Potato cinnamon rolls are soft, pillowy sweet rolls with a special ingredient – mashed potatoes and are finished with a sweet cream cheese frosting.
Potato Cinnamon Rolls
Potato cinnamon rolls are soft, pillowy sweet rolls with a special ingredient – mashed potatoes. You can’t even tell there are mashed potatoes in these old-fashioned cinnamon rolls. Why does this recipe use mashed potatoes? The starch in the mashed potatoes makes this cinnamon roll dough incredibly soft, pillowy and fluffy when baked. Leftover mashed potatoes are great for this recipe for this reason, since you only need a small amount. These cinnamon rolls are finished with a sweet cream cheese frosting, making these rolls the ultimate, flavorful breakfast or brunch treat. Be sure to read the tips below, since this recipe does require some planning ahead (but is well worth the extra time).
How to Make Potato Cinnamon Rolls
Plan ahead to make these potato cinnamon rolls since the dough needs to chill a minimum of 12 hours (or overnight) before use. There are also several options for making this recipe, since it makes around 30 potato cinnamon rolls (be sure to read the tips below!)
Ingredients for the dough:
- 1 pkg (1/4 oz) active dry yeast
- 1/2 cup warm water (110-115°F)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2/3 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup mashed potatoes * (you want a creamy consistency, no large chunks)
- 6 – 6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
Ingredients for the filling:
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup dark brown sugar
- 2 1/2 Tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
Ingredients for the cream cheese frosting:
- 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
- 1/3 cup unsalted butter
- Pinch of salt
- Powdered sugar (around 2-3 cups)
- Pinch of ground cinnamon
Instructions for the dough:
Dissolve yeast in the warm water with a pinch of the granulated sugar. Allow to sit until it begins to become foamy. In a large mixing bowl, combine the sugar, salt, butter and potatoes. Add in the yeast mixture and the eggs. Stir in 2 cups of the flour; beat this mixture for 2 minutes or until smooth.
Slowly add in the rest of the flour, adding enough of the flour to make the dough easy to handle (you may not need the last 1/2 cup). Turn out onto a floured surface and knead 7-8 minutes, or until elastic and smooth. Alternately, knead with the hook attachment on a stand mixer for 2 minutes on the stir setting. Place in a greased bowl, cover tightly and place in refrigerator to rise overnight (or a minimum of 12 hours).
Instructions for assembly and frosting:
Remove from refrigerator and allow to sit at room temperature for 15-20 minutes to make it easier to roll out. Separate the dough into 2 portions. Grease 2-9”x13” baking pans. On a floured surface, roll each portion of the dough into a large rectangle. In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine the filling of the dark brown sugar, cinnamon and flour.
Spread each rectangle with half of the softened butter and sprinkle with half of the cinnamon mixture. Roll each rectangle up and cut into rolls; place rolls in to the prepared pans. Cover and allow to rise in a warm place until the rolls have doubled in size.
Bake at 375°F for 20-25 minutes, or until the edges of the rolls become golden. Combine the ingredients for the cream cheese frosting, adding in 3 cups of the powdered sugar for a thicker frosting and 2 cups for a thinner frosting. Allow to cool on a wire rack until warm; spread warm (but not hot) rolls with the cream cheese frosting.
Tips for Potato Cinnamon Rolls
- Leftover mashed potatoes work great for this! Make sure they are creamy, without large chunks.
- Alternately, can portion off a part of the dough and return the remaining dough to the refrigerator; this will keep up to 5 days
- You can freeze the dough before baking before the 2nd rise; they will keep in freezer up to 4 weeks
- To use frozen, allow to thaw in refrigerator and then let sit at room temperature at least 1 hour; then bake according to instructions
- Baked, frozen rolls will keep up to 4 months, if sealed. To reheat: thaw completely and then reheat about 10 minutes in a 325 F oven. If reheating from a frozen state, increase baking time by 10-15 minutes until heated through. Store baked rolls in an airtight container, up to 72 hours.
- Want more of a glaze than a frosting? Half the recipe for the cream cheese frosting and add more milk to thin it out; then drizzle over the baked cinnamon rolls.
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Want more yeast roll recipes? Check out these recipes:
Potato Cinnamon Rolls
Equipment
- mixing bowls of various sizes
- Rolling Pin
Ingredients
For the dough
- 1 (1/4 oz) pkg active dry yeast
- 1/2 cup warm water (warmed to 110-115° F)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2/3 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup mashed potatoes * see tips below
- 6 – 6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling surface
For the filling
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup dark brown sugar
- 2 1/2 Tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
For the cream cheese frosting
- 8 oz. cream cheese
- 1/3 cup unsalted butter
- 2 cups powdered sugar, can increase to 3 cups for a thicker frosting
- 1 pinch of ground cinnamon
- 1 pinch of salt
Instructions
For the dough
- Dissolve yeast in the warm water with a pinch of the granulated sugar. Allow to sit until it begins to become foamy.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the sugar, salt, butter and mashed potatoes. Add in the yeast mixture and the eggs. Stir in 2 cups of the flour; beat this mixture for 2 minutes or until smooth.
- Slowly add in the rest of the flour, adding enough of the flour to make the dough easy to handle (you may not need the last 1/2 cup).
- Turn out onto a floured surface and knead 7-8 minutes, or until elastic and smooth. Alternately, knead with the hook attachment on a stand mixer for 2 minutes on the stir setting.
- Place in a greased bowl, cover tightly and place in refrigerator to rise overnight (or a minimum of 12 hours).
For the filling and assembly
- Remove dough from refrigerator and allow to sit at room temperature for 15-20 minutes to make it easier to roll out. Separate the dough into 2 portions. Grease 2 – 9”x13” baking pans.
- On a floured surface, roll each portion of the dough into a large rectangle. In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine the filling of the dark brown sugar, cinnamon and flour.
- Spread each rectangle with half of the softened butter and sprinkle with half of the cinnamon mixture.
- Roll each rectangle up and cut into rolls; place rolls in to the prepared pans. Cover and allow the rolls to rise in a warm place until double in size, around 1 hour.
- Bake at 375°F for 25-30 minutes, or until the edges of the rolls become golden.
- Allow to cool on a wire rack until warm; combine the ingredients for the cream cheese frosting and beat until smooth. Use the entire 3 cups of powdered sugar for a thicker frosting, only use 2 cups for a thinner frosting.
- Spread warm (but not hot) rolls with the cream cheese frosting before serving.
Notes
- Leftover mashed potatoes work great for this! Make sure they are creamy, without large chunks.
- Alternately, can portion off a part of the dough and return the remaining dough to the refrigerator (this will keep up to 5 days).
- You can freeze the dough before baking before the 2nd rise (will keep in freezer up to 4 weeks).
- To use frozen, allow to thaw in refrigerator and then let sit at room temperature at least 1 hour. Then bake according to instructions.
- Baked, frozen rolls will keep up to 4 months, if sealed. To reheat: thaw completely and then reheat about 10 minutes in a 325 F oven. If reheating from a frozen state, increase baking time by 10-15 minutes until heated through. Store baked rolls in an airtight container, up to 72 hours.
- Want more of a glaze than a frosting? Half the recipe for the cream cheese frosting and add more milk to thin it out; then drizzle over the baked cinnamon rolls.
[…] best. I also added a little flour to stabilize the cinnamon cardamom filling, as I do with my potato cinnamon rolls. Be sure to read the tips below for freezing and storage […]