Pan de Batata is a delicious dessert with a very exotic and spicy taste. The aroma of cinnamon and cloves, and the touch of the ginger makes it the very embodiment of...

I made this dessert for a holiday dinner and it was a hit! I made a few changes though. I used rice milk and soy milk instead to accomodate my daughter which has a dairy allergy. Also, I wasn't sure what to do with the cinnamon sticks. Whether to leave them whole and put it in the batter and have my guests remove them as they ate their dessert so I just left them out and added extra cinnamon powder. Also, I wasn't sure about the measurement for the coconut, it just said 1/2. Is it half a coconut or 1/2 cup of coconut flakes. Anyways I happened to half a real coconut and just scooped out the meat and used it. It turned out fabulous! My family loved it. In fact I have two pan de batatas getting ready to come out of the oven. Enjoy!

Oh, you are right about the coconut, I'll fix that. And right too about this being a fabulous dessert. It's one of my favorites, despite the fact that sweet potatoes give me a killer heartburn. I just keep the Tums at hand.

Usually people leave the cinnamon sticks in the batter and just put them aside while eating. But I can see why it would be preferable to use cinnamon powder, it is just not how we usually do it.

By the way, where in the US did you find batatas, in case someone needs the information?

Sweet Potatoes(batatas) are found at any US grocery store. I buy mine at Smith's in Nevada.

By the way, do you put the cinnamon sticks in the batter whole and then remove them as you find them in the dessert?

Yes. As I said above, not very elegant, but that is how it is traditionally done. However, I agree that powdered cinnamon is better.