Quick and Easy Southern Sweet Potato Biscuits Recipe

Sweet potato biscuits are a great way to use up extra sweet potatoes. Top them with melty honey-butter, and have them for your next holiday breakfast. Sweet potato biscuits are also a perfect brunch recipe your whole family will love.

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The Perfect Christmas Morning Breakfast

Christmas is just around the corner, and the excitement is building. If your family is like ours, Christmas morning starts very early. The kids are usually up and elbow deep in gifts by 5am.

Having stayed up late the night before waiting up on Santa, it’s all I can do to hold one eye open and look alive. Coffee never tastes as good as it does when you’re running on 2-3 hours of sleep.

I sit on the couch trying to take in each child’s expression as they open their gifts. Usually it’s a hurricane of paper and boxes, and I can’t catch much. I just hear them squealing with approval when they open “the one” gift they really wanted.

By 5:15 the frenzy is over, and they calmly begin to survey their haul. This is my favorite part because I get the reward of watching their contentment.

By 8:00 am the rest of the family begins to show up and we’re all starving. This is where the real magic happens. Mom brings over her famous wassail, and Brent cooks breakfast while the kids are entertaining the grandparents showing off their gifts.

Christmas morning calls for something special. It’s the best morning of the whole year, so breakfast should also be something extraordinary.

This sweet potato biscuit recipe checks all of the Christmas morning boxes. They are sweet, savory, and have that little something extra that the celebration deserves. The dough can also be made the night before to make things easier.

Why You’ll Love Sweet Potato Biscuits

They’re unique– Sweet potato biscuits are a unique take on classic buttermilk biscuits. They’re perfect when you want to make something extra special.

It’s an easy recipe– If you can make regular biscuits, you can make sweet potato biscuits. The process is the same. However, sweet potato biscuit dough is a lot more sticky than traditional biscuit dough.

It’s not an overly sweet biscuit– I love an indulgent dish, but for breakfast or brunch I tend to prefer more a more savory option. This delicious biscuit is slightly sweet, but it’s just enough to satisfy. They’re not overly sweet or completely savory.

What You’ll Need To Make The Biscuits

Equipment

• 1 Cast Iron Skillet
• 1 pastry cutter or food processor
• 2 Large Bowl
• 1 Flour Sifter
• 1 Rolling Pin

Ingredients

• 3 cups All purpose flour. You can use self rising flour instead of all purpose. 
• 2 tbsp Baking powder. Omit the baking powder if you’re using self rising flour 
• 4 tbsp Light Brown Sugar
• 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
• 1 tsp Salt 
• 1/2 cup Butter-cold and cubed 
• 2 medium Sweet potatoes- baked 
• 3/4-1 cup Buttermilk 
• 1 tbsp Melted butter

Making Sweet Potato Biscuits

Begin by preheating the oven to 425°, and grease a cast iron skillet or 9” round cake pan.  Start with 3 cups of AP flour, 2 tablespoons of baking powder, 4 tablespoons of brown sugar, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, and 1 teaspoon of salt. Sift all the ingredients together into a large mixing bowl. I give the ingredients an extra stir after sifting to ensure they are mixed well.

Sometimes I use self rising flour instead of All-purpose. If you use self rising flour, omit the baking powder.

Next, add 1/2 cup cold butter cut up into small cubes. Do not use room temperature butter in biscuits. Cut the butter into the flour mixture until it is the consistency of cornmeal. I use a pastry blender for this, but you could also use a food processor.

Add 2 tablespoons of lard for a really fluffy biscuit. This is an optional ingredient, but it’s so good!

Mash 2 medium baked sweet potatoes with a fork, and whisk with 3/4-1 cup of buttermilk in a separate bowl. Start with 2/3 cup of buttermilk. You can add more later if needed.

Next, add the sweet potato mixture to the flour mixture. Lightly fold the wet and dry ingredients together until a dough just forms. You do not want to over work the dough. It will also be stickier than traditional biscuit dough.

Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface, and form it into a mound. Pat or roll the dough to about ¾” thick.

Use the rim of a glass, a cookie cutter or a biscuit cutter to cut out the biscuits. Do not twist the cutter when stamping out the biscuits.

Arrange them in the skillet so that they are barely touching or “kissing”. This will help the biscuits rise.

Brush the biscuits with melted butter prior to baking. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the top of the biscuits are golden brown. Serve warm with honey butter or warm maple syrup.

Helpful Tips For Easy Sweet Potato Biscuits

Use Cold Ingredients: Keep butter and any liquids as cold as possible for extra flakiness. Cold butter releases steam during baking, creating light, flaky layers.

Don’t Overmix the Dough: Overmixing can cause tough biscuits. Gently combine ingredients until just mixed, and stop as soon as the dough comes together.

Cut Butter into Small Pieces: Cut the butter into cubes and work it into the flour until you see small pea-sized crumbs. This helps distribute it evenly without melting, creating a tender, flaky texture.

Use a Gentle Touch: After mixing, handle the dough as little as possible. Too much handling can warm the butter and develop gluten, making the biscuits denser.

Fold the Dough for Layers: For extra flaky biscuits, try folding the dough over itself a few times before cutting. This creates layers that will rise and separate in the oven.

Press, Don’t Twist the Cutter: When cutting out biscuits, press straight down and pull up, rather than twisting. Twisting can seal the edges, preventing the biscuit from rising.

Chill Before Baking: Once cut, chilling the biscuits for a few minutes in the fridge can keep them cold and ensure they hold their shape and rise well.

Bake at High Heat: Biscuits generally bake best at a higher temperature (400–450°F). This allows the butter to steam quickly, creating that fluffy texture.

Sweet Potato Biscuits FAQS

Can I use lard instead of butter in sweet potato biscuits?

You can substitute the 1/2 cup of butter for 1/2 cup of lard in this recipe. It makes flaky biscuits and is also a delicious way to make a classic biscuit.

What is the best way to cook sweet potatoes for sweet potato biscuits.

Cook the sweet potatoes in an oven pre-heated to 400° F until they are soft. This usually takes around an hour depending on the size of your sweet potatoes. Coat the skin with coconut oil prior to cooking. You could also use leftover sweet potatoes in this recipe.

Final Thoughts

Give these old-fashioned sweet potato biscuits a try the next time you want to make something special for your friends and family. They’re simple and delicious!

If you enjoyed this recipe, please share it! Thanks for visiting my farm.

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