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These Sweet Potato Rolls are soft and fluffy and so delicious. They're perfect for holiday dinners or to serve alongside winter stews. Get out the butter, kids. These dinner rolls are truly awesome.
The idea of not eating gluten would never have occured to anyone in my household growing up, and if I ever discovered I was gluten intolerant, I'd be so depressed. Freshly baked bread is one of life's great pleasures. When I was growing up, bread was part of almost every meal. Whether it was dinner rolls, biscuits, cornbread, crescent rolls from a tube or even a piece of white sandwich bread with margarine, it was always on the table.
It didn't need to be made from scratch to be awesome, but when it was, it was extra special. Even today, I absolutely love the smell of freshly baked bread. I don't bake it regularly, but when I do, I just can't stop myself. I want to eat it all. And if I'm making a special meal, fresh bread is always part of the offering.
What makes Sweet Potato Rolls so awesome?
These Sweet Potato Rolls are absolutely perfect for the holiday season when you want your meal to be extra special. They're so delicious, though, that I'm considering keeping them on rotation throughout the dark half of the year. I seriously couldn't stop eating them just on their own. They've got all the warm fluffiness of a regular dinner roll but with a hint of sweetness that just makes them extra delish.
Serve these for sopping up gravy at Thanksgiving or Christmas. Be the hero who brings delicious fresh bread to the holiday potluck. Make a double batch and turn the leftovers into a delicious bread pudding. Or do like I did and just snack on them every time you go into the kitchen. However you serve them, they will be so awesome.
Make it magical
Bread in and of itself makes an excellent offering, and a small dinner roll is easy enough to share with your ancestors, they Fey, your deities, or whoever you leave offerings to. These particular sweet potato rolls would be the perfect offering for when you're asking your spirit team for something big. If you want to sweeten the deal, call on the natural sugars in the sweet potatoes to sweeten the deal and make your petition irrestible.
For details on the magical properties of the ingredients in this recipe, check the Kitchen Magick page.
Ingredients
Here's everything you need to make this dish. All the details are in the recipe card below.
- Sweet potatoes
- Yeast - instant yeast is great
- Honey
- Olive oil
- Water - warm to the touch but not hot
- Buttermilk - or kefir
- Butter - melted
- Salt
- Flour - all-purpose or plain is ideal
- Egg
Tips for making Sweet Potato Rolls
You can either boil your sweet potatoes or roast them. I go for boiling when I want the rolls the same day. If I've planned ahead, I'll roast the sweet potatoes in the oven, then stash them, still in their skins, in the fridge until needed. Once you have cooked sweet potatoes, you want to mash them well.
Wake up your yeast by mixing it with warm water, honey, and olive oil and letting it sit for about 15 minutes. If it's not foamy, your yeast is dead and you need to get new yeast before you move on. You'll add the sweet potato and remaining wet ingredients to the bowl of your yeast mixture and stir to combine, then work in the flour until it all comes together. Knead it until smooth. I do this all in my stand mixer, but you could also do it by hand if you prefer.
It gets one rise as a big dough ball, then you'll divide your dough, form them into about 15 balls, line them up in your baking pan, and let them rise again. Brush them with an egg was before they go into the oven, then bake them until they're golden and fluffy. Serve warm with plenty of salted butter.
If you've never tried Sweet Potato Rolls before, what are you waiting for? They're about to become your new favorite.
Looking for more awesome dinner roll recipes? Try these Potato Rolls with instant mashed potatoes or some Rosemary Potato Rolls.
PrintSweet Potato Rolls
- Prep Time: 30
- Cook Time: 20
- Total Time: 240
- Yield: 15 1x
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 6 ounces peeled sweet potato, chopped
- 2-¼ teaspoons (1 packet) active dry yeast
- 2 tablespoons honey
- ½ teaspoon olive oil
- ¼ cup warm water
- ½ cup buttermilk
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 3 cups all purpose flour, plus some for surface
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
Instructions
- Place your sweet potato chunks in a pan and cover them with cold water. Boil for about 20 minutes or until fork tender. Drain and return sweet potato chunks to a bowl or your pan. Mash until smooth and set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine yeast, warm water, olive oil, and 1 tablespoon honey. If you pour your olive oil into your tablespoon measure first, and swirl it around, the honey will come out easier after it's been measured.
- Give this all a quick stir and allow it to sit for 15 minutes to get foamy.
- To your foamy yeast mixture, add your mashed sweet potatoes, remaining tablespoon of honey, buttermilk, melted butter, and salt. With your mixer on low, combine all of these ingredients.
- With your mixer still running, start adding in the flour a half cup at a time and mix until combined.
- Once all your flour is incorporated, turn off your mixer and switch out your paddle attachment for your dough hook. Use that to knead your dough for two to three minutes. It will still be quite sticky, but that's okay.
- Transfer your dough to a lightly greased bowl. Cover it with plastic wrap or a clean tea towel and set it aside in a warm place for two hours to rise.
- Turn your dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead it until smooth. Roll it out into a fat log and cut off approximately two ounce pieces, rolling them into a ball. Place your rolls into a greased 9x13 baking pan.
- Allow your dough to rise in a warm place for another 30-45 minutes.
- Preheat your oven to 375F (190 C).
- Use a pastry brush to brush the top of each roll with your beaten egg.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until lightly golden on top. Serve warm or store in an airtight container and reheat before serving.
Notes
If you want to prep ahead, you can roast your sweet potatoes in a 375 F (190 C) oven for about 45 minutes. Poke them a few times with a fork first so they don't explode.
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