I’ve has this vision of molasses buttercream floating around my head ever since Heather came to town. She brought some delightful espresso macarons to her book signing this past summer, filled with a surprising molasses buttercream.
I haven’t forgotten it.
I first attempted to re-work the bourbon layer cake, intending to use it as a base for this inspired buttercream, and also playing with the recipe as it has never completely satisfied me in terms of consistency. Unfortunately, my modifications, which I thought would help make the cake lighter and fluffier, only made things worse.
With another cake failure settled into the garbage and me not wanting to give up just yet, I still needed a vehicle for my molasses buttercream. So I turned to my faithful stand-by: Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes. In it was a recipe for a delightful sweet potato cake. Seeing as how we’ve been getting a steady 2 pounds of sweet potatoes each week with our CSA and a whopping 10 pounds this past week, I had no shortage of sweet potatoes. It seemed it was meant to be.
While it isn’t the simplest cake to prepare, the extra step of whipping and folding in the egg whites make the cake light, with a delicate crumb that most sweet potato or pumpkin cakes lack. In fact, I may have to try this trick on the aforementioned bourbon cake as it could definitely use some lightening up.
The cake itself has a very light sweet potato flavor and subtle spiced undertones. It’s like a milder version of pumpkin pie, only with sweet potato, and cake instead of custard (ok, so maybe it’s not like pumpkin pie at all). But my intuition that it would be delightful in combination with a sweet and sticky molasses buttercream? Spot on.
I’ve slowly realized, over the years of making cakes and cupcakes, that buttercream has distinct seasons (and I’m talking about straight up American buttercream here, don’t even get me started on the meringues and other varieties). Summer means soupy buttercream, so you better have some shortening handy. Spring and fall are ideal for buttercream-preparation, where the temperature of “room-temperature” is, apparently, perfect. But I never thought I’d have trouble with winter buttercream, even more so than the pesky summer stuff. It definitely requires some more experimentation on my part to figure it out, but I assume that the butter is simply too cold. Even at room temperature it’s still a chilly 65 degrees. My winter buttercream often stays thick, bordering on buttery/greasy in texture (even though the powdered sugar makes it plenty sweet). Adding more milk/cream to lighten it up only works to a certain extent, after which adding more doesn’t change things one bit. Poor, sad, moody buttercream.
Guess you can add American buttercream to the ever-growing list of seemingly-simple things with which I constantly battle (including, but not limited to: chocolate, chocolate ganache, chocolate candy coating, caramel, and pie crust).
Perfectly fluffy or not, luckily, it still makes for a fantastic cake.
Sweet Potato Layer Cake with Molasses Buttercream
Ingredients:
For Cake:
2 large sweet potatoes (about 1 lb)
3 cups cake flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 eggs, separated
2 1/4 cups granulated sugar, divided
1 stick plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/4 cups whole milk
For Frosting:
2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup milk or cream, more or less as needed
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Prick sweet potatoes in a few spots with a fork, then place on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake for about 1 hour, or until the potatoes are very soft and beginning to caramelize. Remove from oven cool slightly.
Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Butter the bottoms and sides of three 9-inch round cake pans. Line with parchment paper; butter parchment.
When the sweet potatoes are cool enough to handle, peel of the skins and remove any blemishes. Pulse in a food processor until smooth. Measure out 1 cup of puree (discard or reserve the rest for another use).
In a bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt. Set aside.
In a large metal mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat egg whites on medium speed until frothy. Gradually beat in /4 cup of sugar, increase speed to high, and beat until the egg whites form moderately stiff peaks.
In another large mixing bowl, combine sweet potato, butter, vanilla, and remaining 2 cups sugar. Beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. With the mixer on low speed, add 1/3 of the dry ingredients, followed by 1/2 of the milk. Repeat with another 1/3 dry ingredients, remaining milk, and finally remaining dry ingredients, mixing until just incorporated.
Using a large rubber spatula, fold 1/4 of egg whites into the batter to lighten it. Add the remaining egg white and continue to fold just until incorporated; be sure not to overmix the batter.
Divide batter among prepared cake pans and bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes, then turn out onto wire racks and cool completely, at least 1 hour.
