Sweet Potato Pound Cake Recipe

Y’all the Queen of Pound Cakes is back with another one. My Sweet Potato Pound Cake recipe is the best you will find on the web boos. We add silky perfect baked and mashed sweet potatoes into a melt-in-your-mouth sweet potato cake batter and bake until perfectly moist and tender. And finally we top that baby off with spiced brown butter glaze that will have you licking your fingers. Make this sweet potato pound cake all fall long, for a holiday or whenever you feel like you need a little sweet potato in your life. It’s that good y’all.

They’re Lovin’ It! Here’s what They’re Sayin’:

“I love this poundcake! It’s amazing, I make it at least twice a month. The people I work with fight over it when I bring it for holiday potlucks..I love creating havoc over something so yummy! Great recipe. Thanks for sharing!”

—SUNI S.

Listen boos, I have made quite a few sweet potato recipes on this website. It comes from my childhood affinity for the ingredient that turned into everything from a candied sweet potatoes side dish on the supper table to a sweet potato pie slice at Thanksgiving. I have fallen in love with the super tasty spud and I know you will too.

That’s where this sweet potato pound cake comes in. Now y’all know I am the Queen of Pound Cakes so I am giving you one of my absolute favorites on the website, which is perfectly spiced, tender and beyond delish. It’s got all the Southern vibes you love but it has it’s own personality.

Table of Contents

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The Lowdown on the Best Sweet Potato Pound Cake Recipe

Cuisine Inspiration: Southern Soul Food with a Modern Twist

Primary Cooking Method: Baking

Dietary Info: Can be made Gluten-Free with ingredient swaps

Key Flavor: Warm, Perfectly Spiced Sweet Potato Tenderness

Skill Level: Easy y’all (No Sweat Fam!)

Moist, Tender and Beyond Flavorful

This pound cake is giving more melt-in-your-mouth texture than you can even stand. The addition of sweet potatoes makes each bite ultra-moist, with just the right amount of spice to keep things unique and unlike anything you have ever tasted boos.

Fall Vibes All Year Round

While this cake is a hit during the fall season, you can make it anytime of year when the craving strikes. If you need cozy feels, grab the cinnamon and nutmeg, pick up a sweet potato at the grocery store and bake this baby.

The Ultimate Crowd-Pleaser

This cake is a showstopper—one bite, and everyone will be asking for seconds AND the recipe. It’s that good, y’all!

Ingredients you’ll need to make this Sweet Potato Cake Recipe

• Butter & Sugar: Softened unsalted butter gives this sweet potato cake its rich, buttery texture, while granulated sugar sweetens things up just right.
• Flour & Leavening: Cake flour, baking powder, and a hint of baking soda keep this cake light and fluffy with the perfect amount of rise.
• Spices & Flavors on Flavors: Ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, and a splash of pure vanilla extract bring warm, cozy personality to every bite in the batter and glaze.
• Eggs & Sour Cream: Eggs add structure to our cake while sour cream brings moisture and richness, making everything extra tender and melt-in-your-mouth good y’all.
• Mashed Sweet Potato: You can bake or boil this to get it tender. It makes this cake super moist and gives it that unique, sweet potato essence.
• Brown Butter & Honey: Melty browned butter combined with honey create a nutty, caramel-like sweetness in the glaze topping.
• Powdered Sugar & Milk: Both create a smooth, luscious glaze that coats the cake with a sweet finish.

How to make Sweet Potato Pound Cake

Step 1: Mix the Dry Ingredients

1

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, and nutmeg.

2

Mix until just combined and set aside.

Step 2: Mix the Cake Batter and Bake

3

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter and granulated sugar on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.

4

Add the eggs one at a time, ensuring that each egg is incorporated before adding the next.

5

Add the sour cream, sweet potato, and vanilla and beat on medium speed until incorporated (the batter may look curdled, but no worries—it’s all good).

6

Reduce the mixer speed to low, carefully add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients by pouring in half of the dry ingredients, and mix until just combined. Don’t overdo it boos.

7

Add the second half of the dry ingredients and mix until combined.

8

In the end, the batter will be thick y’all.

9

Scoop the batter into the prepared bundt pan and, using a small offset spatula, smooth out the top.

10

Bake for 50 minutes in a preheated 350°F OR until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Step 3: Glaze It Up

11

In a saucepan, melt butter over medium heat and wait until butter begins to brown.

12

Watch the butter closely because it can burn fast. Remove from heat.

