Mbatata (Malawian Sweet Potato Cookies)
Mbatata from Malawi are easy to make Sweet Potato cookies that are soft and cakey, making them the perfect healthy cookie recipe to fill your cookie craving!
Mbatata Cookies from Malawi
Mbatata Cookies from MalawiMalawi is a small country in southeastern Africa that is bordered by Zambia, Tanzania, and Mozambique. It is one of the smallest countries in Africa, and the lake from which the country gets its name, Lake Malawi, takes up nearly a third of the country's area!
Malawi is a very poor country, but the people are know for their hospitality and friendliness. So much so, in fact, that it is known as the "Warm Heart of Africa".
Because of this, it is traditional to cut these Mbatata (pronounced MM-ba-TA-ta) cookies into the shape of a heart, making them a true tribute to the people and character of Malawi.
Healthy Sweet Potato Cookies
Malawi's economy is highly dependent on agriculture. The sweet potato, with it's high nutrient content, is an important nutritional element in the diet of Malawi's people.
Sweet potatoes are one of the best sources of the vitamin A, a serious antioxidant. They are also a good source of vitamins C, B6, and D, among other nutrients. And, as you can tell by their orange color, they are high in carotenoids, like beta carotene, which help with your eyesight and immune system.
I think it's pretty safe to say that since these cookies are packed with all the nutrients sweet potatoes have to offer, these can qualify as HEALTHY COOKIES!
Making Our Mbatata Recipe
Making Our Mbatata RecipeThe consistency of the dough for these cookies will depend on how soft your sweet potatoes are cooked before they are mashed. If your sweet potatoes are very soft and moist, then your dough might be a little on the soft side.
If you find your dough to be too soft, just add a little more flour as you knead it out. Add flour until you have a dough that is soft, but able to be easily rolled and cut.
Tasty Sweet Potato Cookies
Tasty Sweet Potato CookiesThe texture of these cookies is quite surprising. They are not crisp or chewy like other cookies may be. Instead, they are pleasantly soft and almost cakey.
Also, these cookies are not overly sweet. Rather, the sweet potato and raisins lend their natural sweetness to the cookies, giving them a beautiful flavor that is complemented by the cinnamon and touch of brown sugar.
Really, they are the perfect fall cookie, full of warm cinnamon and raisins accented by that robust sweet potato flavor. They're a cookie that you can feel good about eating while you survey the changing leaves or snuggle in front of a fire with a glass of milk.
Serious comfort and lots of happiness!
Mbatata (Malawian Sweet Potato Cookies)
Ingredients
- ½ cup mashed sweet potatoes *
- 2 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
- 1 c unbleached all purpose flour
- ¼ c brown sugar, loosely packed
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ c raisins
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- In a large bowl, mix mashed sweet potatoes and melted butter.
- Add flour, brown sugar, baking powder, and salt. Mix well until a soft dough forms.**
- Add the raisins and mix until incorporated.
- Turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface and knead it a few times until the dough is solid enough to roll out.
- Roll the dough ½ inch thick and cut the cookies with a cookie cutter (heart shaped is traditional). Place the cut cookies onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Re-roll and cut any remaining dough, until all the dough has been used.
- Bake the cookies for 12-15 minutes, until firm and slightly springy when touched.
- Remove the cookies from oven and let them cool on the pan for 5 minutes.
- Remove the cookies from the baking sheet to finish cooling on a wire rack.
Notes
Sarah founded Curious in 2010 as a way to save her recipe creations and share culinary experiences. Her love for cultural cuisines was instilled early by her French Canadian Grandmother. Her experience in the kitchen and in recipe development comes from over 10 years working in professional kitchens. She has traveled extensively and enjoys bringing the flavors of her travels back to create easy-to-make recipes.
🎄🌷 Greetings Sarah,
I am new to your wonderful site and in heaven as I check out so many beautiful recipes from all over the world !
May I ask you if there’s some way I can search for desserts and cookies and cakes that are low sugar as I have a Daycare and we try not to serve sweets that are too sugar sweetened regularly ?
Thank you so much, for any assistance you can offer. Wishing you a wonderful holiday season !
🎄🌷 Kindest regards all
around,
~ Nell
Hi Nell. Unfortunately we do not specifically have a way to search for low-sugar desserts. However, I have sent you an email with a list of recipes to start looking at that are on the lower sugar end. If you do not receive it, please email us. Best, Sarah
Love these cookies! Made them with my kindergarten students and the cookies were a big hit. Even the children who said that they don't like sweet potato gobbled them up. Hahaha. Love the soft texture and the added sweetness that comes from the sweet potato and the raisins and not from copious amounts of added sugar. Definitely a recipe to keep!
