Vanilla-Bourbon Sweet Potato Pie-Cake

Ease of preparation: Complex

Yield: 1 pie cake

Vanilla Bourbon Sweet Potato Pie Cake

Ingredients:

Vanilla bourbon cake

• 2 ½ cups (600 ml) flour
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) baking soda
• 2 teaspoons (10 ml) baking powder
• ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) salt
• 2/3 cup (160 ml) vegetable oil
• 1 1/3 cups (320 ml) sugar
• ½ cup (120 ml) brown sugar
• 3 eggs
• ½ cup (120 ml) sour cream
• ½ cup (120 ml) buttermilk
• ¼ cup (60 ml) bourbon
• 1 vanilla bean, seeds only

Marshmallow frosting

• 4 egg whites, room temperature
• 1 cup (240 ml) sugar
• ¼ teaspoon (1 ml) cream of tartar
• ¼ teaspoon (1 ml) salt
• ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) bourbon

• 1 Sweet Potato Pie (without whipped cream topping), see recipe

Special Equipment

• Kitchen torch

Method:

Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

In a separate bowl, mix together vegetable oil, sugar, and brown sugar. Crack eggs into bowl with sugars and stir to incorporate. Add sour cream and buttermilk and mix in. Add bourbon and vanilla seeds and mix in. Gradually add the flour mixture to the sugar mixture, stirring just until mixed.

Preheat oven to 350 F (175 C). Grease and line two10-inch (25 cm) springform pans.

Pour ¼ of the batter into the bottom of one of the springform pans. Remove the sweet potato pie from its pie plate and break off the top, outer edge of the crust—the part that sticks out from the pie plate. Carefully place the pie in the springform pan on top of the batter. Pour ½ of the remaining batter around and over the top of the pie, spreading so it’s even, leaving only a thin layer of batter on top of the pie. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Pour remaining batter into the other springform pan; it will a thinner cake. Bake for 10 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Let both cakes cool.

For the Marshmallow Frosting, whisk together egg whites with sugar, cream of tartar, and salt. Set bowl over a double boiler and whisk while cooking until egg mixture reaches 145 F (60 C).

Remove egg mixture bowl from double boiler and beat with stand mixer or hand mixer until soft peaks form. Add vanilla and bourbon. Continue mixing until stiff peaks form.

To finish, invert smaller cake and place on top of the other cake. Spread marshmallow frosting over entire cake. Toast lightly using a kitchen torch.