Sweet Potato Cheesecake Parfait: An Easy, Luscious Treat for the Holidays

Updated: December 9, 2022

Pies are expected during the holidays — for good reason — but they’re so predictable. You know exactly what you’re getting. On the other hand, an elegant parfait invites you to uncover its luscious secrets layer by layer.

And believe me, you’ll enjoy every scrumptious bite of this sweet potato cheesecake parfait. It’s a beautiful blend of smooth cream cheese and nutmeg-spiced sweet potatoes that are layered with vanilla-sweetened whipped cream. The top is adorned with a crown of pecans finely dusted with cinnamon.

This beauty is decadent with flavor but light enough to follow your holiday feast. And it looks like something you fussed over — even though this is one of the easiest, no-stress desserts you can make.

Plus, it’s good for your bone health. Sweet potatoes contain more bone building protein, fiber, calcium, vitamin A, and vitamin K than a pumpkin. They also boast a significant helping of manganese and vitamin C.

What better way is there to sneak in a super nutrient-rich treat that tastes as comforting as a cashmere sweater feels?

So this year, lighten your baking load. And surprise everyone at the table with an easy, irresistible, bone healthy sweet potato cheesecake parfait.

Sweet Potato Cheesecake Parfait

Sweet Potato Cheesecake Parfait Recipe

Note: This recipe gives a lot of leeway for creativity! The organic cream cheese and whipping cream can be easily replaced with plant-based products for those with dairy allergies. For a lower calorie dessert, simply reduce the amount of whipped cream you serve.
5 from 3 votes
Prep Time 45 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 4
Calories 489 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 1 lb orange sweet potato or two cups mashed sweet potato
  • 4 oz organic cream cheese
  • ½ tbsp cinnamon
  • ½ tsp nutmeg
  • ¼ tsp ground ginger
  • 2 tbsp 100% maple syrup
  • ½ cup organic heavy whipping cream
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • ½ cup chopped raw pecans plus 8 whole pecans
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • ½ tsp salt

Instructions
 

  • Peel and chop sweet potatoes into small even sized pieces for steaming. (If using mashed sweet potato, place into a large bowl and skip to step 3).
  • Place sweet potatoes and ½” of water in the bottom of a saucepan. Cover with a lid and steam on medium low heat until sweet potatoes are soft. Drain any remaining water.
  • Add cream cheese, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and maple syrup. Mix with a hand mixer until smooth and fluffy. Place mixture into the fridge to cool.
  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Mix chopped pecans with 1 tbsp of honey and a pinch of salt until all pecans are coated. Bake for 10 minutes, turning halfway.
  • In a chilled mixing bowl, combine heavy whipping cream and vanilla. Blend with a hand or stand mixer until whipped cream is light and fluffy. Place in the fridge to stay cool and set.
  • Once the sweet potato mixture is cool, layer the ingredients, starting with pecans, whipped cream, sweet potatoes, and a second layer of whipped cream. Top with whole pecans and dust with cinnamon.

Nutrition

Calories: 489kcalCarbohydrates: 52gProtein: 7gFat: 30gCholesterol: 62mgSodium: 440mgPotassium: 838mgFiber: 6gSugar: 28gVitamin A: 27733IUVitamin C: 28mgCalcium: 142mgIron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
Sweet Potato Cheesecake Parfait

Discover More Delicious, Bone-Healthy Holiday Recipes

Your holiday meal will have plenty to offer, especially when you serve an entree as delicious and upscale as this prime rib roast with a side of truffled parsnip puree.

But if you really want to end the meal on a high note, you know you have to hit your guests with a mouthwatering dessert that will leave them begging for more. Because if there’s one thing that’s truly universal, it’s that we all love dessert. It’s special. That’s why it’s saved until last.

So wow your guests with a stunning presentation of this insanely good sweet potato cheesecake parfait. With its glorious layers of decadent, homemade goodness you can be sure there’ll be plenty of special requests for you to make this treat again — and soon!

All our holiday recipes are loaded with antioxidants, protein, vitamins, and minerals. So your bones will love it as much as your taste buds.

I’d love to hear what you think about the recipe. So don’t forget to leave a comment and let me know how you enjoyed it!

To learn more about healthy aging and bone health, sign up for our newsletter and receive weekly updates and more tasty, bone-healthy recipes.

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Recipe Rating




  1. Shirley

    December 17, 2022 , 8:18 am

    I see the recipe calls for organic milk products, which thought causes inflamation. So please explain how this receipe is considered good for bone density.

