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Lazy Cat Kitchen

A food blog with plant-based recipes from all over the world

Sweet potato chocolate cake

March 23, 2019 by Ania - 26

baking, chocolate, gluten-free, oil-free, refined sugar-free

sweet potato chocolate cake

Happy weekend, guys! Ours has been a roller coaster of emotions so far and there is more to come, I’m sure. We finally got our house keys yesterday and were able to go back to OUR (still doesn’t feel like it) house to check it out, measure things and ponder the best course of action.

The house looked really weird without any furniture in it and even though we knew this would happen, it freaked us out a little as it exposed a lot of small niggles that were hiding behind things and also made the place look much smaller. Well, we’ve seen it with all the furniture in it, so unless the house shrunk with the economy in anticipation of Brexit πŸ˜‰ , it’s all good – we will be able to fit all the necessary furniture items in comfortably.

After we’ve been able to take a closer look at the place, it suddenly dawned on us how much work lies ahead of us. It’s exciting and also slightly daunting and overwhelming at the same time. Luckily, we’ll have no spare cash for a while so that very much informs our next steps. Big expensive things like putting a new floor in or modernizing the kitchen will have to wait until we bounce back a little. So to begin with, we’ve decided to tackle the smallest room in the house – the study. It’s currently painted a ghastly lilac and the walls have plenty of screw holes in them, so that’s the room we are going to cut our teeth on. We want to put a nice floor in there too, but that will have to wait until we are ready to purchase the floor for the entire level.

Next on the DIY list is the living room, which requires some serious wallpaper stripping, prepping and painting of the walls, ripping the carpet off and getting rid of some antiquated inbuilt cupboards. These two rooms should keep us occupied for a few months and then we will see. I’m trying to fight my usual instinct to think about everything that needs doing all at once, as that only ever leaves me overwhelmed, stressed, drained and ineffective. It’s going to be a shambles for a while. We have some guests coming in April and then in June and there is a real chance that we will need to eat our meals cross-legged on the floor, but they’ve been warned and they do not seem that bothered.

I actually quite like DIY (I may be singing from a different song sheet a few months from now) as it involves a lot of learning and attention to detail and the results are immensely fulfilling. So our plan is to do as much as we can ourselves and only just hire professionals for things like kitchen installation, plastering, electrics etc.

While all this house-related excitement has been going on, I still somehow managed to finalise a chocolate cake recipe, which I think you’ll want to get your mitts on… It’s deeply chocolatey, delicious and indulgent, yet both the cake itself and the buttercream are based on a vegetable. Yes, that’s right. They utilise a sweet potato, but like Duncan, our neighbour and a few other people who got to try it, you would never have guessed. It’s delicious on its own, but for an extra special treat and a great balance of flavours, I like to serve it with a dollop of thick coconut yoghurt and a spoonful of cherry compote. Enjoy, while I shall get back to reading up on Victorian house renovation.

PS: If you make my sweet potato chocolate cake, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram as @lazycatkitchen and use the #lazycatkitchen hashtag. I love seeing your takes on my recipes!

sweet potato chocolate cake baked

sweet potato chocolate cake frosting

sweet potato chocolate cake icing

sweet potato chocolate cake slices

5.00 from 6 votes
Print
  • makes: 2 lb / 900 g cake
  • prep: 20 min
  • cooking: 60 min

Ingredients

FROSTING

  • 200 g unbaked / Β½Β cup HOT mashed cooked sweet potato* (1 small-medium potato)
  • 100 g / 3.5 oz vegan dark chocolate (I used 70% cacao), chopped roughly
  • 3 tbsp maple syrup or plant milk

WET INGREDIENTS

  • 200 g unbaked / Β½ cup mashed cooked sweet potato* (1 small-medium potato)
  • 360 ml / 1Β½ cup almond milk (or other thin plant milk)
  • 120 ml / Β½ cup smooth hazelnut or almond butter
  • 200 g / 1 cup sugar (I used coconut sugar for refined sugar free version)

DRY INGREDIENTS

  • 180 g / 1Β½ cups all purpose wheat flour or GF all purpose flour mix (I use this one)
  • 75 g / ΒΎ cup cacao powder
  • 1 tsp of baking powder
  • Β½Β tsp of baking soda
  • ΒΌΒ tsp fine sea salt

Method

FROSTING

  1. Place Β½ cup of hot sweet potato in a food processor together with roughly chopped chocolate. Process until all the chocolate has melted and you get a smooth frosting.
  2. Taste and add maple syrup if you feel that the mixture lacks sweetness (depends on how sweet your chocolate is and on your preference). If not using maple syrup, add almond milk to achieve a more spreadable consistency. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

