This Sweet Potato Cake is moist, perfectly sweet, and infused with warm spices. Then, we add a layer of brown butter orange cream cheese frosting for the perfect finishing touch!
Why You’ll Love This Sweet Potato Cake
- Easy – This recipe looks fancy, but if you know anything about the recipes on All The Healthy Things, you know they’re fuss-free! Even though it’s a cake, it comes together quickly with just a few simple steps.
- Flavorful – Way better than anything you’ll find in a store, this cake is infused with warm spices and sweet flavor. It’s perfect for fall!
- Soft and moist – You won’t find any dry cakes around here! The sweet potato keeps the batter super soft and tender for a texture that leaves you coming back for more.
— Ashlea
Sweet Potato Cake Recipe Ingredients
- Flour: we’re using all-purpose flour for the base of this cake.
- Leaveners: baking powder and baking soda help create the soft, fluffy texture we want.
- Spices: a combination of salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom, and cloves gives this cake a delicious warm spiced flavor.
- Mashed Sweet Potatoes: think mashed sweet potatoes but with nothing added to them.
- Eggs: you’ll need three eggs for this sweet potato cake.
- Oil: use a neutral oil like avocado oil to add rich flavor and keep the cake moist.
- Unsweetened Applesauce: this cake is so moist and tender thanks to a generous amount of unsweetened applesauce. It gives the cake that perfect apple flavor while also helping to keep the cake moist.
- Dark Brown Sugar: adds just the right touch of sweetness.
- Vanilla Extract: a must in any baked good!
- Cream Cheese: you’ll need an eight-ounce brick of cream cheese for the frosting. Let it come to room temperature for easy mixing.
- Butter: I highly recommend using unsalted butter in this recipe so you have control over the flavor. Use a butter that tastes good!
- Confectioner’s Sugar: adds the perfect touch of sweetness.
- Orange Zest: adds a bright flavor that pairs well with the warm spices and sweet taste.
Ingredient Substitutions
- Oil – I’ve made this cake with both olive oil and vegetable oil, and they both turned out great. The olive oil does give the cake a bit of that classic olive oil flavor, but I don’t find it overwhelming. You could also try swapping the vegetable oil for melted coconut oil if you prefer, but it will give the cake a bit of a coconut flavor.
- Flour – swap the all-purpose flour for your favorite gluten free all-purpose flour to keep these bars gluten free. I love using this gluten free flour when I need it.
- Cream Cheese – you can swap the cream cheese for your favorite vegan block of cream cheese to keep the cake dairy free.
- Butter – vegan butter should also work well for the cream cheese frosting.
How to Make This Sweet Potato Cake Recipe
Step One: Preheat the oven. Then, grease a 9×13 sheet cake pan with avocado oil or non-stick spray, and line it with parchment paper.
Step Two: Next, make the brown butter. To do so, add the diced butter to a small skillet or pot. Heat the skillet to medium heat, and allow the butter to bubble and “cook.” Stir continuously as you see foam start to dissipate and brown bits begin to form in the bottom of the pan. Continue to cook, and stir the butter until it is golden brown in color and has a nutty aroma. Then, remove it from the heat, and transfer it to a heat-safe dish to cool slightly.
Step Three: Next, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom, and cloves to a large mixing bowl, and whisk until well combined.
Step Four: To another large mixing bowl, add the mashed sweet potato, eggs, oil, applesauce, dark brown sugar, and vanilla extract. Whisk until well combined.
Step Five: Carefully fold the dry ingredients into the wet until well-mixed. Then, pour the cake batter into the prepared pan, and use an offset spatula to spread it into an even layer.
Step Six: Bake the cake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool the cake completely on a wire rack.
Step Seven: Cover the cooled sweet potato cake with the brown butter cream cheese frosting. Place it in the fridge to help the frosting set up a bit. Then, slice, and serve!
To Make the Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
Step One: Follow step two above to create brown butter, heating it over medium heat in a skillet. Once the butter is golden brown and has a nutty aroma, transfer it to a heat-safe dish, and place the butter in the fridge to cool.
Step Two: Next, add the cooled butter and cream cheese to a mixing bowl. Beat on high until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
Step Three: Add the confectioner’s sugar, orange zest, vanilla extract, and salt. Beat again on low speed for about 30 seconds to incorporate. Then, increase the speed to high, and continue to beat for another 2 minutes or until the frosting is light and fluffy.
How to Store
You can store the cake in the fridge for up to 3 to 4 days, if it lasts that long!
More Delicious Cake Recipes
- Spiced Apple Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Brown Butter Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Homemade Carrot Cake
- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cake
- Apple Coffee Cake
- Banana Coffee Cake with Peanut Butter Icing
I hope you give this Sweet Potato Cake with Brown Butter Orange Cream Cheese Frosting a try! It’s soft, moist, and so delicious! If you do give this recipe a try, let me know! Leave a comment with a star rating below. You can also snap a photo & tag @allthehealthythings on INSTAGRAM. Your reviews and ratings help support All the Healthy Things and make it possible for me to continue to create the recipes you trust and love.
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Sweet Potato Cake with Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 15 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
This Sweet Potato Cake is moist, perfectly sweet, and infused with warm spices. Then, we add a layer of brown butter orange cream cheese frosting for the perfect finishing touch!
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon cardamom
- 1/2 teaspoon cloves
- 2 cups mashed sweet potatoes
- 3 eggs
- 1/4 cup neutral oil (like avocado oil)
- 3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 cup dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature and diced
- 3 cups confectioner’s sugar, plus more to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon orange zest
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9×13 baking dish with avocado oil or non-stick spray and then line with parchment paper.
- Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom, and cloves to a large mixing bowl. Whisk together until well combined and set aside.
- To another large mixing bowl add the mashed sweet potato, eggs, oil, applesauce, dark brown sugar, and vanilla extract. Whisk together until well combined.
- Carefully fold the dry ingredients into the wet until mixed. Then, pour the batter into the pan, using an offset spatula to spread the batter into an even layer in the pan.
- Bake the cake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool the cake completely on a wire rack. Be sure the cake is completely cooled and not warm before adding the frosting.
- Once the cake has cooled completely, cover with the brown butter cream cheese frosting. You can place it in the fridge to help the cream cheese frosting set up a bit. Slice and serve.
Make the Brown Butter Cream Cheese Icing:
- Add the diced butter to a small skillet or pot. Heat the skillet to medium heat. The butter will start to melt as the skillet heats up.
- Allow the butter to bubble and “cook” until it begins to change from a bright yellow color to a golden brown color. Continually stir the butter as you see the foam start to dissipate and brown bits begin to form in the bottom of the pan. Cook and stir the butter until it is a golden brown color and has a nutty aroma.
- Remove the butter from the heat and transfer to a heat safe dish. Transfer to the fridge to refrigerate until cool.
- Next add the cooled butter and cream cheese to a mixing bowl and beat on high until smooth and creamy. Next, add the confectioner’s sugar, orange zest, vanilla extract, and salt. Beat the frosting on low speed for around 30 seconds to incorporate and then increase to high speed. Beat the frosting on high for around 2 minutes until fluffy.
Recipe by: Ashlea Carver / All the Healthy Things | Photography by: Sasha Hooper
Made this for a potluck and it was a hit!! Super moist and cozy. I didn’t have applesauce or baking powder (oops) so I subbed equal amount of whole fat greek yogurt and added an additional 1/2 tsp of baking powder – it turned out great!
Only note is it was a tad salty.. would decrease to 1 tsp next time. Thanks for a great recipe!