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These Sweet Potato Rolls are so easy to make and can be prepared in advance and baked off later. Perfect for the holidays!
Sweet Dinner Rolls From Scratch
I am not a trained chef or baker. I haven’t had years of culinary school or been presented with major awards, but I still make some pretty awesome food and sometimes it turns out so good I feel like it must have been luck. In fact, I tested this one again and ate so very slowly just to think about the flavor and texture perfectly to assure it really was as awesome as I thought.
And you know what? These homemade sweet potato rolls are more than awesome, they may be my new favorite.
We’ve always been HUGE roll snobs at our house. For a long time we would only eat classic potato rolls, which even our readers and friends agree are the best ever. But after months of testing, we finally fell in love with this homemade roll recipe that is soft and delicious. And that’s it! We would only make those two recipes. Which is a good thing, because if you want to know the secret to bread or roll making, well secrets, it’s two things…
First, scalded milk. Always scald your milk. It allows for a fluffier rise and dough. And number two? Well that’s easy, practice makes perfect. And I don’t just mean looks. Practicing bread making only gets you better and better at making the stuff. But these rolls? You really don’t “knead” to do much at all. Ha! I’m so funny.
But really, I don’t knead them at all and they are so light and airy and the flavor is just fantastic. Plus they look beautiful, which is always a crowd pleaser. K, now that I’ve rambled enough, pin this sucker and those other recipes and get baking. I expect lots of good comments about how much you love these!
What’s Needed for Sweet Potato Rolls?
To make these easy dinner rolls, you’ll need the following ingredients:
- Milk
- Granulated sugar
- Unsalted butter
- Dry active yeast
- Bread flour
- Kosher salt
- Vital wheat gluten
- Baked and mashed sweet potato
- Egg
How to Make Sweet Potato Rolls
These are yeast dinner rolls, which means they require a couple hours to rise. I’ve given detailed instructions in the recipe card below on how to make this recipe, but here’s an overview of the steps:
- Make the dough. I used a standing mixer, but you can use a wooden spoon and some upper body strength.
- Cover the dough and let it rise for 1 to 2 hours.
- Once risen, turn the dough onto a floured surface. Roll out and cut into 2-inch pieces.
- Gently roll the pieces into balls, then place on a greased cookie sheet.
- Let the rolls rise a second time.
- Bake until done.
How to Shape Dinner Rolls
In case you want to learn a fool proof way to shape your rolls, just watch this video.
[faq]
Can Dinner Roll Dough Be Frozen?
Yes, the best way to freeze bread or roll dough is to let it rise, shape the dough into loaves or rolls, and freeze. Place the shaped dough on a cookie sheet, (make sure to leave space between the rolls or loaves) and freeze.
Once frozen, transfer to freezer bags and store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
How to Reheat Dinner Rolls
These sweet dinner rolls can be reheated in the oven.
- Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat to 350°F.
- Place rolls in a baking dish and brush with melted butter, cover with foil and bake until warm.
The slow cooker is also a brilliant way to reheat rolls.
- Put a kitchen towel in the slow cooker, and place the rolls inside.
- Cover and cook for about 30 minutes.
You can also reheat rolls in the microwave.
- Arrange rolls on a microwave-safe plate.
- Cover the rolls with a slightly damp, clean kitchen towel.
- Wrap the entire plate in a dry towel.
- Microwave until just warmed through, 30 to 45 seconds.
Can I Prep Dinner Rolls in Advance?
- You can make the dough, wrap in plastic wrap in the bowl, and let sit in the fridge overnight. Then, allow to come back to room temperature for an hour or two and proceed as normal.
- You can also make the dough, roll out into rolls on the pan, and cover with plastic wrap in the fridge. Then, let rest at room temp for an hour or two in a warm place and bake as normal.
- Or you can bake them completely the day before, leave them on the pan and cover with foil once cool, and then reheat with the foil over them in a 350F oven until warm. 🙂
[/faq]
Tips for Making Sweet Potato Rolls
- If you’ve never used vital wheat gluten before, it’s generally in the baking aisle by the yeast. Most specialty stores like Good Earth or Whole Foods tend to carry it as well.
