It’s that time of year when getting up in the dark for work makes me crave a getaway- somewhere with lots of daylight and culture. Alas, I don’t have anything planned until early next year so I’ve been baking some sunshine on a plate instead! This recipe for a sweet potato cake was shared with me by Inntravel who are celebrating a new walking holiday in Dominica. I like the sound of their holidays – trips which take the road less travelled and show a side of destinations you might not otherwise see. I can almost smell the lush greenery as I read about their walking breaks- what a great way to see the area *zones out in day dream* 

I must admit that when I think of Caribbean food, I think first and foremost of savoury foods: jerk, seafood, goat….I don’t know why I’ve never thought to use sweet potato in a cake before, after all the clue is on the name.

This recipe comes from the Caribbean Cafe in Leeds. I omitted the coconut as I’m not a fan, doubled the ginger and added the zest of a lime to the top. 

The taste reminds me of the Indian dessert carrot halwa; very sweet with an almost caramelised, fudgy flavour. Like the Indian dessert, it is rather sweet so I served with a dollop of Greek yoghurt to cut through that. 

A sweet potato cake isn’t going to replace a more usual sponge cake at afternoon tea, but I it would work well as a petit four with drinks after a spicy meal of Caribbean, Indian or Thai food. In fact, I think making it in little balls rather than a big cake would be a really cute way to serve this – I will remember that for next time I am making it. 

Top tip: add the milk at the end, slowly. You may find that you don’t need it all, so stop adding as soon as the mix is dropping consistency. Otherwise (like me) you will have to cook for longer to cook out all of the liquid. I cooked for 45 – 50 minutes.

If you know of any other Caribbean desserts I should try, give me a shout. As the weather turns cold I think we all need more and more sunshine in the kitchen.  

This is a sponsored post, in association with Inntravel.