Sweet Potato Date Snacking Cake
Three joyful things, dinner recap of the week, and a bonus blog recipe.
Hi friends! How are you doing? Excited for spring and all the fresh veggies? So am I, I can hardly wait! It’s been a long, kind of blurry week, but I’m looking forward to April will bring. We survived a snowstorm, and thankfully, it’s already started melting. That’s about all I can handle of snow this year, and we’ve been pretty lucky. The ground is still covered in white, but we’re getting there slowly. April is always a little painfully slow to warm up. What is the weather like where you live? Covered in snow, or are you enjoying the warmth?
I loved sharing this the last few Friday’s, so here are three things that brought me joy this week.
A buttery croissant
Fried Mortadella
I woke up to birds chirping outside my bedroom window, reminding me that even with snow, spring is near.
What brought you joy this week? I hope you had lots of beautiful joy-filled moments. Share below, I’d love to hear about it!
Dinner this week so far.
Croissant Breakfast Sandwich: So yummy! Croissants really make everything better. I could eat breakfast everyday if it tastes like this.
Fried Mortadella Pasta & Peas: Mortadella is so delicious! I love this recipe from Hailee Catalano. You should definitely give it a try. The pistachio-garlic crunchies were my favorite part. Yum, yum, yum.
Leftover Frittata: This week’s frittata featured super random ingredients, including dill, peas, onions, cojita cheese, and a few chipotle peppers in adobo. Again, I love breakfast, especially Frittatas, because you can add anything, and it still tastes fantastic. You just can’t go wrong.
Chicken Teriyaki Pineapple Bowls: I wish I had fresh pineapple for this; it was yummy but not as flavorful as it could have been. Next time, I might serve the chicken on top of fried rice for a more filling meal. Green onions or cilantro would have brightened it up.
Share what your favorite meal was of the week. Any new recipes you loved? Share below so we can try it!
Need to use up from the fridge next week.
Lots of lemons and Limes
1/2 cabbage still to use
Bacon from the freezer
Sweet Potato Date Snacking Cake
The blog recipe of the week is a sweet potato date snacking cake. I love snacking cakes because they are super easy and snackable for dessert. A snacking cake is sweet enough to satisfy my sweet tooth and easy enough to throw together relatively painlessly and snack on any time. I've had this habit lately of always needing something sweet at the end of dinner, and this treat hits the spot. It's even good for a breakfast snack, too. This sweet potato recipe is a mix between a quick bread and a dessert bar. It is not as sweet as a dessert like cake or pumpkin bars because there is no frosting, but it is more similar to quick bread with its tender, moist crumb and smearing of whipped butter.
Roasted sweet potatoes have a rich, honeyed sweetness that really shines when roasted. Folding the mashed sweet potatoes into this snacking cake with chunks of chewy dates creates a beautifully tender moist crumb. All this sweetness is balanced with lots of freshly grated ginger and cinnamon, combining all the flavors. A whipped maple butter is the perfect creamy accompaniment to this snackable treat.
I also think this would be lovely to share for an Easter brunch. It is carrot cake-like but still hits the mark for something sweet and easily sharable.
Sweet Potato Date Snacking Cake
with whipped maple butter
Tender, roasted sweet potato snacking cake sweetened with maple syrup and dates. An easy dessert snack full of fresh ginger and lots of ground cinnamon, deliciously served with sweet whipped maple butter.
Equipment
9” Square Baking Pan or 9” Round Cake Pan
Ingredients
1 medium sweet potato (1 ¼ cup mashed)
8 Medjool dates, chopped into ¼ inch pieces
6 tablespoons milk
2 eggs
¼ cup pure maple syrup
¼ cup coconut sugar
½ cup avocado oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 inch fresh ginger, grated
1 2/4 cup einkorn flour or AP flour
2 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
Whipped Maple Butter
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
¼ cup pure maple syrup
Pinch of salt
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the sweet potato on a sheet pan and pierce the skin with a fork. Roast for 40-50 minutes until the sweet potatoes are tender and a fork pierces through easily. Let cool for 5 minutes, and then carefully peel the skin from the flesh of the sweet potatoes. This is easiest to do while the potatoes are still warm. Place the roasted sweet potato in a large bowl and lightly mash with a fork. It's ok to have some small clumps of sweet potato.
Next, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Warm the chopped dates and milk in a small saucepan over low heat. As the dates soften, lightly smash with a spatula into smaller pieces. Remove the pan from the heat when all the dates are very soft and have melted into the milk. Set aside to cool slightly.
Next, mix the wet ingredients. In the large bowl with the mashed sweet potatoes, add eggs, maple syrup, coconut sugar, avocado oil, vanilla extract, and grated ginger. Whisk together until combined. Add the date and milk mixture and whisk until thoroughly incorporated.
Then, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt into the bowl with the wet ingredients. Mix with a spatula until combined and there are no more dry flour clumps.
Pour the batter into a lightly greased square 9" baking pan and spread evenly into all the corners. Bake for 25 minutes until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean and the cake is golden brown and puffed on top. Remove the pan from the oven and let cool completely.
Meanwhile, make the whipped maple butter. Whip the softened butter and maple syrup in a medium-sized bowl with an electric mixer until lightened in color and fluffy in texture.
Cut the snacking cake into squares to serve and spread with whipped maple butter, and enjoy!
