Sometimes I wish I could go back in time and have all of my first birthday cakes developed so I could have made them for all of my babies—but at least I get to share them with you now! This simple and healthy baby cake is easy to stir together, perfect to make ahead, and sweetened with mashed sweet potato and maple syrup so it’s an ideal first birthday cake. While I love this cake myself, it is especially great as a first birthday cake. It is super soft, has nice flavor, and is lightly sweetened with maple syrup. It’s such a fun smash cake, especially if you have a baby who loves sweet potato baby food! We often have this in the fall as a seasonal dessert to share with the whole family. It’s a great kid-friendly Thanksgiving recipe or a fall kids birthday cake recipe. (You may also like my First Birthday Smash Cake, One-Year-Old Birthday Cake, Blueberry Smash Cake, and Healthy Banana Cake.)
Ingredients You Need
To make this baby cake, you’ll need to have the following ingredients on hand and ready to go. Sign up for our email updates to get tips and ideas sent to your inbox.
Mashed sweet potato: You can use any type of cooked mashed sweet potato including Crockpot Sweet Potato, Sweet Potato Baby Food, or Sweet Potato Puree. This is easy to make, but you’ll want to plan to make it ahead of baking. You can also use canned unsweetened sweet potato puree. Vegetable oil: This helps to keep the cake nice and moist. You can also use melted unsalted butter or avocado oil if you prefer. Maple syrup: We use this as the sweetener in this recipe. You can also use honey for kids over age 1 if you prefer. Egg: This helps bind the ingredients together. Vanilla extract: Adding a bit of vanilla extract helps give the cake a yummy flavor. All-purpose flour: This helps the cake stay light and fluffy. Baking powder and baking soda: These help ensure the cake rises and bakes through evenly. Cinnamon: This adds that classic sweet potato cake flavor. Cream Cheese Frosting: This is a simple mix of cream cheese, maple syrup, and vanilla, and is the perfect pairing with sweet potato cake.
Ingredient Substitutions
You can use pumpkin puree in place of the sweet potato if you prefer. If you’d prefer to use whole wheat pastry flour in place of the all-purpose, you can do that. Use honey instead of maple syrup for kids over 1 if desired. Gluten-free: Use a 1:1 style of gluten-free all purpose flour.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Here’s a look at the process involved in making this baby cake. Scroll down to the bottom of this post for the full recipe, including the amounts and timing. TIP: Trace the cake pans onto parchment paper, then cut out just inside the lines to make rounds that fit into the pans. This is a foolproof way to line pans to prevent the baby cakes from sticking.
Sweet Potato Smash Cake
If you’re looking for a smash cake for the kids, this sweet potato cake is great since it’s 6 inches and super soft and easy to smash. It also is a nice blend of nutritious ingredients in a really festive form. It has a lightly sweet flavor, so it’s perfect for babies turning 1. And the cream cheese frosting simply needs to be stirred together and spread on. Nothing fussy there!
Make-Ahead Tips
You can make the baby cakes a day ahead, let cool, and store in airtight containers at room temperature. You can even frost the whole thing and wrap carefully with plastic wrap and store in the fridge up to 24 hours ahead. It can be hard to wrap it tightly without messing up the frosting, so I usually wait to frost it, but if you have a cake carrier, that could work, too!
How to Store
Store leftover baby cake in the fridge once frosted for up to 3-5 days in an airtight container or wrapped with plastic.
Best Tips for Success
Top baby cake with sprinkles if desired. These naturally colored ones are pretty! If making the sweet potato puree, plan to do that step ahead of time (even up to three days ahead if you store it in an airtight container in the fridge) so the sweet potato is cool when you are ready to make the cake. You can also just do it an hour or two before you plan to bake. The baby cake can be made 24 hours before you plan to frost it. Let cool completely on a wire rack, then store in an airtight container at room temperature. (It’s also fine to frost it the day before if you can carefully wrap it in plastic wrap and store in the fridge to keep it fresh.) Use as a smash cake for a baby or to share with the whole family. Gluten-free: Use cup-for-cup gluten-free flour. Egg-free: Increase the baking soda to 1 teaspoon, omit the egg, and add 2 tablespoons milk. The whole wheat pastry flour will create a slightly denser cake. The batter makes 24 mini cupcakes, using about 1 tablespoon batter in each and baking for 12-14 minutes.
I’d love to hear your feedback on this cake if you make it, so please rate and comment below!
Easy Vanilla Cake (Vegan)
Healthy Chocolate Cake
Fresh Strawberry Sheet Cake
First Birthday Smash Cake (with Yogurt Frosting)
This post was originally published May 2015.
