Sweet potato cupcakes with toasted marshmallow frosting and candied walnuts are the cupcake version of the thanksgiving favorite-sweet potato casserole.
It’s not Thanksgiving without some kind of sweet potato dish (at least not in my book). These sweet potato cupcakes from scratch with toasted marshmallow frosting are the perfect dessert to bring to any holiday party, thanksgiving dinner, or “friends-giving” get together.
Plus, you don’t have to worry about slicing or serving since they’re individual desserts :).
Similar to my Mini Vegan Pumpkin Pies with Gluten free crust.
The cake recipe is adapted from Cooking Classy and are made with fresh sweet potatoes which make it perfectly moist and sweet. I added in brown butter instead of regular butter because let’s be honest, brown butter makes anything 1000x better. It gives it a wonderful nutty flavor which balances perfect with the sweet potato.
If you need help with how to make brown butter, click here for my in-depth tutorial.
The frosting is a homemade marshmallow frosting (recipe adapted from Taste and Tell Blog) made with egg whites and sugar that are heated and then whipped to meringue consistency. Once frosted, you can toast them with either a hand held torch or in your boiler on low (VERY CAREFULLY). This will give the frosting a delicious toasted marshmallow flavor.
The last part is the candied nuts which you can use either pecans or walnuts or a combination of both! They’re tossed in melted sugar and cinnamon and spread out on parchment paper until cooled and hardened. They add a crunchy, sweet texture to the cupcakes.
Sweet potato cupcakes with marshmallow frosting are cute thanksgiving desserts that will certainly please a crowd. Using fresh sweet potatoes, brown butter & pumpkin spice, a homemade toasted marshmallow frosting, and easy candied nuts: it’s the perfect thanksgiving or holiday dessert recipe.
Sweet potato cupcakes with toasted marshmallow frosting
Ingredients
Candied Nuts
- ½ cup Pecans or Walnuts roughly chopped
- 3 tbsp Granulated Sugar
- ¼ tsp Cinnamon
- Pinch of Salt
Brown Butter Sweet Potato Cake (Recipe adapted from Cooking Classy)
- Ingredients
- 1 cup All-purpose flour
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
- 1/4 tsp Baking Soda
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Cinnamon
- 1/2 cup Browned Butter at room temp (see recipe notes)
- 3/4 cup Packed Light-Brown Sugar
- 2 Eggs
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 2 tbsp Maple Syrup
- 1 cup Mashed Sweet Potato see recipe notes
Marshmallow Frosting (Recipe adapted form Taste and Tell Blog-
- 2 Egg Whites
- ½ cup Granulated Sugar
- ¼ tsp Cream of Tartar
- 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
Instructions
Candied Nuts
- Preheat oven to 350. Place nuts on baking sheet and bake 7-8 minutes until lightly toasted. Set aside
- Melt sugar over medium heat in saucepan. Once dissolved, add nuts, cinnamon and salt and toss to evenly combine.
- Spread onto a parchment or wax paper and let cool. If not using right away, store in airtight container
Sweet Potato Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 12 muffin cups with cupcake liners, set aside.
- In a small mixing bowl whisk together, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon, set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, or stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat together cooled brown butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy (about 3 - 4 minutes.) Add in the eggs, vanilla, maple syrup and mashed sweet potato and mixed until combined.
- Gradually add in dry ingredients and mix until well combined.
- Fill muffin cups 2/3 full and bake 15-20 minutes, rotating half way through, until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
- Cool cupcakes on wire rack before frosting.
Marshmallow Frosting
- Fill a medium saucepan with about 1” of water and bring to a simmer.
- Combine egg whites, sugar and cream of tartar in large heatproof bowl. Place over simmering water, and whisk constantly until sugar is dissolved and mixture reaches 165 degrees.
- Transfer to stand mixer (or with a hand blender), add vanilla and beat with whisk attachment until stiff glossy peaks form (about 5-7 minutes). (The meringue should hold its shape).
- Pipe or spread onto cupcakes; using a kitchen torch, toast until light golden. Top with candied nuts.
Notes
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