13

Whisk in the honey until combined and slowly whisk in the powdered sugar in 3 increments.

14

Whisk in the milk to loosen the mixture and continue mixing until combined.

15

Whisk in the cinnamon until smooth.

16

Let the glaze sit for 10 minutes to cool down a bit and slightly thicken.

17

Drizzle glaze over cooled cake, slice and serve.

What to serve with Sweet Potato Cake

• Dollop It Up: Add a nice dollop of homemade whipped cream to each slice.
• A La Mode: Add a scoop of vanilla ice cream, a nice coffee ice cream or even sweet potato ice cream.
• Drink It Up!: Enjoy your fave coffee drink, French hot chocolate, eggnog, or apple cider with a slice of sweet potato cake for brunch.
• Fall Dessert Buffet: Add this cake to the center of a buffet along with my fave apple cobbler, caramel apple cheesecake and pecan pie.

Menu Option: Soul Food Thanksgiving Spread with Sweet Potato Cake

Baked turkey wings in a delish savory sauce are perfect for this soul food spread.

Cornbread dressing has to be on my holiday table too. It’s a family recipe.

Homemade cranberry sauce will make you toss your canned one in the trash can.

Southern green beans are the veggie of choice here. This is a great side to enjoy before the sweet potato pound cake dessert comes out.

Recipe Substitutions

• Cinnamon and Nutmeg: You can make this a little bit more no-fuss by replacing with an apple pie spice or pumpkin pie spice blend.
• Granulated Sugar: You can replace this with homemade brown sugar adding more depth and richness with some molasses in the mix.
• Sour Cream: Swap in some whole greek yogurt here to keep a similar texture.
• Vanilla Extract: If you want to really amp up the vanilla flavor, replace with a vanilla bean paste to get those little flecks throughout the cake.
• Mashed Sweet Potato: You can easily switch this to canned pumpkin and add a little bit more sugar to the mix.

Recipe Variations and Additions

• Toss In Some Nuts: Chopped pecans or walnuts go great with the flavors of the cake base. Chop them up into small pieces and then lightly sprinkle them over the glaze right after adding it. You can also mix them right into the batter too for more texture.
• Add Chocolate: Stir a cup of chocolate chips into your cake batter before you bake it up and top with chocolate ganache icing.
• Go Plain: Skip the glaze and just sprinkle with some homemade powdered sugar. That sweet potato will really shine through.
• Drizzle with Caramel: Skip this glaze and add a caramel sauce on top instead.

Expert Tips and Tricks for making the best sweet potato cake recipe

1. Bake the Sweet Potato: While you can grab a can of sweet potato to keep this recipe super simple, I prefer to bake a sweet potato then mash. It really brings out the natural flavors and blends into the cake batter more smoothly.
2. Go Room Temp! Make sure your ingredients come to room temperature. This way during the baking process, all your ingredients will heat at the same rate and make for a perfectly smooth cake batter.
3. Don’t Overbeat:  When you add your dry ingredients, don’t overdo the mixing. Only mix until just combined so you don’t overact the gluten boos.
4. Chill Out: Make sure your cake is cooled down completely before you add your brown butter glaze so it doesn’t melt right off the cake.
5. Easy Breezy Cleanup: Add a baking sheet lined with parchment underneath the wire rack with your cake on top so that as you pour the glaze it drips into the pan and not all over your counter.

How to store & reheat sweet potato pound cake

Store your sweet potato pound cake well-wrapped at room temp in a cool, dry place or in a cake carrier to keep it no-fuss.

How long will sweet potato cake last in the fridge?

It should last at room temperature for about 5-6 days.

Can I freeze it?

Yep, absolutely boos! If you are baking ahead, you can freeze it without the glaze. Wrap it up in plastic wrap and aluminum foil and store in the freezer for up to three months. If you’re freezing leftovers, wrap up the remaining section of cake or individual slices in plastic and store it inside a freezer bag or container for up to three months.

Frequently asked questions

At the end of the day, this sweet potato cake is a legit crowd pleaser. It has so many different flavor profiles happening that will make your taste buds flip out with delight. I mean, it just hits hard y’all. Soft, moist and just down right addictive, this sweet potato pound cake will become one of your faves. Get into it!

