Caroline's Cooking

  • Recipe Index
  • By country or region
  • By season or holiday
  • Subscribe
  • About
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipe Index
  • By country or region
  • By season or holiday
  • Subscribe
  • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • TikTok
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipe Index
    • By country or region
    • By season or holiday
    • Subscribe
    • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • TikTok
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×
    Home » Snack recipes

    Sweet potato biscuits

    November 14, 2024 by Caroline's Cooking

    • Share
    • Reddit
    • Flipboard
    • Threads
    These sweet potato biscuits are a delicious twist on a traditional biscuit - soft, light and with a fantastic color and flavor. Easy and versatile, too.

    These sweet potato biscuits are wonderfully soft, tender, buttery and delicious. They have a fantastic color form the sweet potato in the dough which also gives a nice lightness and extra flavor. Perfect alongside a meal, to make mini sandwiches or simply to snack on.

    Jump to Recipe
    a sweet potato biscuit on plate with more biscuits in cloth in basket behind.

    This post may contain affiliate links, where we earn from qualifying purchases. See more details in the policy page.

    It's sometimes easy for me to forget that there are a number of foods I just hadn't come across (at least not with the names here) before I moved to the US. For me it's one of the best bits about living somewhere different: discovering and incorporating local ingredients and recipes.

    The same was very much true when I lived in Spain - romesco de peix (Catalan fish stew), paella and various Spanish tapas are now pretty common in our house thanks to my time there.

    five sweet potato biscuits stacked in cloth lined basket.

    Some American dishes have become regulars on our menu, including mains like pulled pork, ribs or New England stuffed clams, and sides like collards and biscuits.

    What are American bisuits?

    The name "biscuit" comes from the Latin "biscotus" which means twice baked. Italian biscotti very much follow that, and the original British biscuits were very firm and dry in order to last for a long period for those at sea. Even more modern biscuits, more like cookies, typically have that firmer texture and "snap".

    American biscuits evolved from the same idea but evolved into a lighter more bread-like item, and these days are more similar to British scones but generally savory. This article has a fascinating overview of their history.

    Sweet potato biscuits are a common variation on your basic American biscuit. Sometimes they are sweetened, other times they have a bit of added warm spice. Here I have kept things simple and relied on the natural sweetness in the sweet potatoes. They only need a handful of ingredients but the result is deliciously good.

    rubbing butter into flour in a bowl.

    Tips for making sweet potato biscuits

    While there's a little more work to these since you need to cook the sweet potato ahead of time, these biscuits are still really easy to make. You can steam the sweet potato, cook in the microwave or my preference is to roast them.

    Roasting really brings out their natural sweetness and flavor, so is well worth doing if you can. I try to either roast extra with another meal or add them in the oven if it's on already a day or two before.

    Then, the key is to work the mixture as minimally as possible.

    Rub the butter into the dry ingredients so that you still have a few lumps left in the mixture. These little lumps are what later transforms into light layers in the dough.

    sweet potato mixture on top of flour mixture in a bowl.

    Next, you thin out the sweet potato with the milk so it's all easier to incorporate into the flour-butter mixture. It might seem like it's not going to come together at first, but with a little handling it will.

    After that, fold the dough over on top of itself a couple times, which again helps with forming those layers. This also is part of the mixing rather than any more intensive kneading which would take away from the light texture. As I say, you want to handle as little as possible.

    Cut circles form the dough, bring together the scraps and cut more, as works, then bake until golden. You can also simply cut the dough into squares as suits.

    rectangle of sweet potato biscuit dough on floured board.

    The sweet potato gives these such a lovely orange color and I like that you can make them moist without needing quite as much butter as you might for plain biscuits. Although you don't want to cut it back too much as it's the butter that makes those fantastic layers.

    They have a wonderful soft texture and make the perfect accompaniment to your meal. We sometimes have them alongside some Carolina-style pulled pork or ribs, or simply snack on them as they are.

    If we have leftovers, they go in lunchboxes with cheese and/or sliced meats (although as with most baked goods, they are best fresh).

    a layered sweet potato biscuit on a plate in front of lined basket with more.