- If you don’t have cooked sweet potato on hand, you could substitute pure pumpkin puree in this recipe.
- If you don’t have bread flour, all-purpose may be substituted. Just be sure to sift the flour first to keep these rolls ultra light and fluffy.
More EASY BREAD Recipes You’ll Love:
- Homemade Baguette
- Garlic Parmesan Focaccia
- Buttermilk Biscuits
- Skillet Cornbread
- Homemade Naan
- Best Potato Rolls
- Feta Muffins
- Easy No Knead Artisan Bread
- One Hour Rolls
- 7-Up Biscuits
- Whole Wheat Potato Rolls
- Herbed Focaccia Bread
- Cheesy Ranch Rolls
- All our BREAD RECIPES here!
Homemade Sweet Potato Rolls
Ingredients
- 2/3 Cup Milk
- 5 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter, diced
- 3 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar
- 1 teaspoon Dry Active Yeast
- 2 3/4 Cup Bread Flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt, (or 3/4 teaspoon sea salt)
- 1 teaspoon Vital Wheat Gluten, (keep away from the salt when dumping in)
- 1 Cup Sweet Potato, baked and mashed with skins removed (about 1 large sweet potato)
- 1 Large Egg with 1/2 Tablespoon Egg White Removed
- Butter , for tops after baking
Instructions
- In a glass measuring cup, microwave the milk for 90 seconds, but do not allow to boil.2/3 Cup Milk
- Remove from microwave and add the butter to the milk.5 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter
- Stir to combine and allow the butter to completely melt.
- Once it is warm but not hot, add the sugar and yeast and set aside.3 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar, 1 teaspoon Dry Active Yeast
- In the bowl of a standing mixer, add the flour, salt, vital wheat gluten on the opposite side of the bowl as the salt, and mix with a paddle attachment or stir by hand.2 3/4 Cup Bread Flour, 1 1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt, 1 teaspoon Vital Wheat Gluten
- Add the yeast mixture, sweet potato and egg.1 Cup Sweet Potato, 1 Large Egg with 1/2 Tablespoon Egg White Removed
- Mix again just until the dough comes together and then switch to the dough hook and mix for 90 seconds.
- Drape a light towel or saran wrap over the bowl and allow to rise for 1-2 hours.
- Sprinkle the counter lightly with flour and turn the very soft dough out.
- Sprinkle the top with a little more flour and roll out to about 1/4-inch thick rectangle.
- Starting at the end closest to you, pinch the dough closed and tightly roll into a log.
- Cut about 2-inch pieces and using the palm of your hand, gently roll the dough into balls. (Watch the video in the post for additional help.)
- Place on a greased cookie sheet and cover with another towel or saran wrap.
- Allow to rise for 1-2 hours.
- Heat the oven to 350 degrees F and bake for 18-20 minutes, then quickly brush the tops with more butter and serve.Butter
Recipe Notes
- You can make the dough, wrap in plastic wrap in the bowl, and let sit in the fridge overnight, then allow to come back to room temperature for an hour or two and proceed as normal.
- You can also make the dough, roll out into rolls on the pan and cover with plastic wrap in the fridge, then let rest at room temp for an hour or two in a warm place and bake as normal.
- Or you can bake them completely the day before, leave them on the pan and cover with foil once cool and then reheat with the foil over them in a 350F oven until warm.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I made these last Thanksgiving and they were AMAZING! My family has been requesting them ever since! Last year I did not host the holiday but I am this year. I want to surprise them with these rolls but will not have time to make them on Thanksgiving morning with all the other prepping / cooking going on. Do you think they would be as good if I made them the day before and gently reheated them in the oven the next day? What would be the best way to reheat them? I want them to be soft and not “toasted”. In a pan covered with tinfoil on low heat?
Thanks!
Hi Karen! I’m so happy to hear that! You have two options, you can make the dough, roll out into rolls on the pan and cover with plastic wrap in the fridge then let rest at room temp for an hour or two in a warm place and bake as normal, or you can bake them completely the day before, leave them on the pan and cover with foil once cool and then reheat with the foil over them in a 350 oven until warm. 🙂
I’m going to try to make them for Thanksgiving. Thank you for your recipe
Enjoy! You’re going to love them!
