Big City, Little Kitchen

Sweet potatoes and brown sugar are a perfect match, and that was my inspiration for this recipe. I adapted the cake from Gourmet cookbook’s Fresh Banana Layer Cake recipe, substituting sweet potatoes for the bananas and adding cinnamon to enhance their flavor. The brown sugar element comes into play in the frosting, with which I am slightly obsessed; I had to give most of this cake away to keep from eating the entire thing!

Sweet Potato Cake

• 2 1/4 cups cake flour, sifted
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 small sweet potatoes, baked or steamed*
• 1/4 cup plain yogurt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 stick (8 tb) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs, room temperature

Brown Sugar-Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1 stick (8 tb) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup light brown sugar
• 4 cups confectioner’s sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour two 9-inch cake pans.

Make cake: whisk together flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium-sized bowl; set aside. Peel off the skins of the potatoes, and mash them up in a medium-sized bowl; whisk in yogurt and vanilla extract, and set aside. In the bowl of a standing mixer, cream butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, scraping down sides and beating well after each. Reduce mixer speed to low and add dry ingredients a little at a time, alternating with sweet potato mixture and ending with dry ingredients. Mix just until combined. Divide batter equally among the two prepared pans, and bake 18 to 20 minutes, or until edges begin to pull away from pan and inserted cake tester comes out clean. Cool on a rack in pans for 10 minutes, then remove from pans and leave on rack until completely cooled.

Make frosting: in the bowl of a standing mixer, beat butter and cream cheese on medium-high speed for 2 to 3 minutes, or until fluffy; beat in vanilla extract. Sift through the brown sugar with your fingers to make sure there are no hard lumps, then add to the butter and cream cheese, mixing until light and fluffy. Reduce mixer speed to medium, and add the confectioner’s sugar gradually, beating until the frosting is very thick and and smooth.

Frost the cake: using a serrated bread knife, slice off the top of each cake layer so that they are flat. Place one layer, cut side facing up, on a cake stand or serving plate and spread with approximately one-third of the frosting. Place second later, cut side facing down, on top of the frosted layer. Cover top and sides with remainder of frosting.

Makes one two-layer, 9-inch cake; serves 8 to 10.

*The easiest way I’ve found to cook these is to microwave them, unpunctured, on high for five minutes. By not poking holes in the skin, they steam themselves.