  2. Chelsea Dugas

    December 20, 2022 , 1:00 pm

    Great question, Shirley! Perhaps our in-depth blog post that goes over the research on dairy and bone health will help to clarify for you! You can find it HERE. Hope this helps! 🙂

    – Chelsea @ AlgaeCal

  3. Shirley Shapiro

    January 2, 2023 , 9:09 am

    My concern about milk is not for the bones, but because I have a lung condition and milk builds up mucous.

  4. Brianne AlgaeCal

    January 3, 2023 , 10:11 am

    Hi again Shirley!

    Thanks for your follow up comment, and we are so sorry to hear that you are suffering from a lung condition!

    If you have a sensitivity to a certain food, like milk causing excess mucous in your case, then it certainly sounds like it might be best to avoid it. You can try substituting the milk products mentioned in this recipe with plant based alternatives! 🙂

    We understand that everyone’s body is different, and sometimes an individualized approach to nutrition is best to ensure that you are getting the right foods for your body!

    I hope this helps!

    – Brianne @ AlgaeCal

  5. Vera W

    December 17, 2022 , 10:35 pm

    Maybe I’m missing something but when do you layer in the cream cheese?

  6. Chelsea Dugas

    December 20, 2022 , 12:35 pm

    Hi there, Vera! You add the cream cheese in step 3 of the instructions! 🙂

    – Chelsea @ AlgaeCal

  7. Amy

    December 28, 2022 , 8:30 pm

    It appears that step three is when you make the cream cheese layer but there’s no mention of layering it in step six when you go to assemble the layers.

  8. Chelsea Dugas

    December 29, 2022 , 1:11 pm

    Hi, Amy!

    This is because, in step 3, the cream cheese, spices, and maple syrup are added directly to the sweet potatoes. So come step six, when it says to layer the pecans, then whipped cream, then sweet potatoes, and then more whipped cream, the sweet potato layer refers to the mixture that already includes the cream cheese, spices, and maple syrup. Hope that helps to clarify! 🙂

    – Chelsea @ AlgaeCal

  9. Cory

    February 13, 2023 , 4:02 pm

    You may want to add instructions on adding the cream cheese layer into the sweet potatoes in step 3. There’s no mention of it and it’s left cooling in the fridge.

  10. Chelsea Dugas

    February 15, 2023 , 11:53 am

    Thanks for reaching out, Cory! The cream cheese is at the beginning of the list in Step 3, “Add cream cheese, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and maple syrup. Mix with a hand mixer until smooth and fluffy. Place mixture into the fridge to cool.” The ingredients in step 3 are meant to be added to the sweet potatoes.

    Hope this helps to clarify! Let us know if you have any further questions! 🙂

    – Chelsea @ AlgaeCal

  11. Barbara Zap

    December 29, 2022 , 5:26 pm

    5 stars
    Everyone I served it to, LOVED IT! It is now the desert that people want me to bring to a party. They don’t believe its from sweet potatoes. So healthy for their bodies.

  12. Chelsea Dugas

    December 30, 2022 , 9:00 am

    That’s great news, Barbara! So happy to hear everyone enjoyed it and you’ve got a new favourite recipe to add to your repertoire! Be sure to try out some more yummy but healthy recipes HERE! 🙂

    – Chelsea @ AlgaeCal

  13. Donna S

    January 2, 2023 , 10:37 am

    I wish there’s wasn’t soooo much sugar in the parfaits. THAT makes it unhealthy then.
    Is THAT total sugar in the whole recipe or per parfait ?

  14. Brianne AlgaeCal

    January 3, 2023 , 10:56 am

    Hi Donna,

    Thanks so much for commenting! We can certainly understand your concerns for the sugar content! While we might not suggest eating treats like this daily, the occasional indulgence is just fine in moderation for most people. While there is certainly still sugar in this recipe, we hope you will appreciate the additional bone supporting nutrients like protein, fiber, calcium, vitamin A, and vitamin K as well in this recipe, provided by the use of sweet potato! To reduce the sugar and sweetness to your personal preference, please always feel free to adjust the amounts of honey and/or maple syrup 🙂

    The nutritional facts listed would be per serving.

    I hope this helps!

