Cooking & Baking
In reply to the discussion: I recently discovered that I am in the possession of many more pounds of legumes than I realized [View all]Sunriser13
(612 posts)Sweet Potato Cakes
These easy vegan mashed sweet potato and lentil cakes are simple savory patties (fritters) that are crispy from the outside and soft from the inside! The recipe can be made gluten-free, and they're perfect to serve for lunch, dinner or just as a side dish!
Course: Lunch & Dinner, Main Course, Side Dish, Snack
Keyword: Fritters, Lentils, Pancakes, Patties, Sweet Potato, Sweet Potato Cakes
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Author: Bianca Zapatka
Ingredients
2 medium sweet potatoes
3/8 cup red lentils dried (75g), or sub 1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas or beans, *see recipe notes
2-3 tbsp olive oil for frying
1 small onion finely chopped
2 garlic cloves crushed
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp ground cumin
3/4 tsp sea salt or to taste
1/4 tsp black pepper or to taste
1/3 cup oat flour or more as needed, or sub all-purpose flour or (gluten-free) bread crumbs (*see notes)
1 (flax-)egg *see recipe notes
herb dip optional to serve
Instructions
Cook Sweet Potatoes
To bake sweet potatoes: Preheat oven to 390°F (200°C). Pierce sweet potatoes a few times with a fork, place in a baking dish or on a tray and drizzle a little bit or oil (alternatively, wrap the potatoes in foil). Bake for 50-60 minutes or until soft. (The true baking time depends on the size of your sweet potatoes).
To microwave sweet potatoes: Pierce the sweet potatoes a few times with a fork. Then place on a heat-safe plate and microwave for 8-10 minutes, rotating them halfway through. (The potatoes are done when a knife runs into them easily. If theyre still too firm, continue to cook for 1-2 minutes, then test again).
Once sweet potatoes are done, cool until easy to handle and scoop out the soft potato pulp into a bowl. Mash and set aside to cool.
Cook Lentils
Add lentils and 2/3 cup of water into in a pot, bring to a boil and simmer for 10-15 minutes (or cook according to the package instructions), until lentils are soft. Mash roughly and allow to cool.
Make Sweet Potato Cakes
Heat a little oil in a large pan on medium. Cook the onion for 4-5 minutes or until softened. Add garlic and spices and cook for another minute until fragrant. Transfer to the bowl with the sweet potato mash. Add mashed lentils, the flax-egg, and flour, and stir to combine using a fork. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed. (The mixture should be sticky but not runny. I suggest to chill it for approx. 30 minutes or add a little more flour, *see recipe notes).
Heat enough oil in a large non-stick pan. Spoon the sweet potato mixture into the pan and form into patties (*as pictured in the step-by-step pics above or make smaller cakes). Cook for 5 minutes on one side, or until golden-browned. Then flip and cook for a further 5 minutes on the other side.
Repeat with the remaining mixture. (You can keep prepared fritters warm in the oven).
Serve hot with herb dip or avocado Aioli or cashew dip. Enjoy!
Notes
To make the flax egg, mix 1 tbsp flaxseed flour with 2,5 tbsp hot water. Set aside for 5 minutes to thicken. (If you're not vegan, you can add a regular egg).
The batter will be pretty soft but I recommend you NOT to add much additional flour for the best soft texture and taste! Please make sure to see the step-by-step pictures in the blogpost above, showing you how to form and pan-fry patties. (Alternatively, you could also fill the batter into a piping bag and pipe patties into the pan. Or if your batter will be firm enough to shape patties with your hands, I suggest wetting them slightly to make this a little easier).
You could also cook the sweet potatoes on the stove in a pot (as mentioned in the blogpost) but take note that this may result in watery sweet potato mash. So please make sure to drain them very well after cooking.
You can substitute the oat flour with all-purpose flour (you may need adding a little more) or sub (gluten-free) bread crumbs. I havent tried the recipe with another flour yet but feel free to do that.
You can use red lentils or yellow lentils because theyre cooked the same way. Alternatively, you can sub 1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas or beans. Just make sure to pulse them in a food processor or blender until roughly mashed.
Alternatively, you can also omit the lentils completely and use just sweet potatoes.
The preparation time does not include chill time but cooking time in the microwave.