Sweet Potato Dinner Rolls
Southern-Style Sweet Potato Rolls are soft and fluffy dinner rolls perfect for the holidays – especially Thanksgiving. Pair it with our homemade honey rum butter for a decadent and delicious side dish that tastes like it came straight from a bakery.
Sweet Potato Bread Rolls Recipe
This homemade sweet potato rolls recipe is my favorite way to use up a bit of leftover mashed sweet potatoes. (Often, I’ll try to make too much mashed sweet potatoes so that I have an excuse to make them!)
They are tender with a slightly crisp and chewy crust, while the gorgeous warming spices of cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger play off the natural earthy sweetness of the sweet potatoes making for a wonderfully satisfying side.
Sweet potato rolls are perfect alongside everything from soups and stews to a steak dinner – or, of course, alongside a traditional Thanksgiving spread. My daughter insists that they are the perfect vessel for sausage gravy in the morning. (Although to be fair, she’d eat sausage gravy off a shoe.)
The sweet potato is undetectable and just lends an earthy sweetness, similar to how pumpkin acts in baked goods. This allows you to use pumpkin puree, regular mashed potatoes or butternut squash in place of the sweet potatoes, if desired.
A bonus of making these homemade sweet potato rolls is that they make the house smell amazing with the fragrant spices and that mouth-watering smell of freshly baked bread.
Sweet Potato Roll Variations:
- canned sweet potatoes add a caramelized flavor
- use pumpkin puree, regular mashed potatoes or butternut squash in place of the sweet potatoes
- instead of the honey rum butter, serve alongside our whipped cinnamon honey butter
- shape these sweet potato buns into differently shaped rolls – knotted dinner rolls, crescents, etc.
How to make different shaped sweet potato dinner rolls:
Knotted Dinner Rolls can be made by dividing the dough into 24 pieces, rolling each piece into a log (or snake) shape and then tying in a knot.
Crescents can be made by dividing the dough in half, rolling each half into a circle and cutting into triangles (like a pizza). Roll the large edge of the triangle towards the smaller tip, just like you do when rolling pre-made crescent roll dough.
Cloverleaf (Shamrock) Dinner Rolls can be made by dividing each of the 16 portions of dough into either 3 or 4 smaller balls, then placing those 3-4 balls of dough together in a greased muffin tin.
How to store sweet potato dinner rolls: Store the rolls in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
How to freeze sweet potato dinner rolls: To freeze these sweet potato dinner rolls, store in ziptop freezer bags or airtight freezer containers and enjoy within 2 months. (This set of freezer containers is a crazy bargain.)
More Homemade Bread Roll Recipes:
Sweet Potato Roll Ingredients
- All-purpose flour
- White sugar
- Quick yeast
- Salt
- Cinnamon
- Nutmeg
- Ginger
- Milk
- Unsalted butter
- Eggs, divided
- Water
- Sweet potato puree
Honey Rum Butter Ingredients:
Scroll down to the printable recipe card for full measurements.
Tip: use pumpkin puree, regular mashed potatoes or butternut squash in place of the sweet potatoes.
Kitchen Tools You May Find Helpful
- Measuring Cups and Spoons
- Mixing Bowl
- Whisk
- 9″ x 13″ Casserole Dish <– I love these Pyrex dishes with fitted lids for easy transportation to parties or leftover storage
- Pastry brush <– I like these because they are one solid piece and don’t have removable heads for bacteria to get trapped underneath. Plus they are heat-resistant and have a lifetime warranty.
How to Make Sweet Potato Rolls
Whisk 1 cup flour, sugar, yeast, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger in a large bowl.
Heat milk and butter in microwave 30-40 seconds until warm, between 90-100F.
Pour into dry ingredients along with 1 egg and sweet potato puree.
Add in 2 cups flour and mix until combined.
Use hands when stirring with utensil becomes too difficult.
Knead in bowl and add flour if needed until dough doesn’t stick to a clean, dry finger.
Cover the bowl and rest for 10 minutes.
Flour surface and turn dough out into center.
Shape to square, cut into four smaller squares then repeat on each square for a total of 16 rolls.
Shape each roll by tucking the dough underneath itself forming a tight ball with a smooth surface.
Place in greased 13×9 pan and preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Cover pan and rest for 30 minutes.
Whisk remaining egg with 2 teaspoons of water and brush each roll.
Bake 20-25 minutes
Mix butter ingredients and brush onto baked rolls.
Serve and enjoy!
Grab your free printable recipe card for our homemade sweet potato rolls recipe:
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Southern-Style Sweet Potato Rolls
Ingredients
Sweet Potato Roll Ingredients:
- 3 ½ - 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon white sugar
- 1 packet quick yeast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ginger
- ½ cup milk
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 eggs, divided
- 2 teaspoons water
- 1 cup sweet potato puree
Honey Rum Butter Ingredients:
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, soft
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons rum
Instructions
- Whisk 1 cup flour, sugar, yeast, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger in a large bowl.
- Heat milk and butter in microwave 30-40 seconds until warm, between 90-110F.
- Pour into dry ingredients along with 1 egg and sweet potato puree.
- Add in 2 cups flour and mix until combined.
- Use hands when stirring with utensil becomes too difficult.
- Knead in bowl and add flour if needed until dough doesn’t stick to a clean, dry finger.
- Cover the bowl and rest for 10 minutes.
- Flour surface and turn dough out into center.
- Shape to square, cut into four smaller squares then repeat on each square for a total of 16 rolls.
- Shape each roll by tucking the dough underneath itself forming a tight ball with a smooth surface.
- Place in greased 13x9 pan and preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Cover pan and rest for 30 minutes.
- Whisk remaining egg with 2 teaspoons of water and brush each roll.
- Bake 20-25 minutes.
- Mix butter ingredients and brush onto baked rolls.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
16Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 440Total Fat: 3gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 28mgSodium: 152mgCarbohydrates: 88gFiber: 4gSugar: 2gProtein: 13g
Sugar, Spice and Glitter uses an auto-generate nutrition calculator. Nutrition information isn’t always accurate unless analyzed in a scientific lab, so these should be considered more of a guideline than medical information.
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