Cinnamon and spice sweet potato bread

I am a planner - your typical, Type A personality. I thrive on lists, schedules and places like The Container Store (though sadly, none are in my area).  When I saw this cinnamon and spice sweet potato bread on Averie Cooks pop up in my RSS feed, I actually had to drop everything I was doing and make it immediately.

After Addison went to bed, I got to working and baked this bread. My kitchen smelled glorious from all the aromatic spices like cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg. But because I only had one sweet potato, I halved the recipe below and only baked for 40 minutes. It was perfect.

Lesson learned: it pays off to be impulsive every once in a while because this bread was out of this world (I actually made two loaves in one week because it was eaten so quickly). Addison ate the bread like she was a starved woman and polished off a slice in the blink of an eye and wanted more. My husband loved it. My in-laws loved it. And I did too.  So will you. Drop what you're doing and bake this now.

Cinnamon and spice sweet potato bread

• About 1 and 1/2 cups mashed sweet potatoes (2 medium or 1 very large)
• 3 TBSP water
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup buttermilk (I used Greek yogurt; you can also use sour cream or buttermilk powder)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 and 3/4 cups all-purpose flour 
• 1 and 1/4 cups granulated sugar 
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed 
• 2 tsp baking soda 
• 1 TBSP ground cinnamon 
• 1 tsp ground ginger 
• 1 tsp ground nutmeg 
• 1/2 tsp ground allspice 
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves 
• A pinch salt

Directions 
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray or grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan and set aside.

Peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into 1-inch sized chunks. Put sweet potatoes in a large, (preferably shallow) microwave-safe bowl. Add 3 tablespoons water to the sweet potatoes, cover with plastic wrap, and microwave on high power for about 15 minutes or until the sweet potatoes are soft. Discard any excess water and mash the potatoes with a fork. Let the potatoes cool for a few minutes so they are no longer hot.

Add eggs, oil, buttermilk and vanilla to the sweet potatoes and mix until well combined and set aside.

In a separate large mixing bowl, combine the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, cloves, and salt.

Add the sweet potato mixture over the dry ingredients, and gently stir to combine. Do not overmix!

Pour the batter into greased loaf pan and be sure to smooth the top lightly with a spatula.

Bake for 60 to 70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The bread will be domed, golden and springy when touched.

Cool the bread directly in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Store bread by covering with plastic wrap and sealed inside a zip-top plastic bag. Bread will keep at room temperature for up to 1 week.

Yield: One 9"x5" loaf

Source: Averie Cooks

I am a planner - your typical, Type A personality. I thrive on lists, schedules and places like The Container Store (though sadly, none are in my area).  When I saw this cinnamon and spice sweet potato bread on Averie Cooks pop up in my RSS feed, I actually had to drop everything I was doing and make it immediately.

After Addison went to bed, I got to working and baked this bread. My kitchen smelled glorious from all the aromatic spices like cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg. But because I only had one sweet potato, I halved the recipe below and only baked for 40 minutes. It was perfect.

Lesson learned: it pays off to be impulsive every once in a while because this bread was out of this world (I actually made two loaves in one week because it was eaten so quickly). Addison ate the bread like she was a starved woman and polished off a slice in the blink of an eye and wanted more. My husband loved it. My in-laws loved it. And I did too.  So will you. Drop what you're doing and bake this now.

Cinnamon and spice sweet potato bread

• About 1 and 1/2 cups mashed sweet potatoes (2 medium or 1 very large)
• 3 TBSP water
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup buttermilk (I used Greek yogurt; you can also use sour cream or buttermilk powder)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 and 3/4 cups all-purpose flour 
• 1 and 1/4 cups granulated sugar 
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed 
• 2 tsp baking soda 
• 1 TBSP ground cinnamon 
• 1 tsp ground ginger 
• 1 tsp ground nutmeg 
• 1/2 tsp ground allspice 
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves 
• A pinch salt

Directions 
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray or grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan and set aside.

Peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into 1-inch sized chunks. Put sweet potatoes in a large, (preferably shallow) microwave-safe bowl. Add 3 tablespoons water to the sweet potatoes, cover with plastic wrap, and microwave on high power for about 15 minutes or until the sweet potatoes are soft. Discard any excess water and mash the potatoes with a fork. Let the potatoes cool for a few minutes so they are no longer hot.

Add eggs, oil, buttermilk and vanilla to the sweet potatoes and mix until well combined and set aside.

In a separate large mixing bowl, combine the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, cloves, and salt.

Add the sweet potato mixture over the dry ingredients, and gently stir to combine. Do not overmix!

Pour the batter into greased loaf pan and be sure to smooth the top lightly with a spatula.

Bake for 60 to 70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The bread will be domed, golden and springy when touched.

Cool the bread directly in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Store bread by covering with plastic wrap and sealed inside a zip-top plastic bag. Bread will keep at room temperature for up to 1 week.

Yield: One 9"x5" loaf

Source: Averie Cooks