Recipe Of The Week: Sweet Potato Streusel Cakes

These cakes don’t really need an introduction—one bite is enough to get hooked. Packed with vitamin A and fiber from the sweet potato, and protein from the eggs and cashew meal, these cakes are dense, moist and totally crave-worthy. Try serving for breakfast with a scoop of Greek yogurt, drizzle of maple syrup, and sprinkle of nuts. Also, see notes for how to make these cakes vegan or gluten-free.

Ingredients

Makes 12-16 cakes- Recommended to serve warm, or toasted

Cakes
1 cup vanilla, unsweetened almond milk
1 egg
1 egg white
1/3 cup coconut oil, melted
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 ¼ cup packed, mashed sweet potato or yam (1 large)
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup whole oats
½ cup cashew meal (almond meal or flour may be substituted)
½ cup dark brown sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp pumpkin pie spice
¼ tsp salt

Streusel Topping
3 TBSP whole oats
2 TBSP, packed, dark brown sugar
1 TBSP whole-wheat pastry flour
1 ½ TBSP coconut oil, melted
½ tsp cinnamon

Vegan Cakes
Substitute 2 flax eggs for the egg and egg white.

Gluten-Free Cakes
Substitute 1 ½ cups of your favorite gluten-free baking mix for the whole-wheat pastry flour, all purpose flour, and baking powder. Replace the oats with gluten-free oats. Substitute equal amounts of gluten-free flour and oats in the streusel topping.

RELATED RECIPE: Whole Wheat Sweet Potato Pancakes With Pecan-Oat Crumble

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and prepare a muffin pan generously with non-stick cooking spray.
2. Steam or microwave the sweet potato or yam with the skin on. Let cool, remove the skin and mash the sweet potato in a small bowl with the melted coconut oil.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond milk, egg, egg white, and vanilla. Add the sweet potato and coconut oil mixture, and whisk until smooth.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together the rest of the ingredients.
5. Add the sweet potato mixture to the bowl with the dry ingredients. Gently, stir with a wooden spoon until well combined.
6. In a small bowl, mix together the streusel ingredients.
7. Fill each muffin tin ¾ of the way full with batter. You may need more than one muffin pan.
8. Sprinkle the streusel topping over the top of the batter in each muffin tin.
9. Bake for 22 minutes, until the edges turn just golden. The inside of the cakes will remain very moist.
10. Remove the cakes from the pan and let cool on a baking rack or plate.

More recipes from Jessica Cerra.

Jessica Cerra is the owner of Fit Food by Jess, a private chef and catering company in Encinitas, Calif., and the co-founder of Harmony Bar. A former professional XTERRA triathlete, Cerra now races for Twenty16 Women’s Professional Cycling Team.

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