To prepare frosting, in a large mixing bowl, beat butter on medium-high speed until smooth and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add molasses and beat until incorporated. Depending on the temperature and consistency of your frosting at this point, add milk or cream, 1 tablespoon at a time as needed, then continue beating until frosting is light and fluffy.
To assemble, level each cake layer by cutting of the domed top with a long serrated knife. Place one layer, flat side down, on a cake stand or serving platter. Spread on a layer of buttercream using an offset spatula. Position second layer on top and press to adhere. Repeat with another layer of buttercream, and then position final cake layer, flat side up.
Cover the entire cake with a thin layer of buttercream. This “crumb coat” will make frosting the cake easier. Refrigerate for about 15 minutes to allow this crumb coat to set.
Remove cake from refrigerator and frost with remaining buttercream, reserving some for piping decorative details if desired.
Cake base adapted from Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes.
All images and text ©Lindsay Landis / Love & Olive OilDid you make this recipe?
Let us know what you think!
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I baked this cake yesterday in preparation for a colleague’s retirement party today. It was a knock-out and nearly every slice was gobbled down happily, with a glutinous pride! I found your recipe via Pinterest several months ago and only ventured down the path of making it for the first time yesterday. I will surely return to this recipe again and again. What an excellent suggestion for molasses butter cream. It was the perfect pairing with this cake. THANK YOU!
I made this for Thanksgiving. It went over phenomenally! That Sky High book is the greatest, your frosting recipe was grand! Cheers!
Did you bake two recipes of the cake? I’m noticing you have 3 even layers. At first, I thought you cut the two in half but, when I went back to see the picture, there are only 3 layers, not 4. Please clarify. Thanks!
Just divide the batter among 3 cake pans. :) Easier than baking the cakes and trying to split them later.
HeyLindsay, is it sweet potatoes (the tuber w white insides but sweet tasting) or is it yams (the tuber w orange insides)? I know yams and sweet potatoes are usually used synonymously but I don’t want to get it wrong. :-P Thanks!!!
Orange ones. :) You can also use canned puree.
I made this cake yesterday, and I think it’s my new favorite cake! Distinct flavors, moist, and sweet without being overbearingly sweet. I’m new to making from-scratch cake, so it took me a long time, but it came out perfect. That being said, I would wait until you have the rest of the batter ready before fluffing up the egg whites. Mine were just starting to recombine into liquid whites by the time I incorporated them into the batter. Also, I didn’t need any extra milk/cream in my frosting. Fall really is the best season for buttercream! Thanks for the recipe!
I came across this on Pinterest today, and just wanted to pop in and let you know that this recipe sounds incredible! The flavor combination is so fitting for this time of year, and a welcome change from the typical apple and pumpkin varieties.
This is the first cake I made not from a mix and first buttercream I made! Turned out great and my husband loves it, So glad I found it, thanks for putting it up!
I made this cake, for my birthday, to share with our little family and our neighbours. It was very very good. Thank you for the recipe. I just finished making the lemon chocolate cake, for our children’s Easter Sunday breakfast (yup). I hope it gets the thumbs up!
Im in love! This cake was so moist and wonderful! I doubled the amount of molasses in the buttercream. I love molasses and I have a cold, so Im pretty sure that my tastes buds are off, but It worked out and made a wonderful frosting.
My sister and i made this cake and it was fantastic!! the cake tastes like pumpkin and the buttecream icing was delicious.
Thanks for the wonderful recipe. Just made this cake for a potluck and everyone loved it! I used the original recipe without the amount for vanilla listed but 1 tsp seemed to do fine. Definitely recommend using the butter at room temperature. Tip: I baked the sweet potato the day before and saved the puree in the fridge for the next day. Still took me over 3 hours but it tasted amazing!
Beyond stunning & gorgeous.
PS. Nice plate. ;)
yum, this looks great :) I like the idea of sweet potato cake with molasses buttercream. Delicious combo!
That looks super delicious anything with sweet potatoes would be good!
This looks great, especially with the molasses buttercream frosting. Yum. I will have to try it at a holiday party sometime soon!
