These delicious Sweet Potato Madeleines are light and moist with a hint of vanilla and the delicious taste of sweet potatoes. Made without eggs or dairy, they’re the perfect twist on the classic French dessert.
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The basic concept of this Sweet Potato Madeleines recipe is the same as the traditional one. Just a southern twist on the classic French small sponge cake known as Madeleines. With a beautiful shell shape, golden brown hue and the signature hump.
Craving more sweet potato recipes? Be sure to check out our delicious vegan sweet potatoes biscuits and sweet potato queso dip recipes.
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Why This Recipe Works
- Pantry Ingredients - requires only 9 easy-to-find simple ingredients. No extra shopping trip needed.
- The warm spices and sweet potato puree beautifully highlight the best of fall flavors, adding natural sweetness and moisture too.
- Light and Fluffy Texture - The recipe creates a light, airy texture that mimics traditional madeleines.
Key Ingredients
- Flour - all purpose flour.
- Sweet Potato Puree - canned sweet potato is easy to find normally with baking ingredients or canned vegetables. You can also substitute with pumpkin puree and butternut squash puree. We've tried both.
- Granulated Sugar - we use organic granulated sugar.
- Baking Powder - leavening agent.
- Pumpkin Pie Spice - for flavor.
- Avocado Oil - replacing the butter from traditional recipe.
- Maple Syrup - for rich butter flavor and to help achieve a crispy shell and golden color of the madeleines
- Vanilla Extract - swapping out the classic lemon with warm vanilla for flavor to compliment the sweet potato. Almond extract would also make a great substitute too.
Detailed ingredients, measurements, and instructions are provided at the end of this post in the printable recipe card. This recipe has not been tested with substitutions or variations not listed. If you make any changes, please share your results in the comments!
Preparation Tip
Don’t forget your nonstick Madeleine pan. It’s the only way to get that classic shell shaped.
Step By Step Instructions
STEP 1. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Add the sugar. Mix and set bowl aside.
STEP 2. In a separate small bowl whisk together non-dairy milk, oil, sweet potato puree, maple syrup and vanilla extract.
STEP 3. Slowly pour half of the liquid mixture into the bowl of the dry ingredients. Stir gently until just combined and the batter is smooth and runny. Don’t over-mix the batter.
STEP 4. Cover and refrigerate the batter in the fridge to rest for at least 6 hours or better yet overnight. This will help the madeleines raise and get the perfect bump, while enhancing the flavors, so don’t skip this step.
STEP 5. Prepare pan. Brush the cavities of a madeleine pan with vegan butter or oil, set aside. (If you add too much you will have dots of fat on the back of the Madeline. If you add too low the Madeleine will stick to the pan.) Place the pan in the freezer 10 minutes before filling. Preheat the oven to 450°F.
STEP 6. Remove the batter from the fridge and the pan from the freezer. Spoon about one tablespoon of chilled batter into molds; about a third of a quarter fill, into lightly buttered madeleine pan.
Preparation Tip
Baking the madeleines on an upside-down sheet pan lifts the mold off the oven rack so the bars of the rack don’t transfer to the cookies in an uneven fashion. This also allows the heat of the oven to circulate around the mold more evenly.
Step 7. Bake them for 4 minutes at 450 degree, then reduce oven to 375 degree and bake for 10 more minutes. (If you think you’ll forgot you could bake for 14 minutes at 375° but the crust will not be as crispy) They are ready when an inserted toothpick comes out clean. They will have the signature, plump doming shape in the middle and the sides are golden brown.
Step 8. Carefully remove cakes from the pan and unmold immediately. Flipping the madeleines onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
Recipe FAQ
Madeleines are a classic French cake traditionally made with eggs, sugar, butter, flour, baking powder, vanilla, and lemon zest. They are moist on the inside with a tender fine crumb and have a deeper golden crust on the edges.
Storing Instructions
Storing. The cookies are best day of. However you can store them in an air tight container in the fridge for 1-2 days. When you would like to enjoy them simply remove them from the fridge for 20 minutes to reach room temperature.
Prepare In Advance. Batter can be prepared up two days in advance.
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📖 Recipe
Sweet Potato Madeleines
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Equipment
- 1 Non-stick Madeleine Pan
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 1 cup All-purpose flour
- 5 tablespoons Granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons Baking powder
- ½ teaspoon Pumpkin pie spice
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
Wet Ingredients
- ½ cup + 2 tablespoons Non-Dairy milk
- ¼ cup Sweet potato puree canned sweet potato is easy to find normally on baking aisle or with canned vegetables. You can also substitute with pumpkin puree or butternut squash puree. We've tried both.
- ⅓ cup Avocado oil
- 1 tablespoon Maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
Glaze - Optional
- 2 cups Powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons Vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons Water
Instructions
Prepare Batter
- Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Add the sugar. Mix and set bowl aside.
- In a separate small bowl whisk together non-dairy milk, oil, sweet potato puree, maple syrup and vanilla extract.
- Slowly pour half of the liquid mixture into the bowl of the dry ingredients. Stir gently until just combined and the batter is smooth and runny. Don’t over-mix the batter.
Chill Batter & Prepare Pan
- Cover and refrigerate the batter in the fridge to rest for at least 6 hours or better yet overnight. This will help the madeleines rise and get the perfect bump, while enhancing the flavors, so don’t skip this step.
- Prepare pan. Brush the cavities of a madeleine pan with vegan butter or oil, set aside. (If you add too much you will have dots of fat on the back of the Madeline.) Place the pan in the freezer 10 minutes before filling. Preheat the oven to 450°F.
- Remove the batter from the fridge and the pan from the freezer. Spoon about one tablespoon of chilled batter into the molds; about a third of a quarter fill, into the lightly buttered madeleine pan.
Bake
- Baking Tip - Baking the madeleines on an upside-down sheet pan lifts the mold off the oven rack so the bars of the rack don’t transfer to the cookies in an uneven fashion. This also allows the heat of the oven to circulate around the mold more evenly.
- Bake them for 4 minutes at 450 degree, then reduce oven to 375 degree and bake for 10 more minutes. (If you think you’ll forgot you could bake for 14 minutes at 375° but the crust will not be as crispy) You know they are ready when they have raised in the middle bump and the sides are golden brown.
- Carefully remove from the pan and unmold immediately. Flipping the madeleines onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
Glaze - optional
- Whisk together sugar, vanilla and water together until smooth.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
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