Cinnamon Ripple Sweet Potato Cake!!

This year at Thanksgiving, I was in charge of the side dishes (probably more work, but way less pressure!)  I knew I wanted to do some sort of sweet potato goodness for dessert, but I didn't know what. (Luckily I had a back up sweet potato casserole recipe, that is always a crowd pleaser.)

So on came the TV and I switched it to The Food Network, knowing that they wouldn't let me down.  Well low-and-behold,  what was on next?! Paula Deen!!!  I KNEW that she would have something good, as it was her Thanksgiving dessert show! And that is how I found this recipe. (Also, there is NOTHING healthy about this recipe.  I could have probably substituted something for all the butter, but With the in-laws coming, I didn't want to risk it. ) ( I only experiment with that stuff when it's immediate family, I don't want to subject anyone else to the possibility of a poor outcome!)

Cinnamon Ripple Sweet Potato Cake!!

Here is a pic of the ingredients. (I know, the sour cream threw me off too!)

Mix 1/2 C packed brown sugar, 1/2 C chopped pecans, and 1 tsp cinnamon in a small bowl, and set aside (aren't you already excited?!  I know I was!!)

Blend 2 sticks of butter (see, nothing healthy, thanks for the coronary Paula) (You know I still love you!) and 2 C of sugar (It just keeps getting un-healthier) until it is nice and creamy

Add 3 eggs (Why, hello Lipitor!) , one at a time, blending well in between each egg.

Add 1 C mashed cooked sweet potatoes (It is about 1 medium sweet potato) (But, I'm lazy, so I just bought canned, cooked sweet potatoes, and just mashed them up with a fork)

Then, add 12 oz sour cream (pretty much a whole tub) and 1 tsp vanilla. Beat until well mixed.

In a medium bowl mix 3 C flour, 1 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp salt (you can also add 1/4 tsp nutmeg, but I don't like nutmeg, so I omitted that)

Add the flour mix into the sweet potato mix a little at a time, mixing in between times until it is all mixed together to form a batter. (Just a heads up, it is thicker than regular cake batter, so it won't pour as easily)  

Spoon 1/2 of the batter into the bottom of a greased/floured bundt pan, and sprinkle the brown sugar/pecan mix evenly over (fyi: this is only 1/2 done, it should be around the whole cake.)

Then spoon the rest of the batter on top of the pecan mix

and bake at 350 Degrees for 1 hr. (when a knife is stuck in the middle it should come out clean)

(I know, it's not super pretty...yet)

Next we will make the Rum Glaze

Mix 2 C confectioners' sugar, 1/2 C heavy whipping cream, and 3/4 tsp rum extract (I didn't have rum extract so I substituted vanilla) (I read online that you can also use 3x the amount of actual rum as what it calls for the extract [so it would be 2 1/4 tsp rum] )

Then just drizzle over the top of the cake, and serve!

(Now it is beeeeauuutiful!!)

It was super tasty, and all the girls at work raved about it!  It is sure to be a hit at your holiday party!!

Next time I make this I will probably substitute some things to make it healthier:

Instead of 2 sticks of butter--1 stick of butter and 1/4 C plain applesauce or 1/4 C more sweet potatoes (Butter adds taste and moisture, so you can use applesauce or sweet potatoes [also bananas work well, depending on the recipe])

Instead of 2 C of sugar-- 1 C of sugar and 1 C of sugar substitute (or what ever the equivalent of that is depending upon what the package says) Also, I might reduce the amount by 1/3 so instead of 2 C use 1 1/3 C.

Instead of 3 whole eggs--use 4 egg whites, or the equivalent in egg substitute (like EggBeaters)

For a printable version of this recipe, click here!!

Original Recipe can be found here