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Grain-Free Sweet Potato & Chocolate Marble Gingerbread Sweet potato, a touch of cacao, and lots of warm spices in this tall gingerbread. It is a bit different than the traditional cake as it is not sweetened with molasses but maple sugar and syrup. It stays moist for several days when tightly wrapped and I think it might become a staple in your repertoire. I would even say this is a healthy cake! Here a few notes about the recipe. - I used a Pullman loaf pan (9 by 4 inches or 23 by 10 cm) for the version with eggs, but you can use a traditional pound cake loaf pan. I made the vegan variation in a 9 inch (23 cm) square cake pan because I wasn’t sure it would bake well as a tall loaf. - As always, a reminder that I highly recommend you use the weight amounts instead of volume. I added the volume just for those who are still not fully committed to grams, but again, you are missing out! - I used sweet potato but yams will work as well. You can replace the sweet potato puree with pumpkin puree. Pumpkin will likely have more moisture than sweet potato, but the cake will come together. - You can use light brown sugar instead of maple sugar (substitute by weight). Also, coconut sugar, which will darken the cake a bit. I have really been enjoying baking with maple sugar lately. I use very fine maple sugar so it dissolves into the recipe well. - If you are tolerating grains and prefer to use them, you can use sorghum or brown rice flour in place of the buckwheat. - I used light buckwheat flour made from hulled buckwheat groats. You can use the darker flours too, but the flavor will be more intense and the color darker. - If you want the top of the gingerbread to crack right in center, run a butter knife along the center top after you have smoothed out the top and before it goes in the oven. It might crack slightly in other spots but in general, it directs the crack to happen where you have run the knife (hope this makes sense!). - I added some apricot jam to use as a glaze at the end. You can skip this step, but I like how the glaze helps with shine and also preserve moisture. - See below for vegan notes. Makes one loaf 1 large (450 g) sweet potato 4 large eggs 1 cup (175 g) maple sugar 2/3 cup (150 g) extra-virgin olive oil 1/4 cup (80 g) maple syrup 1 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1 3/4 cup (210 g) light buckwheat flour 1 1/2 cup (150 g) almond flour or tigernut flour 1 tablespoon (9 g) ground cinnamon 1 tablespoon (9 g) ground ginger 1 teaspoon (4 g) baking soda 1 teaspoon (4 g) kosher salt 1/2 teaspoon (1 g) ground cloves 2 tablespoons (15 g) cacao powder 1 tablespoon (15 g) warm water Apricot jam (optional), for glazing · Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Wrap the sweet potato in aluminum foil and bake until tender, about 60 to 75 minutes. Insert a skewer to see if it’s fully baked. It should slide in and out without resistance. Let the sweet potato cool completely, then peel it. Mash the flesh with a potato masher or puree it in food processor until creamy and smooth. Measure 1 1/2 cups (340 grams) of the sweet potato puree. · Reduce oven temperature to 350°F (180°C). Grease the inside of a 9 by 4 inch (23 by 10 cm) loaf pan and line it with a strip of parchment paper that hangs over the sides. · In a large bowl, whisk together the sweet potato puree, eggs, maple sugar, olive oil, maple syrup, fresh ginger, and vanilla until smooth. · In a medium bowl, stir together the buckwheat flour, almond flour, cinnamon, ginger, baking soda, salt, and cloves. Add the dry ingredients into the sweet potato mixture and whisk until you have a smooth batter. · Pour a third of this batter into the bowl where you stirred the dry ingredients. Add the cacao powder and water and whisk until smooth. Scoop both the plain and cacao batters into the prepared pan alternating flavors. Run a skewer or the tip of a knife through the batter to create a swirl effect. Smooth the surface of the cake with a spatula. · Bake the cake for 55 to 65 minutes until a skewer inserted in center comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then lift out of the pan using the parchment paper and transfer to a cooling rack. · If you want to glaze the cake, warm some apricot jam in a bowl in the microwave or in a small saucepan and brush all over the top of the cake. Let the cake cool for 15 minutes before slicing. Store the cake tightly wrapped at room temperature for up to 3 days. Vegan Version The vegan version is more delicate but equally tender. I recommend baking it in a 9 inch (23 cm) square pan instead of a loaf pan. You can brush it with the warm apricot jam after it comes out of the oven. You could also cover it with your favorite cream cheese icing, if you’d like. Omit the eggs. Add 220 grams of applesauce along with the wet ingredients. Add 1/2 teaspoon (2 g) baking powder to the dry ingredients. Follow same directions as to flavoring part of the batter with cacao. Line a 9-inch (23 cm) square cake pan with parchment paper and swirl both batters together with a skewer or tip of a knife. Smooth the surface of the cake with a spatula. Bake at 350°F (180°C) for 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted in center comes out clean. Let the cake cool completely in the pan. It’s very delicate and can crumble if you try to lift it out of the pan when warm.
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