More Pound Cake recipes

• Million Dollar Pound Cake
• Sour Cream Pound Cake
• Red Velvet Pound Cake
• Cranberry Bundt Cake
• Buttermilk Pound Cake
• Cream Cheese Pound Cake

Sweet Potato Pound Cake Recipe

This Sweet Potato Pound Cake Recipe, made with silky smooth sweet potatoes, is perfect moist and tender with a spiced brown butter glaze. Sweet potato dessert to the max!

4.52 from 66 votes

Print Pin Recipe

Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Cooling Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 2 hours hrs 45 minutes mins

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Author: Jocelyn Delk Adams

Course: Dessert

Servings: 16 servings

Equipment

• potato masher
• 12 cup bundt pan
• Stand mixer

Ingredients

For the Cake

• ▢ 1 1/4 cups unsalted butter room temperature (2 1/2 sticks)
• ▢ 3 cups cake flour measured then sifted
• ▢ 1 tsp baking powder
• ▢ 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• ▢ 1 tsp kosher salt
• ▢ 1/2 tsp baking soda
• ▢ 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• ▢ 2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• ▢ 5 large eggs room temperature
• ▢ 3/4 cup sour cream room temperature
• ▢ 1 cup mashed sweet potato see note below about roasting the sweet potato for this recipe
• ▢ 1 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract

For the Glaze

• ▢ 5 tbsp unsalted butter
• ▢ 2 tbsp honey
• ▢ 1 cup confectioner's sugar
• ▢ 2 tbsp milk
• ▢ 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• ▢ 1/4 tsp kosher salt

Instructions

For the Cake

• Prepare a 12 cup bundt pan by liberally greasing by spraying with baking spray that has flour or using my cake release. Set aside.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, and nutmeg until well combined. Set aside.
• Preheat to 350°F. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter and granulated sugar on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Or you can beat the butter and sugar with a hand mixer in a large bowl.
• Add the eggs one at a time, ensuring that each egg is incorporated before adding the next. You may want to stop the mixer after each addition and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula to ensure everything is well incorporated.
• Add the sour cream, sweet potato, and vanilla and beat on medium speed until incorporated (the batter will look curdled, but no worries—it’s all good).
• Reduce the mixer speed to low, carefully add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients by pouring in half of the dry ingredients, and mix until just combined. At this point you may need to scrape down the sides of the bowl to completely mix in the flour. Add the second half of the dry ingredients and mix until combined. The batter will be thick.
• Scoop the batter into the prepared bundt pan and, using a small offset spatula, smooth out the top. Bake for 50 minutes then check to see if it is done by inserting a toothpick in the center to see if it comes out clean. If not, put it back in the oven and bake for another 5-10 minutes. Check again using a toothpick.
• Transfer bundt pan to a wire rack and let cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Then invert the cake onto the rack or a plate. Let cool completely before glazing.

For the Glaze

• Start working on the glaze once the cake has completely cooled. Start by browning the butter. Melt butter over medium-low heat in a 2 quart saucepan. Continue to cook butter and allow it to slowly brown until it turns a dark golden color with specs throughout and a nutty fragrance develops. Be careful not to burn.
• Whisk in the honey until combined and slowly add the powdered sugar in 3 increments. Mixture will thicken quickly. Whisk in the milk to loosen the mixture and continue mixing until combined. Whisk in the cinnamon until smooth.
• Let the glaze sit for 10 minutes to cool down a bit and slightly thicken. Drizzle glaze over cooled cake, slice and serve.

Notes

HOW TO ROAST SWEET POTATO FOR RECIPE: I personally love to prick, lightly oil then wrap a large sweet potato in foil and bake for about an hour at 400 degrees.  You will want to test to make sure that the sweet potato is perfectly tender and soft before removing.  If it is ready, then you are good to go!

How to store & reheat sweet potato pound cake

Store your sweet potato pound cake well-wrapped at room temp in a cool, dry place or in a cake carrier to keep it no-fuss.

How long will sweet potato cake last in the fridge?

It should last at room temperature for about 5-6 days.

Can I freeze it?

Yep, absolutely boos! If you are baking ahead, you can freeze it without the glaze. Wrap it up in plastic wrap and aluminum foil and store in the freezer for up to three months. If you’re freezing leftovers, wrap up the remaining section of cake or individual slices in plastic and store it inside a freezer bag or container for up to three months.

Nutrition

Calories: 404kcal | Carbohydrates: 55g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 98mg | Sodium: 249mg | Potassium: 91mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 35g | Vitamin A: 1493IU | Vitamin C: 0.3mg | Calcium: 56mg | Iron: 1mg

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