CAKE

  1. Warm up the oven to 180Β° C / 355Β° F and line a 900 g / 2 lb cake tin with baking paper. Move the oven rack a notch down from the middle position.
  2. Process Β½ cup of sweet potato in the food processor with Β½ cup of almond milk. Once smooth, add the remaining wet ingredients and whizz until smooth. Transfer to a large bowl. If you don’t have a food processor, you could probably mash sweet potato with a fork by adding a splash of almond milk (from the amount of milk the recipe calls for) to get a smooth puree before adding the remaining wet ingredients. If you do use a food processor, make sure you scrape all of the wet mixture that stays on the lid, blade etc. using a spatula so that the ratio of wet to dry ingredients remains correct.
  3. Sift all the dry ingredients into another bowl and mix well until thoroughly combined.
  4. Add dry ingredients to the wet ones in three batches, folding well each time. Fold gently with a spatula until there is no dry flour left, but do not overmix (that’s important if you are using a flour containing gluten)!
  5. Transfer the cake batter into the prepared baking tin. It should be thick.
  6. Bake for about 55-60 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow it to cool down completely before applying the icing.

Notes

*To bake the potatoes, set the oven to 200Β° C / 390Β° F and grab a small baking tray / dish. Pierce the potatoes with a sharp knife or a skewer in several places and place them on the baking tray. Bake for about 40-50 minutes (depending on their size), until the knife slides right in.

I used a 2 lb / 900 g cake tin of the following dimensions: 18.5cm x 8cm x 6cm. (I used one like this).

This recipe is adapted from my earlier recipe for chocolate chilli muffins.

If you want more info on some of the ingredients that we use in our recipes, check out our glossary.
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This recipe has been written by Ania. She is the cook, stylist and photographer behind Lazy Cat Kitchen. You can read about her journey into food blogging here. You can also check her out on Pinterest and Instagram.

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    Comments

    Leave a comment

  1. Nirali Shukla says

    March 28, 2019 at 1:15 am

    This looks incredible, I’m defs making this ASAP. I don’t usually like sweet potatoes, bit I got them just for this recipe!

    Reply
    • Ania says

      March 28, 2019 at 3:08 pm

      So chuffed to hear that, Nirali. I hope you’ll enjoy this cake πŸ™‚ Ania

      Reply
  2. Claudia says

    April 7, 2019 at 4:10 am

    My bread is raw from the center and has been in the oven for more than an hour. πŸ™

    Reply
    • Ania says

      April 8, 2019 at 7:24 pm

      Hi Claudia,

      I’m sorry to hear that. I have no idea why that is – maybe it needs even more time? Ovens do tend to vary. Ania

      Reply
  3. Allison Smith says

    April 14, 2019 at 9:36 am

    I baked this yesterday and its amazing, the crumb of the cake is just so moist, I was a bit hesitant about the fristing with the sweet potatoe but it works. The changes I made was I added three quarters of a cup of raw sugar, and added my little secret (to ensure a nice moist cake) a teaspoon of vegetable glycerine, a French pastrychef gave this tip to my Mum years aga and it works a treat. If appears that Claudia’s over maybe not working properly, I baked mine at 165 degrees celsius and it took just over an hour

    Reply
    • Ania says

      April 15, 2019 at 12:52 pm

      Hi Allison,

      I am so pleased it worked well for you. Interesting tip about adding glycerine – need to try it myself at some point. Thank you for taking the time to leave such a comment! x Ania

      Reply
  4. Lindy Robyn says

    April 17, 2019 at 1:47 am

    Hi Anya – I absolutely love your recipes !!! Is lemon or apple cider vinegar needed to activate the baking soda? I made this cake last night and the mixture was thick and was baking over an hour and still not cooked through. I didn’t use nut butter and maple syrup instead so maybe that’s why..

    Reply
    • Ania says

      April 17, 2019 at 1:04 pm

      Hi Lindy,

      I’m glad you like my recipes, but sorry to hear that this cake did not cook through. No extra acid is needed in this recipe as cacao is acidic and so baking soda gets activated from it. I’m not sure I understand the changes you made? Did you skip nut butter completely or did you sub it with another fat? Using maple syrup instead of sugar usually requires liquid reduction in a recipe so this is certainly part of the reason why your cake turned out too wet. Hope that helps! Ania

      Reply
  5. Lindy Robyn says

    April 18, 2019 at 11:28 pm

    Thanks Ania! I left out the nut butter completely and used maple syrup instead of sugar. So I definitely made it too wet then – whoops! Great to know about the cacao and baking soda! The flavour of the cake is gorgeous.

