Sweet potato and chickpea cakes – grated sweet potato mixed with chickpeas, egg, spices and herbs. A quick and nutritious lunch, snack or finger food.
I can’t believe I hardly ate sweet potatoes until I had kids. I was seriously missing out for years. I’m making up for it now though, thanks to both Finn and Rory’s love for them! They are so adaptable and we have them in many ways, mashed to top pies or to put into croquettes, spiralized into noodles, made into fries, wedges or used to make sweet truffles and brownies.
These sweet potato and chickpea cakes are a new favourite way to enjoy them. I grate the potatoes so that I don’t have to pre cook them before forming the cake. If your kids are funny about texture and you think they would prefer a smoother cake then you could always boil/steam/roast the sweet potatoes before hand and mash together with the chickpeas.
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Sweet Potato and Chickpea Cakes
Ingredients
- 150 g (1 1/2 cups) grated sweet potato
- 240 g (1 tin drained) chickpeas
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 handful chopped parsley
- 1 tbsp oil (for frying)
Instructions
- Mash the chickpeas
- Mix together all the ingredients (apart from the oil)
- Form into heaped tablespoon patties (I made ten)
- Heat oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the cakes to the pan and fry for 3 to 4 minutes on each side.
Recipe Notes
Lorraine says
These look great! Can’t wait to make them! This may be a silly question.. but with the chickpeas, do I take off the skins before using? When i feed baby the reg chickpea i slip the lil’ skin off, but not sure if it’s necessary for this cooked recipe?
Amy says
Hi Lorraine, I never remove the skins but you definitely can if you prefer.
Rachel Werley says
I loved making these! My baby hasn’t had one yet, but I’ve had about five ha ha so I can say that they are delicious. Do you have any tips for freezing them well?
Amy says
So glad you liked them, Rachel! Hopefully, your little one did too! 🙂
Shannon says
Hi, we made this recipe this evening, where it was successful we did find it to be very dry. Could you recommend anything to help?
Amy says
Hi Shannon, this is a very old recipe. I am currently working my way through the older content to update. Was the flavour ok? Just the texture that was an issue?
Beth M says
I made these today following the recipe but using dried parsley as it’s all I had. Really delicious and although it was very liquid when I started to fry I was able to flip them as one unit after 3-4 mins. Great to be able to freeze them. Would be useful to say so on the recipe. Unfortunately my daughter was too tired to eat and fell asleep in her high chair. She will have them tomorrow instead if I don’t eat them all today!
Amy says
Thanks for the feedback, Beth. So glad you enjoyed them and hopefully your daughter enjoyed them 🙂
Jordan says
Is it possible to freeze these?
Amy says
Hi Jordan, yes you can freeze 🙂
Sonal says
How long can I freeze then for?
Amy says
Hi Sonal, If stored in an airtight container they will freeze for up to 3 months. I’d freeze on a single layer before transferring to a container.
Laura says
Hi Amy! Quick question – I have a batch of sweet potatoes that need to be used today but I only have a tin of black beans at home…do you think they would work instead of chickpeas? Sorry for the late comer question and thanks in advance!
Amy says
Hi Laura, it would be worth a try. 🙂 Black beans have a much softer texture and may break down in the curry more.
Lauren C. says
I just recently made this recipe for my 11 month old and it turned out well! I ended up grating the sweet potato using my food processor (with grating blade) and then processing up the beans in there as well (to make them fairly smooth). Everything cane together nicely and was easy to shape into patties. To avoid frying, I lined a baking sheet with parchment and baked the patties on there (spraying each with a bit of olive oil before cooking.) I set the oven to 375 (F) and baked for 25-30 minutes (flipping halfway through baking.) They turned out great – thanks for the recipe inspiration!
Amy says
Great to know, Lauren. Glad they turned out well and thanks for taking the time to give such detailed feedback 🙂
Lorna says
Is there anything you can use to replace the eggs?
Amy says
Hi Lorna, I am so sorry for the late response. This is a very old recipe and I have not tried any egg replacers so can’t say how it would turn out, sorry.
Vanessa says
Do you boil the canned chick peas first and cook the sweet potato first?
Amy says
Hi Vanessa, no need to boil the chickpeas or cooked the sweet potato 🙂
Kym says
Hi, yeah these were a bit flimsy. I was hoping to take to work and eat at my desk, but they are too crumbly. I added a spoon of flour with last batch, but no change. Also, feel like they ‘needed something’ to lighten the dryness. Ate with sweet chilli dip – delicious and filling. Thanks for the idea, I will keep trying the recipe until I get it right for my taste buds!
Amy says
Hi Kym, thanks so much for your feedback. I’m actually going through my old recipes, retesting them and updating with better instructions. It is great to know what is working and what isn’t. This is actually on my list to work on this week and I will take into consideration your feedback. 🙂
Sophia says
Any ideas on how to adjust for a baby who is allergic to egg?
Amy says
HI Sophia, I have never tried any egg replacements in this recipe so can’t say how they would work. You could maybe try a chia or flax egg?
Michelle Allmark says
Can these be frozen??
Thank so much
Amy says
Hi Michelle, I’m so sorry for the delay in getting back to you. I have never actually frozen these but I think they would freeze well. 🙂
Shannon says
Can you bake these instead of frying them? If so, what temperature and for how long? Thanks!
Amy says
Hi Shannon, I have never actually tried baking these so can’t say how they would turn out. I’d try baking at 180C for around 25-30 mins.
Gigi says
My baby hates parsley. Is there another herb recommendation that would work well with the sweet potato and chickpea combination?
Amy says
Hi Gigi, you can just miss out the parsley if you wish. Sometimes I sub it for coriander (cilantro) depending on what I have in the house.
Emma says
Hi Amy, I’m looking forward to trying this recipe. Just wondering if they are suitable for freezing? Thanks
Amy says
Hi Emma, I haven’t tried freezing them so can’t say for certain. I’m sure they would freeze well but rather than using the raw, grated sweet potato I’d cook the potato and mash it. This way they will be firmer and hold up better for freezing.
sarah says
Cooked mashed worked way better than raw in my opinion. I recommend changing that in the recipe. It was a no fail what way and when I grated them it was a bit of a crumbly mess!
Amy says
Thanks Sarah, I’m glad the mashed sweet potato worked better for you ?
Hannah says
I’ve just tried to make these this morning and it was a massive fail! They’ve all just crumbled apart and filed the kitchen with smoke! What could I have done wrong?! Is the sweet potato supposed to be cooked before grating? They look so nice in your pictures so would love to figure out where I’m going wrong.
Amy says
Hi Hannah, I’m trying to think what went wrong here. I used raw sweet potato so that isn’t the problem. Perhaps your eggs were smaller if they crumbled? What heat did you cook them on? I should have said to reduce the heat to low once the oil had heated. Maybe it was too high a heat?
Jonesy says
Great recipe. I enjoyed making these little golden treasures (and eating them!) My little one nommed them up with avocado and cucumber. And I got to use up the leftover roast sweet potatoes in a much more interesting way than just mash. Result!
Thanks for the recipe
Amy says
Hi Jonesy, thank you for your comment and kind feedback. I’m glad they were a hit 🙂
Shari from GoodFoodWeek says
These are a great little idea – we love to make fritters and cakes with all kinds of veggies. The faces on them are super cute.
Amy says
Thanks Shari, they are a great way to up veggie intake 🙂
Cristie | Little Big H says
Love this recipe. Nice and simple and I love that they have chickpeas in them. The faces are adorable.
Amy says
Thanks Cristie! 🙂