NEWS! I have just posted my , go check out that version too!
This Vegan Sweet Potato Chocolate Cake really takes the cake.
Looking for a healthy cake that’s full of dense, chocolate flavor? This vegan chocolate cake is fresh and moist, and the cake and frosting are both made with sweet potatoes. Oh yes!
Yes, a long recipe name. Worth every syllable, because this healthy chocolate cake is a PPF sensation.
And, do we really need another chocolate cake recipe?
What makes this Sweet Potato Chocolate Cake special?
You could say this one is special because it’s vegan, whole-grain, oil-free.
Or, that it’s special because it has nutrient-dense sweet potatoes in both the frosting and cake.
But, I think it’s special in that the whole is far more than the sum of its parts.
And, it’s special because of how readers are embracing it, and celebrating special family times with this recipe!
I was pretty fond of this recipe when I created it. My family was too. But, I truly didn’t know how all of you would feel about it.
It’s not a classic chocolate cake with a hefty dose of sugar and fat.
So, I wondered how well a ‘chocolate sweet potato cake’ would be accepted!
I had a fair idea through recipe testing, when one of my (very) oil-free-skeptical friends tried it for the first time.
He didn’t know it was oil-free, and said he was shocked because it was one of the best chocolate cakes he had tasted!
Then, other reports came in from testers – and now from many of you.
Our facebook group has been posting pic after pic of this cake, and it’s become a bit of a sensation in the group!
That’s it, I couldn’t resist any longer.
This Chocolate Sweet Potato Cake recipe is now yours, all yours.
Dig in, guys! x Dreena
This recipe is reprinted from Plant-Powered Families. Thanks for your continued support and reviews.
P.S. I use my Blendtec with the standard jar or WildSide jar for this sauce – if you want to shop, use Blendtec Coupon Code: YAY-BLENDTEC at checkout for 20% off.
Sweet Potato Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Sweets Frosting
Ingredients
Cake
- 3/4 cup peeled cooked, and cooled orange sweet potato (see note)
- 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon water divided
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup whole-grain spelt flour
- 1/3 cup coconut sugar
- 1/4 cup mini or regular nondairy chocolate chips
- 1/2 tsp scant sea salt
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 tsp scant baking soda
Frosting
- 1 cup loosely packed peeled cooked, and cooled sweet potato (see note)
- 2/3 – 3/4 cup coconut sugar or other unrefined sugar see note
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup scant raw cashew butter or almond butter
- 1/4 tsp rounded sea salt
- 2-5 tbsp nondairy milk see tip
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Lightly coat an 8” x 8” brownie/cake pan or a 9” round cake pan with coconut or other oil, and fit the bottom of the pan with a small piece of parchment paper.
- In a blender (or using a handheld blender and a deep cup or vessel), puree the sweet potato, 1/2 cup of the water, maple syrup, balsamic vinegar, and vanilla extract until completely smooth.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, coconut sugar, chocolate chips, and sea salt, then sift in the cocoa, baking powder, and baking soda.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry (be sure to scrape out all the blended ingredients with a spatula, and use the remaining 1 tablespoon of water to rinse the blender jar and get out any remaining puree).
- Mix until just well incorporated.
- Transfer to the prepared pan, bake for 21–23 minutes, remove, and let cool on a cooling rack.
Frosting:
- Place the sweet potato, coconut sugar, cocoa powder, cashew butter, sea salt, 1–2 tablespoons of the milk, and vanilla extract in a blender or food processor and puree until very smooth.
- It’s best to use a blender or processor (versus a stand mixer) if using orange sweet potato, to fully smooth out the potato.
- Taste, and add more sweetener if desired, and also another 2–3 tablespoons of milk if needed to thin to preferred consistency (you may need more milk using yellow sweet potato as they aren’t quite as moist as the orange).
- Puree until smooth, scraping down the blender/processor bowl as needed.
- Transfer to a container and refrigerate until ready to use on the Sweet Potato Chocolate Cake. Or, get a spoon and dig in!
Notes
- Cake Note:
- Frosting Notes:
This post was originally published in November 2015 and updated on January 24, 2022.
Emma says
Hi Dreena
I’m going to make this recipe for my daughters birthday this weekend. It looks great. I wondered what f you had any ideas for a lighter coloured frosting please? I need to dye it green to make a garden design! I’d love to make an oil free frosting so any ideas would be amazing. Thanks. Emma x
Dreena says
Hi Emma, I have a ‘mallowy’ frosting on my site (just search that in the search bar, it’s with a pumpkin cake in a post). My new book WILL have a yellow sweet potato cake – like this one but ALL light/vanilla. Hang tight!