    Reply
    • Ania says

      April 19, 2019 at 5:22 pm

      Hi Lindy,

      Yes, that’s the issue – you have effectively made this cake without any fat (nut butter provided fat) and the liquid to solid ingredient ratio was out because using maple syrup always requires a reduction in liquid volume. Glad to hear that you still liked the taste though!! Ania

      Reply
  6. Clarina says

    April 21, 2019 at 9:01 pm

    Hi Ania!
    I made this cake today and think the sweet potato is a beautiful idea and works perfectly for the texture of the cake as well as for the icing. I stuck to the original recipe but had to bake it quite a bit longer (90 minutes) until it was baked through. The crumb is really nice and moist but the cake has somewhat of a tough, chewy crust. I noticed that many vegan cakes I’ve made recently turned out this way and I’m wondering if this has to do with my oven or if that’s just a characteristic of a vegan cake…? I’d appreciate your advice / opinion! Otherwise, great flavour and texture – I will make it again!

    Reply
    • Ania says

      April 21, 2019 at 9:20 pm

      Hi Clarina,

      I’m so happy that you enjoyed the cake. As for the crust, I suspect it’s to do with the type of sugar used – what did you use? Caster sugar (white sugar in general) gives the nicest crust, alternative sugars like coconut sugar a bit less so. Hope that helps! Ania

      Reply
  7. Carol Kidney says

    May 2, 2019 at 11:48 am

    Hi Ania,

    This looks amazing and I want to give this a try ASAP . Is there ang alternatives to the almond or hazelnut butter as I have a slight nut allergy ?

    Thank you!

    Reply
    • Ania says

      May 2, 2019 at 4:47 pm

      Hi Carol,

      How about tahini or another seed butter? You could also try oil (mild olive oil, melted coconut oil), but I have not tried and I worry that the amount may need tweaking a little. Hope that helps? Ania

      Reply
  8. jenn d says

    May 4, 2019 at 2:01 am

    OMG I made these into cupcakes. These are delicious, especially if you heat them up a little in the microwave. YUM!!!

    Reply
    • Ania says

      May 4, 2019 at 6:21 pm

      Thanks Jenn! I’m delighted to hear that! Ania

      Reply
  9. Gemma says

    May 23, 2019 at 2:53 pm

    A lovely recipe, definitely my favourite vegan chocolate cake as others taste of soda too much. The texture of this is lovely too. I have to admit though, I didn’t read the recipe properly and I boiled my potato instead of roasting it so I don’t know if it would be even better when roasted. Thankyou for sharing x

    Reply
    • Ania says

      May 23, 2019 at 5:01 pm

      I’m delighted to hear that, Gemma! Boiling the potato is fine too, it probably introduced a touch more moisture to the recipe than baking it, but if you were happy with the texture of the cake then that’s all good. Ania

      Reply
  10. Clarina says

    May 25, 2019 at 12:08 pm

    Hi Ania,
    Thanks for your response! I used caster sugar for this recipe so I’m guessing it’s my oven – I’ve noticed it doesn’t bake very evenly and just isn’t very reliable in general so probably nothing to do with your recipe. I was still very happy with the result and will try again πŸ™‚

    Reply
    • Ania says

      May 25, 2019 at 1:54 pm

      Oh, I see. Yes, it might be that. Oven issues are tricky as quite difficult to rectify. I hope you’ll be able to get it fixed without having to spend a fortune. I’m pleased to hear that you enjoyed the cake regardless. x Ania

      Reply
  11. Carol McCollum says

    July 3, 2019 at 2:40 am

    Sounds yummy!! Wondering… if I substituted honey or pure maple syrup for 1/2 the coconut sugar, what adjustment might I need to make in order for the cake to not be too wet inside?

    Reply
    • Ania says

      July 3, 2019 at 11:57 am

      Hi Carol,

      It definitely would need reduction in almond milk, but how much exactly I cannot say for certain. My guess is 0.25 cup less, but that’s just a guess. Ania

      Reply
  12. Sue says

    July 3, 2019 at 11:49 pm

    Do you take the skin off of the sweet potato?

    Reply
    • Ania says

      July 4, 2019 at 11:49 am

      Yes, for this application, I do! Ania

      Reply
  13. Paula says

    September 26, 2019 at 11:21 am

    Hi Ania,

    I had some leftover sweet potato, so I baked this cake yesterday for my partner who needed a sweet treat. It was delicious! The hazelnut butter made it smell and taste incredibly.
    Thanks for so many great recipes!

    Paula

    Reply
    • Ania says

      September 27, 2019 at 10:02 pm

      That’s lovely to hear, Paula! Thank you! x Ania

      Reply

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Ania Marcinowska
Hi, I'm Ania. I love good food but I love animals more! Adopting a plant-based diet has been the best decision I've made and that's how this blog was born. It's a space where I want to show you that creating delicious plant-based food isn't actually hard at all.
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