Potato cinnamon rolls have the perfect soft and fluffy texture. The potato in the dough may sound strange, but I promise they are delicious. The centers are just a bit gooey, and the outside is airy, making perfect cinnamon rolls.
These potato dough cinnamon rolls are so soft and delicious. They make waking up something you will look forward to!
If you like Cinnabon cinnamon rolls, you are going to love this recipe. And if you have never used some potatoes in a yeast dough, you are just going to have to go with it for a second.
I know it sounds really strange, but I promise you the mashed potatoes don’t add any strange flavor or texture. In fact, they make the texture extra amazing.
The yeast loves that potato starch, and I think it helps to keep the cinnamon rolls soft even longer. It works in a very similar way to making potato rolls or buying potato bread.
They are the best breakfast or brunch treat you can ask for. You absolutely have to make a batch to find out for yourself!
This recipe came from Maida Heatter’s Cakes. We fell in love with this recipe back in 2015, and we still love it all these years later.
They do take a little bit of time, but no more than most recipes that include yeast. And just wait until you see the yeast react with the water you used to boil the potatoes.
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They get so happy and bubbly. It is amazing to watch them go to town.
What effect does adding potato to the dough have?
The starch in the potatoes contributes to the structure of the dough and holds more moisture than just wheat flour. Plus, it works without developing more gluten. So the end product turns out nice and light and tender.
Storage
You can store homemade cinnamon rolls at room temperature for 3-5 days. Just keep them wrapped or in an airtight container so they don’t dry out.
You can also freeze them for up to 3 months. I generally don’t recommend refrigerating baked goods unless they frosting you use requires it, as the refrigerator can dry them out and make them go stale more quickly.
Make Them The Night Before
If you don’t want to have to wake up early enough to make these potato cinnamon rolls before breakfast, you have a couple of options.
You can either go ahead and complete them the night before and just warm them a bit in the morning.
Or, you can take them to the point where you cut the log of dough into cinnamon rolls and place them on a greased pan. Then, wrap them with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator overnight.
In the morning, remove them from the oven and loosen up the cover. Allow them to sit out for about an hour before preheating the oven.
Once they have risen, go ahead and bake them as normal. They will be fabulous, and it will make the morning go a lot easier.
More Sweet Breakfast Recipes
I liked these mashed potato cinnamon rolls so much that I used the recipe as the base for my coffee and cream cinnamon buns and they were a smashing success. If you want to try a twist, check out that recipe.
At Christmastime, I like to make a cinnamon roll wreath. It feels really festive and extra fun for the holidays.
You can check out my collection of cinnamon roll recipes for more breakfast treats!
Potato Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
Dough
- 1 cup mashed potatoes plain with ¼ cup of the cooking water reserved
- 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
- 2½ teaspoons active dry yeast
- 1 cup milk
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 large egg beaten
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 to 5 cups all purpose flour plus more for rolling
Filling
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon grated nutmeg
- 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter melted
Glaze
- 2 Tablespoon unsalted butter softened
- 1½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 drops almond extract
- 3 Tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Start by getting your potatoes ready. Use as many potatoes as you think it will take to make 1 cup mashed potatoes. Peel the potato(es), cut into cubes, and boil it until soft enough to mash.
- Reserve ¼ cup of the water that you used to boil the potatoes, then discard the rest of the water. Mash the potato until smooth and measure out 1 cup.
- Stir 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar into the potato water and let cool to about 110°F. Once the water is cool enough, stir in 2½ teaspoons active dry yeast and set aside.
- Return the mashed potatoes to the saucepan. Add the 1 cup milk, 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, ½ teaspoon salt and ½ cup granulated sugar to the mashed potatoes. Stir and warm over low heat until the butter is melted.
- Place the warm potato mixture in the bowl of your mixer. Stir in the 1 large egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, and yeast mixture.
- Slowly add in 4 to 5 cups all purpose flour. You want to stop adding flour while the dough is still sticky, but it should at least come together into a loose ball. With the dough hook attachment, allow your mixer to work the dough for about 5 minutes. The dough will still be a bit tacky, but not super loose or sticky.
- Put the dough in a large greased mixing bowl. Be sure to scrape everything off of the mixer bowl and hook. Cover and allow to rise to at least double its size, about an hour.
- Punch down the dough and give it a couple of quick kneads to make sure it is deflated.
- Place on a lightly floured surface. Let rest for about 10 minutes, then use a rolling pin or your hands to form an 18″ square.
- Brush melted 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter over the dough.
- In a small bowl, mix together the 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar, 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon and ¼ teaspoon grated nutmeg. Sprinkle over dough. You can add hydrated raisins in this step if you want to.
- Roll dough into a log and cut into 12 equal pieces.
- Grease a 10x15x1-inch jelly roll pan. (You can use two 9×13-inch pans or a 13×18-inch pan. Each will have slightly different results, but all will be good.)
- Place cinnamon rolls on prepared baking dish. Cover loosely and let rise until doubled, another 45 minutes to an hour.
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Bake for 20 minutes, rotating the pan half way through. The tops should be a light golden brown. (check a few minutes early if using 9×13-inch pans or 13×18)
- Let sit for about 5 minutes, then put together the icing.
Cinnamon Roll Icing
- In a small bowl, use your hand mixer to beat together 2 Tablespoon unsalted butter, 1½ cup powdered sugar, 1 pinch salt, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 2 drops almond extract. Mix in 3 Tablespoons milk or cream. It should be a relatively thick consistency, barely thin enough to pour.
- Drizzle glaze all over warm cinnamon rolls, then let cool.
Notes
- You can use leftover mashed potatoes as long as they don’t have pepper or garlic in them.
- You can make the cinnamon rolls the night before. Take them to the point where you cut them into 12 rolls and place them on the greased pan. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. In the morning, loosen the plastic wrap and allow to sit on the counter for about an hour before heating the oven to bake them.
- We like a lot of icing on our cinnamon rolls. You can use half of the amount in the recipe if you prefer.
- Store leftovers on the counter for up to 5 days. Either wrap them or put them in an airtight container to keep the cinnamon buns from drying out. Freeze for up to 3 months.
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I just made the dough! It took a bit more flour than the recipe called for as it wouldn’t form a ball and was so sticky I couldn’t touch it. Could be the humidity! It’s rising now!!
Yay! I hope you love them as much as we do. I just made a batch yesterday, in fact! Some of it could be how much water was left in your potato as well. Enjoy!