Mile-high sweet potato biscuits are everything you want in a biscuit: tender, fluffy, buttery, and incredibly delicious.
When Alex and I started dating, I was living in Chicago while he was living in Iowa, about 3 hours away. The first weekend he stayed with me in Chicago, I made sweet potato biscuits for breakfast on Sunday morning before he left.
It was soon after this that I met his family (and discovered that he had already told them that I made the best biscuits he had ever had) and our relationship really took off.
Listen, I’m not saying that these biscuits are what made him fall in love with me, but I’m not totally ruling it out either.
What I do know for sure is that every time I make this recipe, they are gobbled up in no time. That’s good enough for me!
Fluffy sweet potato biscuits
I really love biscuits. If I’m out to breakfast and I have the option to get a biscuit as my “toast” alongside whatever I’ve ordered, it’s an easy yes for me.
I’m not even particularly picky about my biscuits. I’ll happily eat the canned Pillsbury Grands biscuits! But there really is not much better than a good batch of homemade biscuits.
Drop biscuits are always welcome – I pretty much grew up on homemade Red Lobster biscuits, after all. But there’s something really special about a rolled biscuit.
These sweet potato biscuits are everything you love about a traditional rolled buttermilk biscuit: they’re tall, fluffy, and buttery. But a little bit of sweet potato puree also helps keep them super tender and adds just a hint of sweetness to them.
How to make my sweet potato biscuits
If you’ve never made rolled biscuits before, don’t panic. They’re not very difficult and you’ll be rewarded with some of the best biscuits ever!
Ingredients you’ll need
Similar to recipes like homemade pie crust, biscuits don’t require a lot of ingredients. You’ll need:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/4 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
- 1/2 cup cooked and mashed sweet potato
- 1 cup buttermilk
There are a lot of biscuit recipes that call for self-rising flour. But I don’t always have that on hand, and (maybe controversially) don’t think it’s required to make these sweet potato biscuits amazing. All-purpose flour works great!
Make sure your butter is cold. This is gonna help you get those fluffy layers that we love.
You’ll need 1/2 cup of mashed sweet potato. Just like when I’m making sweet potato pie, I usually poke a large sweet potato all over with a fork and microwave it until tender.
You can also roast the sweet potatoes in the oven or peel, cube, and boil them until soft.
Scoop out the cooked sweet potato flesh, mash it, and let it cool before using it in the recipe. You could also run the cooked sweet potato through a food processor for a smoother puree.
No buttermilk on hand? Add 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice to a measuring cup, then add enough milk to fill to the 1-cup line. Let this mixture sit for 5-10 minutes and you can use it as a buttermilk substitute.
Making this recipe
Start by sifting or whisking together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.
Add the butter pieces to the bowl and use a pastry blender to cut the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles a coarse meal with a few pea-sized pieces of butter throughout.
In a separate bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the sweet potato puree and the buttermilk. Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture and stir until just combined. Don’t over mix!
Turn the dough out onto a clean, floured surface. The dough is probably going to be sticky, but just dust it with some flour and it’ll be ok.
Use your hands to bring the dough into a ball, the pat it out into a disk. Fold the circle in half, turn it 90 degrees, and pat it out again. Make sure to lightly flour the dough as needed.
Fold the circle in half again and repeat this process one more time. All of these folds are going to help create the flaky layers in the biscuits.
After the last fold, roll or pat the dough out to 1-inch thick. Use a biscuit cutter to cut the dough by pressing the cutter straight down, then twisting to remove the biscuit.
Re-roll the dough as needed to get 8-9 biscuits; just keep in mind that re-rolled biscuits don’t get as much “lift” as the first ones do.
Place the sweet potato biscuits in a 10-inch ungreased cast iron skillet or close together on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 425℉ for 12-14 minutes, or until the tops are golden.
Serving suggestions
In my opinion, there’s no bad time to chow down on these sweet potato biscuits.
Obviously they’re perfect for breakfast. Eat them plain, with butter, topped with topped with sausage gravy, or slathered in cinnamon honey butter or persimmon butter!
They’re also a great side dish for everything from a weeknight bowl of quick and easy tortellini soup to your Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Easter dinners alongside the turkey or boneless leg of lamb. If you serve them at the holidays, I suggest making a double batch – they’ll disappear FAST!
Make-ahead and storage tips
Sweet potato biscuits are always best the same day that they’re made, but you can keep the leftovers in a zip-top bag at room temperature for up to 3 days.
If you want to warm the leftover biscuits, your best bet is to pop them into a toaster oven for a bit. You can also microwave them for 15-30 seconds, but make sure you don’t microwave them for too long or they’ll become tough.