We're so glad you and your students loved these cookies Narda!
@Narda, I agree with you, it’s wonderful gathering recipes that are low in sugar, yet still sweet from sweet veggies or raisins, etc. !
Kindest regards all around,
Nell
I baked my sweet potatoes—foil wrapped—for 90 minutes @ 350 F the day before…before I knew what I would do with them. Found your recipe and commenced baking. The baked sweet potatoes slip right out of the skin and need no extra mashing, plus you have potato skins to eat. I cut the cinnamon in half to no ill effect. One added tablespoon of water provided the dough consistency I liked to work with. Out of sheer laziness, I scooped the dough onto the parchment and flattened the cookies to the suggested 1/2 inch thickness with a moistened palm. Twelve minutes in my 375 F convection oven yielded cookies with the slightest browning on the bottom.
These cookies are wonderful. Thank you for the recipe, Sarah.
Hi Thomas. Thank you for sharing what you did. We're so glad you enjoyed the cookies!
I made these for Thanksgiving. I added Horseradish, Smoked Paprika and Cumin. Got mixed reviews, but I loved the taste.
What an interesting twist. Thanks for sharing!
Really easy and tasty. The dough was quite sticky but, as suggested, I added more flour. I didn’t have a heart shaped cookie cutter so I just used a knife to cut the shape. My next batch I’m going to experiment with almond flour and coconut oil. Thank you for posting this recipe.
So glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for sharing!
These tasted really good. Is used canned sweet potato purée (not baby food) because that is what I had. They came out great, although they were more like a scone to me. They were a super easy recipe to do with kids.
So glad you enjoyed them!
I’m loving these cookies but I feel like something is missing from the recipe - there’s no liquid! I’ve made them 3 times but I always need to add in some liquid as the dough is super dry and crumbly - I’ve been using a small amount of the water from boiling the sweet potatoes and it’s been working great. I make them with Japanese sweet potatoes, cassava flour and coconut sugar and they are such a treat.
Hi Amy. You make a good point, and we will make a note in the recipe. The need for liquid comes down to how much liquid is in your mashed sweet potatoes, if they are on the drier side, then yes, a bit of water may be necessary. It is also possible that your cassava flour is absorbing more liquid than a standard all-purpose flour would. Thank you for your note!
@Sarah Ozimek, I think I've figured it out! It's because I use white sweet potatoes to make these, and I just noticed that you mention orange sweet potatoes. The white ones are much starchier, while the orange get soft and mushy easily. I always have enough white sweet potatoes on hand to feed an army and rarely get the orange ones, so I will continue to just add some of the water I used to boil them.
Very interesting. We rarely use the white ones, so thank you for sharing!
Thank you for sharing this recipe. I would like to know if these cookies can be made with sweet potato flour as well instead of mashed sweet potatoes? Thanks, Steffen from Zimbabwe
Hi Steffen. We've never worked with sweet potato flour, so unfortunately I can't give you a good answer, since I don't know how it is to bake with. If you'd want to try, definitely go for it. I'd just watch your moisture levels. If you omit the mashed sweet potatoes, you'll most likely need to find a way to get more moisture into the dough, either with more butter or an egg or a little water (or a combo). If you give it a try, definitely stop back by and let us know how it turns out for you. I'm sure other readers would be interested to know!
I used coconut sugar instead of brown sugar. It made them slightly crispy which I really liked.
Thanks so much for sharing! We’re glad you enjoyed them!
Very tasty. These remind me of mini-scones - hints of sweetness. I patted mine with cinnamon sugar before placing them on the cookie sheet. May be fun to try a savory version in the future. Thank you for a recipe that utilizes smaller portions - I had no idea what to do with a 1/2 cup of sweet potato puree!
So glad you enjoyed them! They are kind of scone-like in texture, aren't they? Great idea to top them with cinnamon sugar!
These are delicious and not overly sweet, just the type of cookie we enjoy. I did add a few more spices such as ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Thank you!
So glad you enjoyed them!
Thank you for the nice recipe. How long will these cookies keep fresh? I want to send them to someone is this posible?
Hi Riekie, They will keep nice and soft for a week or so. They should make great shipping cookies, since they are softer and aren't brittle. I would just make sure to pad them well, so the cookies can't move in the shipping box. Also, make sure to put them in an air-tight container or bag inside of the packaging. What a great gift!