Sweet Potato Streusel Cake

I’ve always been an emotional baker. When bad things happen to me, I bake. When good things happen to me, I bake. When I wake up early and everyone is still asleep, I bake, relishing the quiet and the meditative nature of sift, measure, stir.

After an incredibly long election season, with countless nights in the office until dawn, even more early mornings and SO.many.feelings., I gave myself an extra-long weekend to relax, recover and recharge. After two blissful days of catching up on my TV shows, long walks in Central Park and starting some long-overdue reading, I woke up on Sunday with a mission: bake myself into (mental) shape.*

I first made this sweet potato streusel cake last Thanksgiving, as a quick stand-in for pumpkin pie. It provided all of the sugary goodness of pie, with no finicky crusts to roll out and a buttery pecan streusel that was so good that certain family members literally picked off the top of the cake when no one was looking. We had roasted and mashed the sweet potatoes in advance as a part of our overall Thanksgiving prep, which made the cake-making part a cinch. If you’ve got family members eager to help in the kitchen, this is the perfect dish to hand off, as it requires very little cooking skill (and let me tell you, using your hands to squelch butter into sugar is an instant stress reliever).

If pie is a non-negotiable at your Thanksgiving dinner, this cake also makes an excellent breakfast or afternoon treat the next day. The sweet potato keeps the cake impossibly moist and lush, while keeping it sturdy enough to hold up to that aforementioned streusel. The spices add a hearty, but not overpowering, embrace, and imbue your home with all sorts of “fall candle” aromas. This cake is an ideal companion for a cup of coffee and maybe a polite family conversation about politics a book.** It is warmth, comfort, everything you need right now.

*One very unfortunate side effect of all this election excitement: my workout regimen has fallen completely by the wayside. Trying to pick it back up has been slow, but hopefully I’ll get re-motivated soon, especially now that I should (hopefully) have a lighter work schedule.

**Just finished reading Hillbilly Elegy, which was … interesting, and now I’m knee-deep in White Teeth. Any recs for after?

Sweet Potato Streusel Cake

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Ingredients

For the cake

• 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
• 2 cups sweet potato (see Note)
• 2 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

For the streusel

• 6 tablespoons flour
• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup pecan nuts roughly chopped
• 4 tablespoons cold butter
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a 7-x-11-inch baking dish.
2. Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl until creamy, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the eggs and continue beating until the mixture is foamy.
4. Use a wooden spoon to stir in the maple syrup and the sweet potato purée. Then fold in the flour, baking powder and spices. The batter will be dense. Pour it into the prepared baking dish and smooth the top.
5. Mix all of the streusel ingredients together in a medium bowl. Use a pastry cutter (or two knives, or your fingers!) to cut the butter into the streusel and form small clumps. Scatter evenly over the batter.
6. Bake for 40-45 minutes, until the streusel is golden and a tester inserted into the cake comes out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

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Notes

• You’ll need 2 medium-large sweet potatoes to get 2 cups of roasted sweet potato flesh. To prepare the sweet potatoes, preheat the oven to 425F. Scrub the potato skins, then use a fork to prick holes all over the potatoes. Place the potatoes on a lined baking sheet and roast for 40-45 minutes, rotating them halfway, until the flesh is soft. Let cool, then peel the skins and use a potato masher or a fork to mash the flesh into a thick puree. Let cool completely before making the cake (you can do this up to 3 days in advance).
• Adapted from Savory Nothings