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Sweet Potato Cake!




This is undoubtedly one of the best cakes you will ever make or eat!  Ok, I realize this might be subjective and just my opinion, but as you have probably noticed we make and therefore have to eat a lot of cake.  Therefore, I do consider myself a bit of an expert on what is a good cake...lol.  

The recipe for this cake is a very old family recipe that has been handed down through the decades.  It was always one of my mother's favorite cakes through the years and was usually brought to family reunions and special dinners and such.

This is such a moist and delicious tasting cake and it just gets better as it sits and soaks in that yummy icing.  You do not have to be a sweet potato eater to like this cake either.  My husband hates sweet potatoes and he loves this cake.

So have I enticed you enough to try this?  I hope so!  This is the perfect cake for Thanksgiving or Christmas, but why wait until then?  Make one now and give it a test run!   This is what you will need and my only advice is to follow the directions exactly for the best results:

1 1/2 cups oil
2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs, separated (reserve the whites)
4 Tbs. boiling water
2  1/2 cups all purpose flour
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. vanilla
1  1/2 cups grated raw sweet potatoes that have been peeled

Frosting
1 cup evaporated milk
1/2 cup butter ( 1 stick)
1 cup sugar
3 egg yolks
1 tsp. vanilla
1  1/2 cups flaked coconut
1 cup pecans or walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a mixing bowl mix the oil and sugar with an electric mixer unit smooth.  Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating after each addition. 

Sift the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg together.   Add the boiling water and mix. Add the flour mixture to the oil and egg mixture and mix. Add in the vanilla.  Fold in the grated sweet potatoes.

In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until they are stiff and form peaks.  Gently fold the egg whites into the batter until blended.

Prepare three 9" cake pans by lining the bottoms with parchment paper or wax paper and spraying them well with nonstick baking spray.  The type that contains flour works best for this.  Take my advice and do not skip this step!  This cake is very moist and can stick or the layers can break if you do not line your pans.  Divide the batter evenly among the pans and bake for 25 to 30 minutes.  A pick inserted in the center should come out clean. 

Remove from oven and allow to cool before turning onto a cake plate.

Prepare frosting when the cakes have cooled by combining the evaporated milk, sugar, butter, egg yolks and vanilla in a saucepan over medium heat.  Cook for about 12 minutes, stirring constantly or until the mixture has thickened. 

Remove from heat and add coconut.  Beat until cool and thick and spreading consistency. 

Stack cake layers on a cake plate and frost between layers, top and sides.   Garnish the top with the nuts.   This frosting sort of runs down the sides of the cake and you can spread it around the sides.  The consistency will be similar to the frosting you use on a German Chocolate cake.



 It's a beautiful thing! Sorry, but I just love this cake! 








  


44 comments:

  1. Looks fabulous, I just may give it a try!!

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  2. I generally use my smallest sweet potatoes that we harvest from the garden to make sweet potato bread which is extremely good and I get a lot of requests for it. However this year maybe I will try this cake recipe which is just in time for our Church Harvest Festival cakewalk donation!

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  3. Will the frosting 'work' without coconut and do you put frosting between each of the layers?

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    1. I guess you could leave it out. We never have. Yes, frost like any three layer cake, between the layers.

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  4. Looks fabulous, Kathy! Pinned!

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  5. We have made it too years ago and it is scrumptious!

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  6. We have made it before too many years ago and it is scrumptious!

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  7. It looks awesone

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  8. so what do you do with the reserved egg whites??

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    1. Go back and read through the directions. You beat the eggs whites in a separate bowl until they form stiff peaks, then you fold them into the batter last.

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    2. I think person meant what do you do with egg whites from the frosting.they could use it for egg white sandwich or even put some on your face for face mask leave on 15 minutes wash off with warm water.

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    3. When making the frosting for German chocolate, I start icinicing first and just throw the extra whites in with the cake or I have a good excuse to make chocolate mirangue pie.

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  9. Looks & sounds awesome, except for the coconut. Can you leave the coconut out.

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  10. It sounds good, can you leave out the coconut, my husband doesn't like it. One more thing, on the sweet potatoes do you peel them first, don't want to screw it up.

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    1. I guess you could leave it out. It will change the texture of the frosting though. Yes, you peel the sweet potatoes.

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  11. do you cook the sweet potato's first?

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  12. Can't wait to make this cake.

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  13. Can I make this in a tube pan.....I NEVER have luck with the layer cakes--my oven is old and the racks are not level. If I can make in a tube pan, how long to cook? Thanks!

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  14. Trying this again......Can I make this in a tube pan, and if so, how long to bake?

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    1. I wouldn't really recommend it, but a tube pan would work better than a Bundt pan. This is cake is extremely moist and might fall apart baked in a pan like that ror stick. If you try it, it will need to bake for at least 50-60 minutes at 350. Test it with a pick inserted in the center. When it comes out clean it's done. If you don't want to do the layers, a 9"x13" might be safer.

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  15. People, read the recipe. The answers to your questions are there. It plainly says to peel raw potatoes and beat egg whites and fold into the batter and etc. Sorry, I'm not perfect and sometimes find the same questions in my own mind and know all I have to do is look back at the recipe to get the answer. Anonymouse

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  16. We made this last night , the cake is very good but the cake part was a little dry . We followed the direction to the T . Not sure why ? Maybe it will become more moist as the frosting sinks in . The cake is very tasty will probably try again . Not sure where we went wrong . The cake looks awesome and does taste good .

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  17. If you followed the recipe to a t, the only things that could possibly make this dry are overbeating the batter or baking too long. Every oven cooks differently, so baking times are approximate. This cake is almost too moist usually because of the 1 1/2 cups oil and 1 1/2 cups sweet potatoes. Make sure to just fold those beaten eggs whites in next time and bake a little less time.

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  18. Sounds yummy and looks great but I have eliminated all recipes where I have to separate eggs, and beat the whites separately. Just too darn much trouble!

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    Replies
    1. Lol...it's a very important step in this cake and several of the southern classics. It makes the cake lighter and moister.

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  19. i made this today,it`s great,followed ex,recipe ,changed the frosting a bit mixed nuts in mixture ,that way you have nuts in between layers, goooood.

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  20. Sounds really good...we made sweet potato pies the other day....going to have to try cake next.

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  21. Such a creative, delicious way to get more superfoods into the diet! VIA DESSERT! Shared on my blog: http://simplyfitandclean.com/2013/10/24/superfoods-ten-sweet-potato-recipes/

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  22. Because I love brown sugar & Eagle Brand milk to sweeten sweet potato pie -- I might try substituting these items in place of regular sugar.. Brown sugar adds a great flavor..

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    1. I would not change one thing about this recipe. This is probably one of the best cakes I have ever eaten and nothing needs altering...lol.

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  23. Would this cake, in your opinion, have a similar taste/texture to carrot cake?

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    1. Sort of similar in taste a bit, but not in texture. This cake is just really not like any other. It's amazingly good though.

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  24. When do you add the coconut flakes?

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    1. The coconut goes in the frosting after you remove it from the heat.

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  25. Can I use cooked mashed sweet potatoes? Do not like to way the grated sweet potatoes look in the cake.

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  26. Sift the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg together. Add the boiling water and mix.

    It says add the boiling water when making the frosting... I didn't see anywhere on the list for frosting, to use water... I'm going to try this recipe because I LOVE sweet potatoes and I love the recipes you post... Thank you

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  27. Never mind about water... I went back to read... My cursor had jumped... I'm sorry... Thanks

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  28. Do I have to keep this in the refrigerator after making ?

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  29. You don't have to, but it will keep longer if you do.

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