    These sweet potato biscuits are a lovely variation on a Southern classic that are delicious alongside a whole range of foods. Or you can eat them on their own as a snack. They're easy to make, quick to bake and only need a few ingredients, so you have every excuse to give them a try. Add them into regular rotation as we have!

    Try these other bready sides:

    • Chestnut bread rolls (made partly with chestnut flour, they similarly have a lovely slight sweetness)
    • Damper bread (a classic Australian quick bread, similar to a soda bread)
    • Parsnip biscuits (similar to these but made with parsnips)
    • Apple and cheddar cheese Yorkshire pudding (a tasty twist on a British classic)
    • Plus get more side dish recipes of all kinds in the archives.
    five sweet potato biscuits stacked on top of each other in cloth.
    Print Recipe
    5 from 1 vote

    Sweet potato biscuits

    These sweet potato biscuits are a lovely variation on the classic, with a light, soft texture and delicious flavor.
    Prep Time10 minutes mins
    Cook Time22 minutes mins
    Total Time32 minutes mins
    Course: Side Dish
    Cuisine: American
    Servings: 6
    Calories: 180kcal
    Author: Caroline's Cooking
    SaveSaved!

    Ingredients

    • ⅔ cup sweet potato puree from a medium sweet potato, see notes
    • 1 cup all purpose flour plain flour
    • ½ tablespoon baking powder
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • 4 tablespoon unsalted butter (4tbsp is ½ stick)
    • ¼ cup milk (or can use buttermilk)

    Instructions

    • However you have cooked the sweet potato, allow it to cool, remove the skin and mash the flesh. Try to avoid having any stringy fibers in there. Measure out quantity needed after removing skin etc.
    • Preheat oven to 400F/200C and prepare a baking sheet/tray - you can line if you like but it's not strictly needed.
    • Place the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl and stir together to mix. Cut the butter into chunks (roughly half tablespoon pieces, around 1cm cubes/short sticks) and add to the flour mixture. Toss the pieces of butter in the flour then rub them in with your finger tips - press the pieces of butter to flatten them, get them coated in flour again and press again. You should end up with a rough crumb mixture - some lumps are fine and you don't want to overmix and end up with a fine sand/gooey mixture.
    • Mix the milk into the sweet potato puree so well combined. You can add part at a time if easier. Then add this more liquid sweet potato puree to the butter and flour mixture and mix in. It may not all come together at first, but after mixing briefly, use your hands to toss and bring together.
    • Tip the mixture onto a floured surface and add in any bits that may still be in the bowl. Pat out the dough with floured hands, pressing together into a lump then flatten into a rectangle. Fold one half over on top of the other. Flatten slightly and fold again, then repeat one more time (so you fold three times - you can do one or two more if you like) Flatten out again slightly to give you a layer around ¾-1 inch /(2-2.5cm) thick.
    • Cut out circles with a cutter or glass, trying not to twist as you cut, and place the circles on the prepared baking sheet. Bring together scraps of dough, trying to handle as little as possible, and cut additional circles form the remaining dough. Alternatively, you can simply cut squares from the overall piece of dough.
    • Bake for around 12-15 minutes until risen and lightly brown. After they've been out of the oven a minute, cool on a cooling rack or even better, enjoy warm.

    Notes

    You can cook the sweet potato as you prefer - steam chunks, cook whole in the microwave or my preferred method is to bake in the oven. You can do this ahead of time and store in the fridge for a couple days, so you can take advantage if you are using the oven for something else. 
    I've made these with added herbs and/or some grated cheese as well, just for variety, though less traditional - if you add a little cheese such as parmesan, reduce the salt a little as otherwise they may be too salty. 
    You can also lightly sweeten these if you like eg around 1tbsp/15ml per recipe quantity. However given sweet potato is slightly sweet, I don't feel it's needed.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 180kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 22mg | Sodium: 214mg | Potassium: 293mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 6318IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 74mg | Iron: 1mg
    Tried this recipe?Please consider Leaving a Review!

    See some of my favorite cooking tools and ingredients in the Caroline's Cooking Amazon store. 

