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    Home » Recipes » Pies, Cakes & Breads

    Deacon's Mashed Potato Cake

    Published: Jun 9, 2014 · Updated: Aug 22, 2021 by Kevin Williams | Leave a Comment

    Jump to Recipe

    Deacon's Mashed Potato Cake is a classic example of the creativity and inventiveness of Amish cooking and baking. I mean, geez, leftover mashed potatoes in a cake? (I know, the Amish didn't invent this, but it's still creative). Usually leftover mashed potatoes are just re-heated and reserved or fried into patties. So the fact that they could instead find their way into a cake is intriguing.

    Chocolate cake recipes are a dime-a-dozen in Amish settlements, but this particular recipe really does stand out. The flavor is full, rich, smooth...you get a cake that is unique, not dry, crumbly, or overpowering in the other direction. This is a good, good cake!

    Deacon's Mashed Potato Cake is a recipe sent to me by an Amish woman in Holmes County, Ohio.  Not sure why she named it "Deacon's" unless it is a favorite at after-church gatherings.  

     Mashed potatoes are a staple of large Amish gatherings and since most don't have microwaves to zap leftovers they often look for other ways to use leftovers since reheating them in the oven would tend to dry them out.  One of the most common ways to use up mashed potatoes would be, as I said, to be frying them into patties.  But this cake would be a sweet way to use them.  I mean sometimes Amish weddings or gatherings will have HUGE amounts of leftover mashed potatoes, so that would be a lot of patties to fry up. So being able to use some - even a measly cup - is something. This cake recipe does only call for a cup of mashed potatoes, so it's not like you are going to be using a whole bowl. That said, I do think you could use a 1 1 /2 and still come up with a great cake. Or make two cakes!

    A lot of Amish cooks don't like using boxed cake mixes, so this Deacon's Mashed Potato Cake provides a way to make a super chocolate cake and you know what all the ingredients are in it. As far as frosting goes, this cake is so moist that it doesn't NEED frosting, but, geez, I can't imagine making a chocolate cake and not adding some sort of frosting to it. So your choice!

    Deacon's Mashed Potato Cake

    Make sure you mash your potatoes well.

    The potatoes add a full rich flavor.

    Delicious cocoa infuses more flavor into the cake.

    Deacon's Mashed Potato Cake

    A nice moist cake, just make sure you mixed in the potatoes thoroughly. Here is the recipe!

    Jump to:
    • 🎂 Deacon's Mashed Potato Cake
    • 📋 Instructions
    • 🥔 More Amish Recipes With Potatoes
    • 🖨️ Full Recipe

    🎂 Deacon's Mashed Potato Cake

    • 1 cup margarine, softened
    • 2 cups sugar
    • 2 eggs
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla
    • 1 cup cold, leftover mashed potatoes
    • 2 cups flour
    • 1 /4 cup cocoa
    • 1 teaspoon baking soda
    • 1 cup milk

    📋 Instructions

    1. Cream together margarine and sugar.
    2. Add eggs, one at a time. Blend in vanilla and potatoes.
    3. Combine flour, cocoa, and soda.
    4. Add to creamed mixture alternately with the milk.
    5. Pour into a greased 13 X 9 X 2 inch pan.
    6. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes or until done.

    🥔 More Amish Recipes With Potatoes

    Mashed Potato Casserole - So good!

    Amish Wedding Mashed Potatoes - Amazing taste!

    Mashed Potato and Beef Casserole - Wow!

    Gloria's Easy Mashed Potatoes -

    🖨️ Full Recipe

    Deacon's Mashed Potato Cake

    Deacon's Mashed Potato Cake

    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine American, Amish

    Ingredients
      

    • 1 cup margarine, softened
    • 2 cups sugar
    • 2 eggs
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla
    • 1 cup cold, leftover mashed potatoes
    • 2 cups flour
    • ¼ cup cocoa
    • 1 teaspoon baking soda
    • 1 cup milk

    Instructions
     

    • Cream together margarine and sugar.
    • Add eggs, one at a time.
    • Blend in vanilla and potatoes.
    • Combine flour, cocoa, and soda.
    • Add to creamed mixture alternately with the milk.
    • Pour into a greased 13 X 9 X 2 inch pan.
    • Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes or until done.
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
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    About Kevin Williams

    Hi, my name is Kevin Williams and I am owner of Oasis Newsfeatures and editor of The Amish Cook newspaper column.

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    Kevin Williams - The Amish Editor Amish Cook Column

    Hi There, I'm Kevin!

    Welcome to Amish365, where I share my knowledge of Amish cooking and culture! I’ve spent almost three decades exploring Amish settlements and kitchens from Maine to Montana and almost everywhere in between. I’ll occasionally throw in stories of my travels, journalism adventures (I’m a Pulitzer prize-nominated journalist), fascination with grocery stores and Kmarts, and much more!

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