Mbatata (Malawi)

First vegan entry! The main ingredient? Sweet, sweet potato. Malawi, the home of highland and freshwater lake (Lake Malawi takes up almost one third of the country!), is known as the "warm heart of Africa". Poverty can't take away the smiles and friendliness of Malawians, or their sweet taste in cookies. Traditionally, the cookies are cut in heart shape to commemorate the Malawians. 

Now, I have a confession. I'm convinced that I eff'ed this one up. Vegan baking is definitely out of my comfort zone (no butter, no eggs, no dairy, no confidence), and I had so many questions while making this one. Is the dough supposed to be so sticky? Why do the cookies puff up so much in the oven? Do they just turn back into potatoes?! We may never know the answer, so you'll just have to start saving your air miles for Malawi and let the warm locals bake you some.