*Kelly! You won the marshmallows! Send me an email with your address and I’ll pop them in the mail!*

While I love the lingering days of summer, as soon as the leaves begin to change my mind turns towards fall (my favorite season) and then it turns to baking, which is always enhanced by those first days of cool, crispy autumn air and crunchy leaves beneath your feet.

A few weeks ago the lovely folks at Chicago Soy Dairy gifted me with a couple of bags of Dandies, their vegan marshmallows, with the request that I make something creative with them. I have enjoyed playing with their Teese in the past and I am always up for a challenge, but those Dandies have just been staring at me for a couple of weeks now.

Should I make something rocky road? No, too boring.

Should I make something s’mores? No, I can’t compete with Amy’s awesomeness.

Then I remembered my great Thanksgiving love.

Like most any good Midwestern girl, one of my favorite Thanksgiving side dishes was the sweet potato (or yam, whatever) casserole, filled with juicy, sweet yams and pineapple and a marshmallow and maraschino cherry topping.

Jim absolutely loathes anything sweet that is eaten at mealtime, so when I mentioned this to him he visibly shuttered. How to please us both? Why, turn it into a dessert, of course!

The Chicago Soy Dairy folks were kind enough to send me 2 bags of Dandies- leave a comment and 1 lucky person (drawn next Monday) will win the other bag!



Sweetie P Cupcakes

These soft and fluffy cupcakes are the perfect testament to fall- moist sweet potatoes with a creamy marshmallow center, a hint of nutmeg and the lightly crunchy/gooey mallow topping.

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup brown or other dark granulated sugar
1 teas. baking powder
1/2 teas. baking soda
1/2 teas. cinnamon
1/4 teas. nutmeg
1/4 teas salt
1 cup pureed sweet potato (or yam)
1/2 cup crushed pineapple (liquid drained)
1/3 cup oil
3/4 cup milk of choice
1/2 bag Dandies Marshmallows
Maraschino cherries

Preheat oven to 350. Line a cupcake pan with liners.

In a small bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, soda, spices and salt. In a medium bowl, combine the sweet potato, pineapple and oil. Mix until well combined. Add the milk and whisk together thoroughly. Add the dry ingredients to the wet in two batches until just mixed.

Fill each cupcake liner 1/3 way with batter and place 1-2 Dandies in the middle. Top with additional batter to seal the Dandies in the middle. Liners should be filled to just under the top of each liner. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick (poked at an angle to avoid the mallows) comes out clean.

Remove cupcake pan from oven. Carefully top each cupcake with 4-5 Dandies. Place cupcakes under your broiler on low for 15-45 seconds, or until puffy and very lightly browned. Remove from oven and let cool on cooling rack for 10 minutes before removing from pan to cool on rack. Top each cupcake with a dried off maraschino cherry.

Makes 12 cupcakes

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41 Responses to fall baking fun

  1. Mmm, your candied yam idea reminds me of a new candied yam recipe I have been wanting to try that uses coconut milk…how good does that sound! What a great idea for cupcakes especially since marshmallows are one of my favorite foods. :o)

  2. Amy says:

    I would love some Dandies! They’re not available in Colorado so I can only get them when I visit other states. I’m usually so excited to have vegan marshmallows that I just eat them from the bag instead of baking with them.

    • Kris says:

      It’s funny, I never liked just eating marshmallows plain in the past, but I love the texture and flavor of the Dandies!

  3. Hope says:

    Sigh… Marshmallows, I haven’t had any since turning vegan as I can’t get them ANYWHERE around here. I’ve seen recipes to make your own, but they all seem intimidating….

    • Kris says:

      Don’t they? I’ve thought of trying it before, but you see those recipes and it totally turns you off. So many steps and things need to be just so. Not for me, either.

    • Abby Bean says:

      Haven’t you guys heard of Sweet & Sara? She runs specials all the time, it’s cool enough that you don’t need a cold pack, and they’re freaking delicious. Vegan marshmallows, s’mores, rice crispy treats, etc.

    • Hope says:

      Really? I’ll have to check that out! I live in Florida, so melting is always an issue here!