    Try these other takes on biscuits:

    • Buttermilk Biscuit Mixed Berry Shortcake by A Day in the Life on the Farm
    • Maple and Bacon Cheddar Buttermilk Biscuits by Making Miracles
    • Bacon Honey Mustard Biscuits by Food Lust People Love
    • Biscuit French Toast by The Freshman Cook

    This post was first shared in May 2016 and has been updated with a few recipe tweaks, additional information and new photos.

    Remember to pin for later!

    These sweet potato biscuits are a delicious twist on a traditional biscuit - soft, light and with a fantastic color and flavor. Easy and versatile, too, being great as a side to many a meal from pulled pork to Thanksgiving. They're also great to simply snack on or make into mini sandwiches.
    « Singapore laksa
    Rum old fashioned »
    • Share
    • Reddit
    • Flipboard
    • Threads

    Comments

      Leave a Reply Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Recipe Rating




      This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    1. Natalie says

      December 16, 2018 at 12:37 am

      5 stars
      I love homemade biscuits! Looks so delicious and perfect for brunch!

      Reply
      • Caroline's Cooking says

        December 18, 2018 at 11:00 pm

        Thanks, yes they'd be great for brunch.

        Reply
    2. Adrianne says

      December 15, 2018 at 11:17 pm

      Wow these are very interesting! I think they would do great on the side of a dinner dish.

      Reply
      • Caroline's Cooking says

        December 18, 2018 at 11:01 pm

        Thanks, yes we generally have them as a side but they are pretty adaptable. Enjoy!

        Reply
    3. Elaine says

      May 04, 2016 at 7:06 pm

      Your biscuits turned out perfectly!! I bet they tasted like heaven too, with the sweet potato in there!! Yum!!

      Reply
      • Caroline's Cooking says

        May 09, 2016 at 6:27 am

        Thanks so much Elaine, and yes they were pretty delicious 🙂

        Reply
    4. Teri says

      May 04, 2016 at 8:25 am

      These look wonderful. I love that you used sweet potato. A definite "must try" for me!

      Reply
    5. Rebekah says

      May 04, 2016 at 8:11 am

      Oh yum these look incredible. I've never made a sweet potato version - I need to soon!

      Reply
      • Caroline's Cooking says

        May 09, 2016 at 6:46 am

        Thanks Rebekah, yes you really should, the color is great, they're tasty (and healthier too!)

        Reply
    6. Wendy says

      May 04, 2016 at 8:04 am

      Wow, Caroline, look at the beautiful color on those biscuits. YUM

      Reply
      • Caroline's Cooking says

        May 09, 2016 at 6:45 am

        Thanks Wendy, sweet potato definitely helps give a beautiful color!

        Reply
    Caroline's Cooking

    Welcome! I'm Caroline and this is where I share recipes inspired by travels, places I want to go, or just ideas from feeding the family. Most recipes are easy to make and healthier, but there are treats too!

    Read more →

    Try these popular recipes

    • baked portobello mushrooms on plate
      Baked portobello mushrooms

    • side view of torn loaf of Japanese milk bread
      Japanese milk bread

    • Tarta de Santiago from overhead
      Tarta de Santiago (Spanish almond cake)

    • Sautéed French green beans on plate
      Sautéed French green beans

    • stacked plates with English tea sandwiches close up
      Traditional English tea sandwiches

    • Swedish cardamon buns with one on plate in front
      Swedish cardamom buns

    Recent posts

    • bowl of elote style corn black bean salad with part view of cilantro and lime in front.
      Elote-style corn and black bean salad

    • bowl of mussels in cream from overhead.
      Mussels in cream (moules à la crème)

    • close view of bowl of rhubarb ice cream.
      Rhubarb ice cream

    • close overhead view of smoked salmon pizza.
      Smoked salmon pizza

    Footer

    • Privacy Policy
    • Language and measurements
    • About Caroline's Cooking
    • Web stories

    Caroline's Cooking is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

    Copyright © Caroline's Cooking 2014 - 2025

    Rate This Recipe

    Your vote:




    A rating is required
    A name is required
    An email is required