If you want to make the biscuits ahead of time, turn to your freezer!
Make the biscuit dough as written, all the way through cutting the biscuits out. Place the cut, unbaked biscuits on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Freeze for 1-2 hours, or until frozen solid.
Place the frozen biscuits into a zip-top freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months.
When you’re ready to enjoy, take out as many of the sweet potato biscuits as you’d like. Bake at 425℉ as directed; you may need to add a few extra minutes of baking time, but that will depend on your oven.
Sweet Potato Biscuits
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter cold, cut into pieces
- 1/2 cup cooked and mashed sweet potato
- 1 cup buttermilk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425℉.
- In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- Cut the butter into the dry ingredients with a pastry cutter until the mixture resembles a coarse meal with a few pea-sized pieces of butter remaining.
- In a large measuring cup, whisk together the sweet potato and the buttermilk. Pour into the dry ingredients and stir to combine, just until barely combined.
- Turn the dough out onto a floured surface. Dough may be sticky; if so, lightly flour the top of the dough. Use your hands to bring the dough into a ball, then gently pat into a disk. Fold dough in half, turn it 90 degrees, and pat out again, flouring the dough as needed. Fold in half again. Repeat this process 1 more time. After the last fold, roll dough to 1-inch thick. Cut with a biscuit cutter; press cutter straight down, then twist to remove the biscuit. Re-roll dough as necessary, noting that rerolled biscuits will not get quite as much “lift” as the first batch. Cut 8-9 biscuits.
- Place cut biscuits in a 10-inch ungreased cast iron skillet, or close together on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 12-14 minutes, or until golden on top.
Good grief. I just started getting teary-eyed reading this and I knew what was coming. Sigh. Oh, and for anyone reading this, these biscuits are her dad’s favorite biscuit EVER, and that’s saying a lot. I’m pretty attached to them, too.
I love you, but you need help.
I am so happy for you!! I got a little teary eyed as well. Being a Mom, I can fully understand where your Mom is coming from.
Thanks, Deana!
I agree with you, Julie.
I got a little teary eyed myself.
And, yes, I guess I need help as well — Stephie 🙂
Combining our two crazy families will be an adventure!!
Plus — lots of fun!!
I totally agree! She’ll understand someday. 😉 We had so much fun on Saturday….looking forward to combining the families, for sure!
Oh I’ve known from the outset that you need help, too. 😉
It’ll be one of the best adventures ever!
Congratulations Stephie!!! Love he asked you on a pier, by the water, so romantic. Your ring looks somewhat like Duchess Kate’s and it is beautiful!! I like sweet potatoes and I like biscuits, so I am going to have to make them and see what all the raves are about!!
Thank you, Terry! We could see the whole city lit up and were the only ones out there. It was perfect. 🙂 hope you love the biscuits as much as we do!
Woot woot! Congrats Stephie! Such exciting news! I guess I’m going to have to make these man-bait biscuits…:-).
Thanks, Liz! Just be prepared for the flood of men when you do 😉
Congratulations. Your ring is gorgeous. I wish you and Alex health and happiness and love for many years to come.
And OH, those biscuits!
Thank you so much, Karen!
Congrats, sweet girl! So excited for you and Alex to start on this adventure. Marriage is the most fun, funniest, hardest, sweetest thing I’ve ever done, and I hope it’s just as much for you. Now, about those biscuits.. I NEED THEM in my life!
Thank you, Amber! Looking forward to embarking on this next adventure.
Congratulations!!! Your ring is stunning! I may need to make these magical biscuits myself soon 🙂
Do it. Bait those men!
Congratulations, Stephie! Wonderful news, and I LOVE your ring! You could market your biscuits to women who want to have their boyfriends propose to them! No? 😉 Have fun planning your wedding!
Thank you so much, Christina!
YAYYYY!!!! So, so happy for you two. 🙂 And about these biscuits. Which will soon be making an appearance in my life/kitchen/belly.
Make some gravy with them. NOM.
Congratulations and many many years of happiness and amazing meals. LOVE the ring!
Thank you, Mary!
So happy for you!!!!!
Thank you, Amy!! 🙂
Baaaaaah, I just got teary eyed reading that first paragraph. Sooooo happy. I remember these biscuits. I Remember you talking about how long it had taken to perfect the recipe. I think it speaks volumes that the perfect recipe was made for Alex. I wanna call these mile high biscuits, soooo tall and fluffy.
Better bring a hankie to the wedding, then 😉
1-EEEEEEE SO SO EXCITED FOR YOU!