Seriously: best rolls ever! I just made them because my daughter asked for them; they are so easy to make and SO FLUFFY!!! I was thinking we wouldn’t be able to eat them all and I would take them to work, but forget it! Lol. Thank you! Also, thank you for the video!
YAAAAAY!!! Haha, We are all about holding these rolls for your family and not sharing with work. 🙂
Do they stay soft after a day? I tried lots of recipes but they become hard after a day…
I do not know what “vital wheat gluten” is … Is it in the baking (flour, sugar, etc aisle), in a jar/bottle? Or is it something I have to find at a specialty store, if so what kind of store? Thank You!
Hi Leslie, if all else fails you can skip it and just stir the dough with a wooden spoon versus the kitchenaid just to keep them extra fluffy. Generally it’s in the baking aisle by the yeast, and most specialty store like Good Earth or Whole Foods tend to carry it as well.
I saw several people ask about bread machines above, so I thought that I would let you know that I have used this recipe in a bread machine on the dough setting a couple of times and it turns out great (I have never actually baked it in the machine because I have a 2 year old who likes to hold rolls in his hand, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t be fine). I also used honey instead of sugar, coconut oil instead of butter, and purple sweet potatoes instead of orange because those are what was in my cupboard at the time, and they all worked great. Thanks for a wonderful recipe – a go to family fave in our house!
Kiralynn, Thank you so so much for taking the time to help everyone out! xoxo
Your recipes never disappoint! This is definitely no exception. I made these rolls for company a few days ago and they were amazing! Light and fluffy, and such a beautiful color! Delicious all the way around. I tried to follow the recipe exactly, but my 2 year old LOVES to help me bake, so he was standing next to me and decided to add an extra tablespoon or so of sugar! Haha I can’t imagine it made a huge difference. Anyway, this is now my go-to dinner roll recipe! Plus they’re delicious toasted with jelly the next day!
Oh I am so glad to hear that!! I agree, the color really does end up so pretty, right? Thanks Rebecca!
Could you substitute pumpkin for the sweet potatoes?
Yes, just make sure it’s a good quality of pumpkin and careful not to add pumpkin pie puree. 🙂
I was wondering if you could make them in a bread machine? also wondering if I took half the bread flour and replaced it with cake flour? did like half cake flour half bread flour? I am out of all purpose flour atm that’s the only two flours I have in my house atm.
I am not sure about the cake flour as it’s a lighter flour than AP. Also, I don’t use a bread machine so I’m not sure if it would work. I’m sorry, I was no help at all. I’ll have to experiment a bit. 🙂
Hi I love this recipe, it looks so soft and delicious 🙂
Just wondering, what type of sweet potato did you use? I live in Asia and we typically have three types of sweet potato, the purple (yam), yellow and orange one. I’m not quite sure which one you used in this recipe and I wonder if the type of sweet potato will affect the end result. Thanks for the great recipe!
Thank you for checking, it’s an orange sweet potato. 🙂 I’d be curious how the purple would turn out though. Wish I had some to experiment with!
I plan to make this recipe for Easter. I’ve baked with the purple sweet potatoes before, and find them most often superior in texture to the orange and yellow varieties for this purpose. It mashes so creamy- almost no threadings- and the flavor is richer. The only reason I would sub another kind for my baking and pies would be the price (purple is still new on the scene here in the southwest and tends to be $$$) Hope that helps
Oh awesome! Cannot wait to try that plus the color must be awesome!
Well, I hate being one of those cooks who changed things, but I used what I had. Outcome: Awesome! Some changes: Used almond milk, regular white flour and about 1/3 King Arthur Whole Wheat White, thru all other ingredients unchanged in a bowl and mixed it up. Kneaded a few minutes on the counter (no machines) then put in the fridge overnight to rise. The next AM I rolled them out (net was 16 rolls) and they were wetter than normal dough, but that was OK. I then baked at 390 for 7 minutes. They are heaven! I bake a lot, always trying new (easy) things and this gave me the perfect “puffy bun” we like around here. They should make pillows with these….
haha, yes they should make pillows with this. Now that’s my kind of sleep! Glad the changes worked out!