Sweet Potato & Pecan Upside-Down Cake

I adore sweet potatoes. I do not know at what point in my life I developed my uncommonly strong attachment to them, but good lord they are delightful. You can fry them, bake them, put them in a souffle or biscuits... and you can make a cake with them. Before I went to Atlanta for Dad's birthday, I was perusing the September issue of Southern Living for ideas and I happened upon a title that not only had "sweet potato" in it (for me), but also "pecan" (a great love of my father's). Clearly it was going to end up on the menu.

I was a little hesitant because there was no picture included with the recipe, but I have since discovered why: no picture can do this cake justice. Sure, it looks ordinary and maybe reminds you a little too much of that sweet potato souffle you had last Thanksgiving, but let me assure you that it is far from plain. This cake is uncommonly moist and the semi-candied pecan topping will melt any heart.

My Dad called me the other day just to remind me how tasty it is. It will, in all likelihood, become a staple of the holiday season at my parents' house. It's that good.

Because this is baking, not cooking, I have not changed the original recipe at all. As per usual, I'm sure that I was a little dicey with some of my measurements when I made it, but not terribly so, so there shouldn't be any substantial difference. Might I suggest, however, that you consider adding some amaretto or other similar liqueur (just a tablespoon or so) to vary the flavor a bit? You can replace some of the vanilla with it or just add it on top. I'm sure it will work out just fine. It would also probably go well in the topping, but it is so fantastic already that I hesitate to mess with it.



Sweet Potato & Pecan Upside-Down Cake
(original recipe here)

1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped pecans
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup sorghum syrup or corn syrup (I used dark corn syrup)
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (15-oz.) can sweet potatoes, drained and mashed (You can mash them with a fork)
1/3 cup buttermilk (this stuff is fantastic when you only need a little bit of buttermilk for a recipe)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (Amaretto?)

1) Preheat oven to 350°. Stir together first 4 ingredients and 2 Tbsp. water, and spread on bottom of a lightly greased 10-inch cast-iron skillet or a 9-inch round cake pan (with sides that are at least 2 inches high, the topping bubbles... a lot... think "bubble bubble toil and trouble" level boiling).

2) Beat granulated sugar and 1/2 cup softened butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until blended after each addition.

3) Combine flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture, beating at low speed just until blended and stopping to scrape bowl as needed. Add sweet potatoes, buttermilk, and vanilla, beating at medium speed until smooth. Spoon batter over pecan mixture in skillet. You spoon instead of pour because you don't want to accidentally displace the topping.

4) Bake on an aluminum foil-lined jelly-roll pan (cookie sheet with edges, remember the bubbling topping?) at 350° for 40 to 45 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in skillet on a wire rack 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of cake to loosen. Invert cake onto a serving plate, spooning any topping in skillet over cake. Flip it while it is still warm, the topping comes out of the pan more easily.