sweet potato-marshmallow cinnamon rolls

Sometimes I wonder if I could be one of those people who literally eats the exact same foods every day for his or her entire life. I mean, it would be convenient and there are plenty of foods I love enough to eat on a daily basis. Mashed potatoes are one of them. Same goes for peanut butter and jelly. Bread, duh. I could probably live on enchiladas, too, and cookie dough ice cream for dessert.
But then I think about all those other foods I love that would be neglected (like my beloved brussels sprouts, or macaroni and cheese, or my mom’s spaghetti sauce) and I realize that eating the same foods every day for my whole life would be a real drag (these are the things that take up space in my brain sometimes, I know).
One thing I could eat every day — if my hips would allow it, anyway — are breakfast rolls, reason being because there are so many variations you could make. Like these gingerbread rolls, for instance. Or these raspberry-filled ones, or these Meyer lemon poppy seed ones. Most likely, however, I’d go for these sweet potato-marshmallow cinnamon rolls time and time again because… well, I don’t think that really requires an explanation, do you?

I’m not sure what inspired this flavor combination. Maybe it is my mom’s sweet potato casserole she makes for Thanksgiving every year that I so love. It’s made with mashed sweet potatoes, sugar, butter, more sugar, more butter, spices and pecans. Except my brain went for marshmallows instead of pecans.

In any case, I’m glad I was struck with said inspiration because ohmygoodness, these rolls are tasty. The sweet potato addition, though subtle in flavor, makes the rolls extra soft and fluffy, and the gooey marshmallows melted inside the rolls along with butter and brown sugar is just ri.dic.ulous. Oh and then I went ahead and drizzled a marshmallow glaze on top because I can. You’re welcome.
Feel free to play around with this recipe to make it your own — add some pecans, or drizzle the top with a maple glaze instead of marshmallow one. Get some chocolate action somewhere in there, maybe. I’m sure it won’t take long before you come across your own combination that you could eat over and over again.

P.S. For great baking tips, head over to Red Star Yeast’s Baking Steps Guide. Also check out their Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest pages.


Sweet Potato-Marshmallow Cinnamon Rolls
- Prep Time: 1 hour 45 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Total Time: 2 hours 15 mins
- Yield: 9 rolls 1x
Ingredients
For the rolls:
- 1/3 cup milk
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 packet Red Star active dry yeast
- 1/4 cup mashed sweet potato
- 1 egg
- 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
For the filling:
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 cup mini marshmallows
For the glaze:
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- Pinch salt
- 1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 cup mini marshmallows
Instructions
- In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, heat milk and butter until butter is just melted. Remove from heat; cool to about 100 to 110 degrees F. Stir in yeast to dissolve; let sit 10 minutes until slightly foamy.
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, stir together mashed sweet potato and egg.
- In a separate large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.
- Add flour mixture to mashed sweet potato mixture; stir to combine. Slowly add yeast mixture, stirring on low speed. Knead dough by hand on a lightly floured countertop 8 to 10 minutes, adding more flour as needed to make a smooth, soft and slightly sticky dough OR knead dough in stand mixer with dough hook attachment on medium speed 6 minutes, adding more flour as needed to make a smooth, soft and slightly sticky dough.
- Shape dough into a ball; transfer to a large, lightly greased bowl, turning to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes, until doubled.
- Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Punch down risen dough, then transfer to a lightly floured countertop. Roll or pat out into a 9-by-9-inch square. Brush top with melted butter, then sprinkle evenly with brown sugar and cinnamon. Top with marshmallows.
- Roll dough up tightly into a log; pinch seam to seal. Use a sharp knife to slice log into 9 equal rolls. Place each roll, cut-side up, in a lightly greased 9-by-9-inch pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise 20 to 30 minutes until slightly puffy.
- Bake rolls 25 to 30 minutes until golden brown and baked through. Transfer to a cooling rack.
- Meanwhile, make the glaze: In a medium bowl, combine powdered sugar, vanilla and salt. In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, combine butter and water. Stir until butter melts, then add mini marshmallows. Stir until melted, then whisk into sugar mixture.
- Pour glaze evenly over warm rolls. Serve warm or room temperature.
Disclosure: I received compensation from Red Star Yeast for recipe development purposes. All opinions are my own.
Julia — Thanks, love! And my weekend was wonderful — hope yours was, too ๐
Tieghan — I think that’s a fantastic idea ๐ Thanks, girl!
Megan — It’s my favorite part of the recipe ๐ Thank you!
Carrie — Thanks so much!
Erika — Can’t stop/won’t stop ๐ Thanks, love!
SnoWhite — Perfect! Can’t go wrong with sweet potatoes and sweet rolls every day ๐ Thanks!
Ashley — Thanks, lady!
Katrina — Oh thanks, friend!
Laura — WHOA. Whoawhoawhoa YES. S’mores rolls need to happen!
I was seriously just thinking about what I would eat if I could only eat one thing for the rest of my life. I had the same answer, bread! I would of course throw in some cheese too. But, you’re so right. We would miss out on so many other awesome things. I love the sweet potato mixed in the dough. It gives it just enough of that potato flavor. Amazing!
Yum! These look and sound delicious. I love that they are based off of sweet potato casserole – my all time favorite dish!
I love that these are made with sweet potatoes, I have got to try this for a upcoming weekend!
Oh my goodness – I have a case of the Mondays and I’m thinking these rolls are just what I need to cure everything!
What a great riff on the breakfast roll! I could totally eat these every day!!
These look amazing!! What a great recipe!