Leena menon says
Looks awesome. Can I substitute spelt flour with coconut flour since I have that at home.
Dreena says
Hi Leena, sorry no don’t substitute coconut. It has vastly different properties and texture and doesn’t sub well for flours in general.
Jill says
I am making this for the first time right now for my sons 6th birthday – I’m so excited! For this time, I’m going to follow the directions to a T, but for future laziness, can I use canned sweet potato purée?
Thank you!
Jill
Jacqueline Anne van Nostrand says
What is the best substitute for spelt flour? Can I use Farro? I live in Mexico and it’s hard to find spelt flour here. Thanks!
Dreena says
Hi Jacqueline, that’s interesting, as I’ve never seen farro flour! I understand there are different varieties of farro, some related to spelt and others more to wheat. So, I’d say it should be fine, but you might need to measure just a little scant. Hope that helps and it works well!
David Keeling says
This cake looks spectacular, but I have a couple of questions. When you say cooked sweet potato what do you mean? Baked, boiled, cooked some other way? But most importantly do you have this recipe using weights rather than cups? Cups aren’t exactly accurate are they. I don’t trust them.
Dreena says
Hi David, I use sweet potato cooked by baking whole with skins on. I prefer the flavor when baked rather than steamed or boiled but those are also options. I detail this in my plant-powered families cookbook, here: http://bit.ly/PPFcookbook
I don’t cook/bake by weight though I know it’s very precise. Most home cooks prefer measures. This recipe has been made by hundreds maybe thousands of people so it’s quite reliable. Hope that helps.
Kallie says
I would love weight measurements too… at least of the sweet potato/kumara. In NZ I think our cup sizes are different to yours. Also, I steam my kumara – which means I’m not sure how much really is a cup. It cound depend on how big or small my pieces are? Or do I squash it down so that there are no gaps – or even puree it first and then measure out? Weight measurements just cuts out so many of my awkward questions! Especially since baking is requires more exact amounts. Would it be a lot of trouble to add a weight measurement in?
I have made this a few times, and I just can’t get a consistent result. Itssuper yummy, but I’m not sure I’m getting the right texture.
David Keeling says
So to get an accurate measurement do you mash the sweet potato then measure it in the cup? Sorry, I have no idea when it comes to cup measurements. I’m English, we weigh everything here.
What do you mean by divided water?
I don’t have spelt flour, could I use whole grain wheat flour instead?
You use the term scant several times. Scant sea salt? Scant not butter? What do you mean by scant?
Laura says
Scant means skinny – like only just up to a measurement or even slightly less than a full measurement. I am with you both on the accuracy of weighing ingredients. Not that this recipe is the worst offender, but with other food blogs I’ve seen things like I cup + 1 tbsp + 1 tsp flour. You have to faff around more with cups and then wash a load of measuring cups at the end. There are conversions you can find online for pretty much every ingredient but you can always measure and weigh things out yourself so next time is easier.
Sahari says
You didn’t answer his other questions (about divided water and about spelt flour). I happen to have those question too… 🙂
Sara says
Divided means split in two…don’t use the amount all at once but read the instructions to see what portion to use when.
Another way of thinking of scant is”a little bit less than”
Can’t help you with the flour question…
JoAnne Lowe says
HI David, If you read step 1 for the cake, you’ll find the cake uses 1/2 cup and then another T later in step one. Yes, agreed that “divided” is confusing (in all recipes!). Scant is just under a full measure. Forgive us here in the US, as we’ll never catch on to metrics. Weighing does make more sense!
Diane says
I’m making this cake for the second time today, for Mother’s Day tomorrow. First time it turned out delicious, although it didn’t rise much. I had to convert the US measurements to Australian ones and I really appreciate recipes where weights are also given, it’s an annoyance having to do it every time US measurements are used. Perhaps that is why the person is asking for weights? Other countries also have different standard measurements, e.g.
A US cup measurement is 240 ml, but Australia, NZ & Canada is 250, Japan is 200, UK is 280.
US tablespoon is 15ml, Australia is 20ml, Canada is 14ml.
Heather says
Vinegar counteracts my cancer meds. Is there anything I can use instead?
Dreena says
Heather, if you can use lemon juice it should work, just the taste of lemon and chocolate not a usual pairing.