  4. Amanda Nobile says:

    What a brilliant idea! I LOVE sweet potatoes and marshmallows and spice-y cupcakes! I can’t wait to make this recipe! Now, if only I had a bag of Dandies…… 😉

  5. Josiane says:

    With sweet potatoes and pineapple, those cupcakes must be seriously delicious! And the marshmallows give them the little extra something that would win everyone over… Yum!

  6. Andrea says:

    Hey, this looks like my kind of cupcake. Cupcakes with buttery frosting are a bit too rich for me and I don’t really crave them very often. I’ve made some sweet potatoes scones some time ago and they came out great. I guess the pureed fruits/veggies, such as the pineapple and sweet potato in this cupcake act as an egg replacer, no?

    • Kris says:

      I’m the same way, frosting is too much for me! Give me a ganache or icing or fruit… or now, marshmallows! Perfect, it’s just enough.

  7. radioactivegan says:

    That’s a great idea. I never cared much for sweet potato casserole, but the cupcakes look amazing! And so festive for thanksgiving :)

  8. lbascelli says:

    Those look unbelievable. Would love those Dandies!

    • Kris says:

      Fresh out of the oven, the outer edge of marshmallows are a little crispy, which I like, but after sitting awhile the moisture creeps in and they are soft with a toasted flavor, which I also like. What I’m saying is, they will please anyone or everyone. :)

  9. Miranda says:

    Oh, lawdy. Wouldn’t they be SO good in some hot chocolate? Mmmmmmm. It may not be cold enough outside now, but it will be soon! :-)

    • Kris says:

      It’s funny, we had a little rush of Indian summer the day I baked these, 80 degrees, but now it’s nice and chilly again. Nothing like the smell of cinnamon on a cool day…

  10. Erin says:

    Very cool recipe. Now if I won that other bag of Dandies, I could test it out for myself…hint hint!

  11. tahinitoo says:

    That is pretty much the most awesome cupcake ever Kris! I never had pineapple or cherries in my sweet tatie casserole as a kid – I feel so deprived!

  12. Kelly says:

    Yummy yummy! We never had that exact casserole growing up, but I was always hesitant of anything with sweet potatoes. Now, though, I can’t get enough of ’em! And putting them in a cupcakes? GENIUS!

  13. Andrea says:

    Whoa … you weren’t kidding, were you? This really is hilarious. I think your cupcakes sound way better than the original casserole, and I want to make them. (My mother’s version had apples, but no cherries, so I may have to fit apples in there!)

  14. Abby Bean says:

    I was so excited when I thought you were going to make the sweet potato marshmallow dish, so when I got to the part about the cupcakes I was a little disappointed….that is until I saw your gorgeous beauties AND read that there was a marshie center. VERY impressive!

  15. Michal says:

    Holy yum!!!! Those cupcakes look great :) Enjoy your weekend girl!

  16. Allison says:

    *drool* I love all things sweet potato! My (non vegan) boyfriend had a s’more last night and I was left with the aroma. Vegan s’mores would complete me!

  17. Sarah says:

    Looks delicious! I’ve been looking forward to sweet potatoes with dandies this thanksgiving. Also have a recipe for smores brownies where brûlée mallows are the topping. Would like to try to make it vegan with these:)

  18. i freakin’ love Dandies! i mostly just eat them straight up so they never get a chance to be part of a baked/cooked good.

  19. stacey says:

    Absolutely stunning! What a perfectly delicious idea, Kris. Looked up ordering the Dandies, but with shipping they come to a whopping $12.95. Am going to ask local health food store if they’ll consider buying. For now, I might improvise with vegan ricemellow creme.

    Thanks for your brilliance!

    Stacey

    • Kris says:

      Wow, that’s spendy. The Ricemellow Creme is pretty awesome, though. At least you don’t have to go completely without.

  20. […] there are quite a few fun recipes for Dandie-filled delights out there. You could try Kris’ Sweetie P Cupcakes, for example, if you wanted a cupper that calls upon that most sacred of Thanksgiving traditions, […]