2-Let me know if you want planning tips!
3- *jaw drops *THIS APRIL??! whoaaaa is that soon! That’s sooner than my wedding! I can’t believe you’re going to be a wifey in only 5 months! <3
4-YUM TO THE TALL DELISH BISCUITS
Haha, there was a venue I adored with the April date available, so we snatched it up! Momma has been helping with a lot. We already have photographer, florist, DJ, and bakery lined up. Oh, and I got my dress on Saturday and we picked out invitations recently as well! Bing, bam, boom.
Hi, these worked out quite nicely. I mixed everything together as stated, but instead of turning out the dough onto a floured surface, I put a little oil in my hand and scooped out a small handful and flattened a bit with my hand, and folded and turned 90° about 3 times. Then I just lightly pressed into a disk and placed onto my baking sheet. They baked and rose nicely. This saves me the trouble of additional mess, plus no dough wasted. Yielded 9 good sized biscuits and I could see the layers as I ate one.
I am so glad you enjoyed them! And that’s a great trick, especially for anyone short on space or without a biscuit cutter. Thanks for sharing!
Congratulations!!!!!!!! And I so would not discount these biscuits, they look light and fluffy and perfect! BTW, pretty ring!
Thanks, Kari! Carbs are a magical, powerful thing, no? 😉
CONGRATS! So happy for you, and a lovely ring! Great recipe, too 🙂
Thank you, Medha!
Congratulations! So happy for you guys & your ring is just beautiful!
Thank you! I’m partial to it. 🙂
I just found you on Triberr. Congratulations on your news (squeeeee) and your biscuits look amazing. I’m a biscuit aficionado myself and I’ve caught a man or two with mine, but congrats on holding on to your special guy. I can’t wait to see what’s in-store for you!
Thank you, you’re so sweet!
Ahhh!! Congrats!! I absolutely love your ring! The biscuits look good too, but that ring!
Haha! Thank you so much!
Congratulations Stephie! Your ring is absolutely gorgeous! Can’t wait to make these biscuits. Sweet potatoes are my favorite.
Thank you, Christin! And we have that sweet potato thing in common, you and I.
Congrats to you! Stopping by from Foodie Friends Friday to check out those delicious biscuits!
Congratulations! Your ring is absolutely gorgeous! And I’m sure you’ll be making this recipe with your soon-to-be family for years to come!
Congratulations on your engagement. Beautiful ring! Pinning this biscuit recipe b/c I love sweet potatoes. Stopping by from the Weekend Social.
Thank you, and thank you for stopping by!
Hi Stephie! Just found you blog and this post. Congratulations!!! The ring is gorgeous!
By the way, biscuits look yummy! 🙂
Mila
Thank you, Mila! So glad to have you here!
SO happy for you!!! Can’t wait to see the wedding unfold – you’re going to be a beautiful bride!
Congratulations!! The 2 of you are in for a beautiful, wonderful adventure, with many chapters. We have 6 children, and just celebrated our 30th anniversary . Appreciate each other daily, pray for one another constantly and laugh often.
Thank you, Beth! What lovely advice.
Congratulations!!! The ring is gorgeous & reminds me of Princess Diana’s (RIP) engagement ring.
Thanks for coming and linking up at The Weekend Social. Please be sure to come back next week starting Thursdays at 9PM EST The Midnight Baker ! I hope to see you there!
Judy@ http://www.bakeatmidnite.com
OH MY GOSH!!! I am SO behind on reading and I am SO happy for you and Alex! I know he’s the right one because he’s a fellow Laphroaig lover and any peat-whisky-drinking-gent is worth his weight in gold (well, that’s what they told me at the distillery. And anyone who brews whisky must be trustworthy. Right?).
Anyway, getting back to the point – eeeeeeep! So happy for you two, have an amazing lead up to your wedding and I cannot wait to read your updates as time goes on!! Sending you so much love. You are amazing and deserve all of the happiness and blessings in the world. P.S I almost forgot about the soft, fluffy, beautiful golden potato scones. And I never forget about anything food related. See, that’s how exciting your news is xxx
You are just so sweet. Thank you so much! 😀
Congrats! The ring is stunning. I’m a sapphire girl, too. Never under estimate the power of a good biscuit. These really look amazing!
Thank you, Jennie!
Congratulations!
Congrats! Keep the yummy stuff coming, and please do allow the significant other to chime in with what HE likes too.
Haha, of course! And no worries – the Mr. is quite vocal about what he likes, so I don’t see him going silent any time soon. 😉
No wonder he proposed with a great recipe like this! Congrats!! Beautiful ring!