I am definitely going to use the marshmallow topping in the future for all sorts of cupcakes. So easy and so cute. Just perfect.
I shared a couple with my hubby's co-workers and they were really well liked.
I think these would make a great addition to Thanksgiving as a dessert or even as a side!
Check out the MSC Blogroll for lots of great cupcakes!

twd- Sweet Potato Biscuits

(If you are here for The Cake Slice, I will have that post up in a few hours)

This week's Tuesday's with Dorie recipe, Sweet Potato Biscuits, was chosen by Prudence Pennywise. Prudy is one of my favorite bloggers. You can find the recipe on her blog.
I have made soo many of her recipes and posted about a lot of them. She makes healthy taste delicious and she does it on a budget!

I have made these biscuits before. About a year and a half ago- when I was new to blogging.
Last time I made these biscuits with orange honey butter -check it out HERE.
I remembered how delicious they were, even though they didn't rise very much when they baked. Last time I made them I used canned sweet potatoes. This time I used a fresh sweet potato. I roasted it in the oven and mashed it.

The only problem I have had both times I made these is getting the dough to form. I end up over-mixing/kneading it because it isn't moist enough to come together.
I should have just added more sweet potato or a splash of cream/milk/half&half to make the dough come together. Next time!
They were good though.

I made the full batch and they only lasted a couple hours. My kids down these things.
Go check out the TWD Blogroll to see who got the tallest biscuits!

p.s. I actually got better height when I made a Spiced Pumpkin version from Cooking Light- get the recipe and compare the pics HERE
Recipe for Sweet Potato Biscuits can be found HERE also

One Year Ago-Hot Cocoa Chiffon Cake

Spicy Black Bean Cakes with Lime Cream

Recently, Kristina Drociak, from Stonyfield Farm, contacted me and asked me if I had heard of OIKOS Organic Greek Yogurt. She mentioned that it was a great substitute for sour cream and mayonnaise, and a wonderful way to make lower-fat dishes. I told her that I had heard of it and actually kept it in my fridge and used it as a substitute in almost every dish I prepared that called for sour cream and even in baking. I was so excited when she sent me some coupons in the mail!
I like to get the large containers of plain Oikos that I use for cooking/baking and the smaller containers that are flavored with blueberries or honey, to eat for snacks. The great thing about it, is how natural it is and also, that it isn't too sugary sweet. That is my main problem with most yogurts out there. They are so sweet and sugary, it just doesn't seem that they can really be healthy. I also like how Oikos is thick and creamy and natural.
My friends mother found this recipe for Spicy Black Bean Cakes on allrecipes.com and sent me the link because she thought it looked like something I would like. Guess what? She was sooo right.
I really love black beans and this was a really great recipe. You cook up some onion, garlic, spices and then add the black beans and mash up the mixture a little bit. Add some shredded sweet potato, an egg and bread crumbs, and you have great little patties. To keep it healthy, they are baked in the oven and they get nice and crisp.
They are paired with a spicy lime cream (This is where the Oikos came in) and I also served sliced tomatoes on the side. We had these for dinner and I will definitely make them again. Yum!

Spicy Black Bean Cakes with Lime Cream from Allrecipes.com

Ingredients:
Lime Sour Cream:
1/2 cup reduced fat sour cream (I used Plain Oikos Greek Yogurt)
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
1 small fresh jalapeno pepper, minced
salt to taste
Bean Cakes:
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
4 green onions, thinly sliced
6 cloves garlic, pressed
2 fresh jalapeno peppers, finely diced
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 (14.5 ounce) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
salt and black pepper to taste
2 cups grated raw sweet potato
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup plain dried bread crumbs

Directions:
1. To prepare lime sour cream, mix the sour cream, lime juice, 1 small minced jalapeno, and salt together in a small bowl. Cover, and refrigerate.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Cook green onions until softened, about 1 minute. Stir in garlic, 2 diced jalapenos, and cumin; cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
3. Transfer contents of skillet to a large bowl. Stir in black beans, and mash with a fork. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Mix in sweet potatoes, egg, and bread crumbs. Divide into 8 balls, and flatten into patties.
4. In the oven, set cooking rack about 4 inches from heat source. Set oven to broil. Lightly grease baking sheet with 1 tablespoon oil.
5. Place bean patties on baking sheet, and broil 8 to 10 minutes. Turn cakes over, and broil until crispy, about 3 minutes more. Serve with lime cream.