I’m obsessed with new and unique ways to use Sweet Potatoes and this definitely fits the bill!
I recently made a Honey & Gorgonzola Sweet Potato Casserole for an early Thanksgiving dinner.. I’ve got a few spuds leftover and might just use them for this :) xx
What an amazing idea and layer cake! Great job on the layers, evenness, and beautiful butter cream.
Not only a gorgeous cake, but absolutely perfect for the season! I LOVE your blog!
Roz
This just looks divine and very decadent but everyone needs a little decadent in their lives. xx
Your pictures are absolutely incredible!!
This cake is absolutely gorgeous! I love how light and fluffy it looks, as these types of cakes tend to be dense. Love, love, love!
That is one gorgeous cake! I love the way you frosted it, too. The flavors sound perfect together. Whoa, that is a lot of sweet potatoes!
I was expecting the cake to look dense and darker in color, but it looks so light. I bet it is such a great compliment to the buttercream.
This is look F***ING AMAZING.
I really don’t know how else to say this. I love molasses. My new breakfast is “gingerbread oatmeal” with molasses mixed in. This cake looks so good, my sister who does a gluten-free baking blog (http://cakesnbakes.wordpress.com/) just told me she is thinking of doing a GF conversion on this recipe.
P.S. — Love that you are fellow designers, this blog is fantastic.
•This looks
I dont even know where to begin!! The sweet potato cake itself, it looks so moist and rich and fab.
Then I LOVE molasses and I love….frosting! I don’t need cake, I could just have frosting and this is frosting I want!
Pinned!!!
This cake is awesome!! I’m drooling, it must taste amazing, that molasses buttercream is calling my name…Thanks for sharing the recipe…have a great day!! :)
I love the flavors you have combined for this cake, and the photo is out of this world. Kinda wish I had a slice of that right now.
Taking a bath in molasses buttercream is totally acceptable, right?
Sweet potatoes in the cake!? LOVE this! It looks beautiful – so light and soft – I finally found sweet potatoes where I live and have been excited to put them in everything. This is next on the list – amazing.
OMG, I don’t even know what to say besides slice me up a piece now.
It looks amazing. I’d like to eat it now. :)
This cake sounds so different and amazing! I don’t think I’ve ever used molasses in a frosting of any kind (I say, as though I’m making cakes right and left–I’m totally a twice-a-year cake baker), and it sounds perfect with sweet potato cake!
Looks amazing! Could you substiture rice or almond flour for the cake flour?
I was sold as soon as you mentioned molasses buttercream! I LOVE molasses in the fall. It is safe to say that I add it to most breads et al. (at least in a tiny dosis!)
This is just sinful…and amazing and exciting and delightful and I can’t wait to try it!
This sounds so delicious! I just love the idea of molasses buttercream.
THIS MADE ME GO TO THE KITCHEN AND GRAB A KINDER SURPRISE EGG BECAUSE I NEEDED SUGAR NOW! :D Wow, what a cake!
WOW, you take the most amazing photos… that cake looks phenomenal! What are those sprinkles/ decorations made out of, chocolate?
Freakin’ gorgeous.
This cake looks seriously perfect!
Molasses buttercream!? Amazing idea. I was planning on making a sweet potato cake with maple cream cheese frosting but now I am torn.
Absolutely gorgeous! I can only imagine how this tastes… my mouth is beginning to water. Just beautiful!
What a stunning cake and so perfect for the holiday season. I love the cover photo – breathtaking!
Gorgeous! What a beautiful cake!! I love that you used sweet potatoes!
This looks so amazing!! You should definitely start selling these if you don’t already.
The pictures in this post are just stunning, like take your breath away stunning. And that molasses buttercream may be what I’m dreaming about tonight!
Wow! This sounds so interesting! I never would have thought to put sweet potato in a cake!
Sweet potato is cake? I’m sold when it’s topped with that buttercream!
This look A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! I’m really curious to know how it tastes.
And, by the way, the top picture could be the cover of a cookbook: it’s fantastic!
I agree! I am so impressed with how straight the cake layes AND the icing layers are!
Hi. Just wanted to say that the top picture? So good it kills me. So good.