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Sweet Potato Muffins

These sweet potato muffins are extremely moist, packed with nutrients, and DELICIOUS!

Wire basket full of sweet potato muffins

If you're looking for a muffin recipe that's nutritious and requires less sugar than most other muffin recipes, this is the one for you! Because of the natural sweetness of the potatoes, you don't need a ton of sugar to make these muffins flavorful. The sweet potatoes also give this recipe a really moist texture.

Freezer friendly muffins:

Whenever I make sweet potato muffins, I leave a few out to eat right away, and put the rest into the freezer after they've cooled. All it takes is a few seconds in the microwave, and they'll taste just as good as they did out of the oven.

Related recipe: Lemon Blueberry Muffins

Are yams and sweet potatoes the same thing?

They are similar, but not the same. It can get confusing because yams are often incorrectly labeled in stores, in recipes, and even on cans.

Yam vs. sweet potato

While you may see sweet potatoes incorrectly labeled as yams (especially in the south), true yams are actually pretty rare in the United States.

Yams are characterized by a lighter flesh and a darker skin with a rough texture. Since yams are also starchier than sweet potatoes, you’ll want to be sure to use sweet potatoes for this recipe.

There are many varieties of sweet potatoes in available in the U.S., and they come in all different colors. For this recipe, I look for a sweet potato with tapered ends and a bright orange flesh.

Peeled, baked sweet potatoes in a glass bowl

Related recipe: Small Batch Cinnamon Pancakes

Make ahead tip:

I recommend cooking the sweet potatoes a day ahead or a few hours ahead of when you want to make the sweet potato muffins. This will allow them time to cool and also make them easier to peel.

Baked sweet potatoes being mashed with a hand masher

More breakfast recipes to try: Baguette French Toast Bites

How many sweet potatoes to use:

I used 3 very large sweet potatoes and they equaled about 3 cups of mashed potato. So if you are buying small-medium potatoes, I'd recommend using approximately 5-6.

You can always use the leftover potato to make smoothies, pancakes, or anything else you like!

Try the topping!

If you think flaxseed is something only crazy health-nut types enjoy, I challenge you to sprinkle some on top of these muffins before baking. It's delicious, and adds a nutritional boost.

Moist inside of a sweet potato muffin topped with flax seed

If you enjoyed this recipe, let me know with a comment and a star rating below. And don't forget to share it on Facebook and save it on Pinterest for later!

Sweet Potato Muffins

Nutrient-packed sweet potato muffins that are super moist and delicious!
4.73 from 364 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 1 hour
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings: 24 muffins
Calories: 169kcal
Author: Kate

Ingredients

  • 3 cups of mashed sweet potato see below for instructions
  • 2 cups flour
  • 2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup sugar
  • ¾ cup vegetable oil
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • ½ cup ground flaxseed meal optional

Instructions

  • To prep the sweet potatoes (this can be done a day or so ahead if you want to break up the muffin-making process): Pierce the potatoes with a fork and place on a foil-lined baking sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for approximately 45 minutes, or until the inside is soft when poked with a fork. Remove and let cool. When the potatoes are cool, peel off the skin and mash the sweet potato filling with a fork or masher until any big lumps are gone. Measure out 3 cups worth of filling.
  • To make the muffins: In a large bowl combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In a separate bowl, combine the sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, and then add the sweet potato.
  • Pour into muffin tins/cups. If using flaxseed, sprinkle on top of the muffins. Bake at 325 for approximately 30 minutes.

Notes

I used three very large sweet potatoes and it came out to be just about three cups exactly. If you're using smaller potatoes you might want to use 4-5. If you end up being short, you could always use some mashed banana to get to three cups.

Nutrition

Calories: 169kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 20mg | Sodium: 119mg | Potassium: 107mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 2390IU | Vitamin C: 0.4mg | Calcium: 23mg | Iron: 0.9mg
4.73 from 364 votes (246 ratings without comment)
Recipe Rating




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Suzanne

Sunday 3rd of November 2024

I am usually amused by people that leave reviews that reveal that they changed almost everything about the recipe, and darned if that didn’t bite me in the butt, so to speak.:) So I admit I used maple syrup instead of sugar (and compensated with a little bit more flour) and that was probably fine, and I’ve used applesauce as a substitute for oil/butter with good results before. I think my downfall was substituting 1/2 almond and 1/2 coconut flour for the wheat flour. The muffins after cooking had the texture of raw cookie dough, no matter how long I cooked them. Lesson learned! The flavor is good, just the texture is a fail. Maybe I should have kept 1/2 the wheat flour, and only substitute with 1/2 gluten free? Anyone have any suggestions?

G

Wednesday 30th of October 2024

How should these muffins be stored after baking- do they need to be refrigerated or can they be left at room temp? Thanks.

Kate

Wednesday 20th of November 2024

This might depend on your room temperature, humidity, and general comfort with baked goods being out on the counter. I typically keep these muffins out for about 24-36 hours, then put the rest in the fridge. If refrigerated, I heat them up in the toaster oven to get the "soggy" feeling off.

Srk

Tuesday 1st of October 2024

I was looking for a sweet potato muffin recipe, hoping to figure out how to add flaxseed to it. Lo and behold, this one already has it! Can't wait to make.

Jessica

Friday 28th of June 2024

So excited to try this recipe! I’m wondering if it’s possible to make this into a loaf instead of muffins? Would I just adjust cook time?

Kate

Wednesday 21st of August 2024

I think it should work, you'd have to bake longer until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, probably close to an hour or more (but start checking after 45 minutes to prevent burning). If it is browned enough on top but still not done on the inside, CAREFULLY cover it with foil to prevent further browning. Make sure to use oven mitts.

Ashley

Friday 14th of June 2024

Toddler approved! I made some changes based off what I had, but it worked and is tasty! I made this initially because I had frozen sweet potatoes I needed to use, but didn’t have enough so I used 3 bananas and a zucchini as well. I also chronically don’t read instructions all the way through, so I added the milled flax seed into the flour mixture instead of on top of the muffins and they still turned out great! I did mini muffins and cooked them for 12-15 minutes.

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