Up Next- TWD- Amaretti Torte

The Cake Slice- Sweet Potato Cake

This month's Cake Slice cake was Sweet Potato Cake with Chocolate Cream Frosting and Orange Cream Filling. It is the second cake that we have baked from Sky High . My baby is turning 2 on Thanksgiving, but I wanted to have a small party that wasn't on that day, so I am a couple days late posting this cake. I thought since I needed to make a cake anyway, I would just wait until her party to make this beautiful cake.
This cake is delish! I made it in jelly roll pans and then made a 5x5-inch square cake for the birthday girl, but made it 4 layers. The rest I cut into butterfly and flower shapes with cookie cutters. I left the sides unfrosted on the little cut-outs and they were pretty cute. The orange filling was a little bit runny and that is why the recipe said to pipe an outline of the chocolate frosting on the layers.
Overall, I was really pleased with this cake-we have only eaten the scraps (the party is later today), but my little girl had a few bites at breakfast and she was pretty happy. I am thinking this will taste really good with some pumpkin spice ice cream! Go see all the other beautiful cakes by checking out the Cake Slice Bakers!

Sweet Potato Cake:

2 medium or 1 large sweet potato (12 ounces)

3 cups of cake flour**

3 teaspoons of baking powder

1 and 1/2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon of cloves (I used allspice)

5 eggs, separated

2 and 1/4 cups of sugar

1 stick plus 2 tablespoons of butter, at room temperature

1 and 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla

1 and 1/4 cups of milk

(**The recipe calls for cake flour and if you only have all-purpose flour on hand, you can substitute 3/4 cup (105 grams) all purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons (30 grams) cornstarch.)

(*If fresh sweet potato is not available where you live you may use canned sweet potato, yams, and pumpkin puree)

Makes a 9-inch triple layer cake, serves 16-20 people

1. Preheat the oven to 400F degrees. Prick the sweet potatoes in 2-3 places, place on a small baking dish and bake for 1 hour or until the potatoes are very soft. Remove from the oven and cool slightly.

2. Reduce the oven temperature to 350F degrees. Butter the bottoms and the sides of the pans and line with parchment paper. Butter the parchment paper also.

3. When the sweet potatoes are cool peel off the skin and remove any dark spots. Cut the potatoes into chunks and puree in a food processors. Puree until smooth. Measure out one cup of potato puree and set aside.

4. Sift the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ground cloves. Set aside.

5. In the bowl of electric mixer add the egg whites and attach whip attachment. Beat on medium speed until egg whites are frothy. raise the speed to high and gradually beat in 1/4 cup of sugar. Continue to beat until the egg whites are moderately stiff.

6. In another large bowl with the paddle attachment, combine the sweet potato, butter, vanilla, and remaining sugar. Beat until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks one at a time. Make sure to scrape the sides of the bowl after each egg yolk is added. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients and milk in alternately in 2-3 additions. making sure to begin and end with the dry ingredients.

7. With a large spatula, fold in one fourth of the egg whites into the batter to lighten. Then fold in the remaining egg whites until no streaks remain. Making sure to not over mix or this will deflate the batter. Divide the batter among of the three pans.

8. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean. Let the cake layers cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Then turn out the cake layers onto a wire rack and cool completely at least 1 hour.

9. To assemble the cake, place one layer flat side up on to a cake stand. With a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2 inch round tip and filled with chocolate cream cheese icing, pipe border around the edge of the cake. Fill the center with the orange cream filling smoothing it to the edge of the border. Place the second layer on top and repeat the process. Place the third layer on top and use all the chocolate cream cheese frosting to cover the top and sides of the cake.

Chocolate Cream Frosting:

makes 3 cups

10 ounces cream cheese*** at room temperature

1 stick of butter at room temperature

16 ounces of powdered sugar; sifted

1 and 1/2 ounces of unsweetened chocolate melted and slightly cooled (I used bittersweet baking chocolate)

(***1 cup of cream cheese maybe substituted with 1 cup pureed cottage cheese OR 1 cup plain yogurt, strained overnight in a cheesecloth OR equal amounts of neufatel cheese)

1. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese and butter until fluffy. Slowly add the powdered sugar to cream cheese butter mixture. Making sure to scrape down the sides the sides of the bowl. Then beat until light fluffy 2-3 minutes.

2. Measure out 1 cup of frosting and set aside.

3. Add the melted chocolate to the remaining icing in the bowl and beat until well combined.

Orange Cream Filling:

1 cup of reserved cream cheese icing from above

2 tablespoons of frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed

1/4 teaspoon of orange extract

1. Stir together all the ingredients until well mixed.

Up Next- Cookie Carnival- Chocolate Chip Cookies