Making cake for company

Have you ever made a new dessert recipe for company then been so excited about tasting it that you did, before the guest even arrived?
I plead guilty. Earlier this week I heard a story on All Things Considered about a sweet potato cake recipe. Since Jim recently dug two healthy boxes of sweet potatoes, I decided I wanted to try it.

Yesterday I found the recipe on the NPR website and began following the directions. It seemed like a lengthy process for making a cake, but the batter tasted good (of course I had to taste it!) and the faint orange color was appealing. (Because I used a bundt cake pan, I put the topping in the bottom of the pan, as opposed to what the recipe tells you, so it would be on the top.) Then I baked it and the smell lured me in like scent of honeysuckle in the spring. I so wanted to try a piece.

So I did. I waited until this morning and my husband teased me about not leaving the cake whole and beautiful for tonight, but it was worth the slight marring of its appearing. It was delicious. I have to say that I had my doubts because it felt so heavy that I feared it would be like a rock in my stomach. It wasn’t. Actually, it was so good that I wanted another piece, but I did refrain from that.

By the way, it is possible to make desserts a little bit healthier. As the holistic nurse I worked with, Hunter Purdy, told me a few years ago, most recipes are just as good with less sugar. You can also substitute some of the white flour with whole wheat. Combine that with the nutrition of sweet potatoes and dessert is practically a vegetable side dish.