Chocolate Sweet Potato Cake

Name: Chocolate Sweet Potato Cake
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 1 h 10 min
Total time: 1 h 20 min
Yield: 12-16 servings.
Ingredients: 2/3 cup butter, softened; 2 cups sugar; 4 eggs; 2 cups all-purpose flour; 1 tablespoon baking cocoa; 1 teaspoon baking soda; 1 teaspoon baking powder; 1 teaspoon each ground cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and cloves; 1/2 cup milk; 2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled, cooked, mashed and cooled; 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; 2 cups chopped pecans; 1/2 cup raisins; Confectioners' sugar, optional

TOTAL TIME: Prep: 10 min. Bake: 70 min. + cooling YIELD: 12-16 servings.

This recipe was given to my mother in 1940. Mother had lost all of her recipes, collected during 7 years of marriage, in a house fire, so her friends gave her a recipe party. Each recipe was handwritten, and most merely listed the ingredients with no mention of how to put them together. Among them is this cake, which is one of our family's favorites. -Sally Green, Mobile, Alabama

Ingredients

2/3 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon each ground cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and cloves
1/2 cup milk
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled, cooked, mashed and cooled
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups chopped pecans
1/2 cup raisins
Confectioners' sugar, optional

Directions

1. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and spices; gradually add to creamed mixture alternately with milk, beating well after each addition. Beat in sweet potatoes and vanilla until blended. Stir in pecans and raisins.
2. Transfer to a greased and floured 10-in. fluted tube pan. Bake at 350° for 70-80 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with confectioners' sugar if desired.

Nutrition Facts

1 slice: 378 calories, 20g fat (6g saturated fat), 75mg cholesterol, 203mg sodium, 47g carbohydrate (30g sugars, 3g fiber), 5g protein.