Now that making mixed tapes is a lost art, I’m left to find other crafts, like recipe writing. My old friend Megan wrote me last week inquiring how she’d go about making a sweet potato cake that she used to order all the time at a restaurant in Greenville, South Carolina, The Brick Street Cafe. She described it as very light and not too sweet. (She, apparently, shares my tendency to gag when overly-sweet cream cheese frosting is involved). All the recipes she found involved pineapple and looked like they’d be about as light as a brick.
“Bout like a yellow cake or more like a banana bread?”
“Not as heavy as banana bread. Fresh.”
“Color? Bright orange? Yellow? Sunrise? Sunset? Canary?”
“———!”
“Oh for the love of God, just send me a picture.”
You see, Megan and I have known one another since her older brother and I had a kindergarten romance. We tap-danced together as minis, ended up at the same high school, and even once built a house together. She’s an old friend, and she’s a new mommy. You KNOW that I couldn’t resist taking on this yummy mummy’s challenge.
So, armed with only Megan’s description and a picture from the cafe’s website, I made my best rendering of a light sweet potato cake. My family woofed these cupcakes down-surprise, surprise.
We’re headed off to Cali for a couple of weeks to visit my parents but will have a guest blogger tomorrow and a meaty post on Friday. In the meanwhile here are the cupcake details:
Megan’s Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting
For the Cake:
*1 1/4 c. whole-wheat flour
*1 T. cornstarch
*1 t. baking powder
*1/4 t. salt
*1/2 t. ground ginger
*1/2 t. ground cinnamon
*3/4 c. sugar
*4 T. vegetable oil, like canola
*1 c. buttermilk (yogurt would work fine, too)
*1/4 c. sweet potato, pureed till absolutely smooth
*1 egg+ 1 egg yolk
*1 t. vanilla
For the Frosting:
*6 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
*6 T. butter, room temperature
*1 t. vanilla
*1-2 c. powdered sugar
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. With your mini-chef, paper or butter 12 muffin cups.
Let your mini-chef whisk together all the dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Set that aside.
Cream the butter and sugar with an electric mixer. Then add in the egg, egg yolk,buttermilk, vanilla, and the sweet potato puree and beat on high for a couple minutes. Scrape down the bowl and beat another minute or so. Turn the mixer down to low speed and add in all the dry ingredients slowly. Beat for a minute to make a very smooth batter.
Spoon batter into the prepared cupcake cups. Fill each cup a little more than 3/4 full.
Big Person: Put these in the oven and bake about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Then make the frosting by beating the butter and cream cheese together till fluffy. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and beat for several minutes at high speed, till very smooth.
Wait till the cupcakes are completely cool before you frost them.
And, if all else fails, call the Brick Street Cafe and beg them to divulge their secrets.