    – Brianne @ AlgaeCal

  15. Linda Potbin

    January 3, 2023 , 5:41 am

    This recipe was sent by a friend. It looks good and healthy but can’t eat this because I had my gallbladder surgically removed about 15 yrs ago and can’t eat any cream, ice cream and fried food because I’ll have digestive problems. I have to be very careful eating fast. I wish you would have bone building recipes for people without a gallbladder as there are more and more people without a gallbladder. Thank you

  16. Brianne AlgaeCal

    January 3, 2023 , 2:42 pm

    Hi Linda,

    Thank you so much not only for commenting, but your feedback. We’re so sorry that this recipe is not a good fit for you, and I have shared your feedback with our team! Although this recipe may not be something you’re comfortable tying, I have provided a link to our main recipes blog HERE for a large variety in bone supporting recipes, and we hope there is something here that might be better suited for your needs 🙂

    I hope this is helpful!

    – Brianne @ AlgaeCal

  17. Ruth Harper

    January 3, 2023 , 6:40 pm

    5 stars
    A couple of possibly useful variations to be made as a non-dairy item (years ago when my nature-based nutritionist told me “No more Dairy” as part of her plan to get rid of my arthritis, and I had replied, “Okay, except that I’ll go to my grave with butter,” she said “No problem: butter is just the fat, and we all need good fat to keep our brains working!”) She’d also said “No more baked goods, and no more meat,” so when I switched to the raw and natural greens and other vegetables and fruits as she’d recommended, and the controlled meal timing and food combinations for optimum digestion, my arthritis pains vanquished in short order!!
    Bake unpeeled sweet potatoes (Up to a week ahead of time if necessary!) at 400+ degrees on rack above the drip pan of a convection oven for approximately one hour depending on their size. The natural sugars are enhanced, and potatoes slip easily out of skins when you’re ready to use them. [You’ll probably want to make extras to serve at mealtime the day of baking because they create their own demand by smelling so great! They are excellent at lunch or supper hot with a bit of butter and salt or even cold as they come out of the fridge in a day or so! You may also use orange juice, a touch of cinnamon and vanilla (with or w/o brown sugar melted with the butter). Used as an alternative to so called “sweet potato casserole,” they also go well with pecan pieces soaked in fresh-squeezed lemon juice for a bit of gustatory excitement!

  18. Chelsea Dugas

    January 4, 2023 , 8:04 am

    Those are some great suggestions, Ruth! Thank you for sharing! 🙂

    – Chelsea @ AlgaeCal

  19. Cynthia Hovezak

    January 3, 2023 , 8:48 pm

    The sweet potato recipe looks fabulous & I’m sure it tastes divine! I’ve just purchased & am reading Sally Norton’s “Toxic Superfoods” book which delves deeply into the subject of oxalates in food which prohibit the absorption of minerals–primarily calcium–& sweet potatoes are one of the highest foods in oxalates along with spinach, chard, almonds, soy, chocolate, beets, peanuts, etc. The book is extensively researched & tells her own amazing story of becoming wheel-chair-bound by “healthy” foods then restoring her health with a low-oxalate diet. She believes that the major cause of osteoporosis is a diet high in oxalate foods. I hope you will read it soon!

  20. Chelsea Dugas

    January 5, 2023 , 1:27 pm

    Thank you for sharing, Cynthia! perhaps you would be interested in reading our article on oxalates and health HERE. Please feel free to contact our Bone Health Consultants 7 days a week at 1-800-820-0184 (USA & Canada, toll-free) or email [email protected] for more information and personalized support! 🙂

    – Chelsea @ AlgaeCal

  21. JoAnn

    January 31, 2023 , 7:24 am

    I have a tree nut allergy do you have any alternatives

  22. Brianne AlgaeCal

    January 31, 2023 , 2:18 pm

    Hi JoAnn,

    Thanks for reaching out! You could try using pumpkin or sunflower seeds as a substitute, although you may have to adjust the bake time to ensure these do not burn. Additionally, if these don’t work out, you could just skip this step altogether.

    – Brianne @ AlgaeCal

This article features advice from our industry experts to give you the best possible info through cutting-edge research.

Lara Pizzorno
MDiv, MA, LMT - Best-selling author of Healthy Bones Healthy You! and Your Bones; Editor of Longevity Medicine Review, and Senior Medical Editor for Integrative Medicine Advisors.,
Dr. Liz Lipski
PhD, CNS, FACN, IFMP, BCHN, LDN - Professor and Director of Academic Development, Nutrition programs in Clinical Nutrition at Maryland University of Integrative Health.,
Dr. Loren Fishman
MD, B.Phil.,(oxon.) - Medical Director of Manhattan Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation and Founder of the Yoga Injury Prevention Website.,
Prof. Didier Hans
PHD, MBA - Head of Research & Development Center of Bone Diseases, Lausanne University Hospital CHUV, Switzerland,