Cinnamon Sweet Potato Bread

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An easy cinnamon sweet potato bread recipe that you can enjoy throughout fall and winter for a tasty breakfast or an afternoon snack.

A loaf of sweet potato quick bread with a few pieces sliced on a cutting board

While we often associate baking with the holiday season, there’s one type of baked good that I always crave this time of year: quick bread. Every year around the holidays, my mom would spend hours making her famous banana bread to give to friends and neighbors. I always loved how the sweet smell would fill the whole house, especially on cold, snowy days. Now whenever the weather starts getting colder, I crave the comforting aroma of quick bread baking in the oven. Which is exactly how we ended up with this easy cinnamon sweet potato bread recipe.

Sweet potato cinnamon spice bread is similar to pumpkin spice bread – but instead of pumpkin puree, this recipe uses mashed sweet potato. Using sweet potato in this quick bread recipe makes a super moist loaf that goes perfectly with a cup of coffee or tea. Enjoy this sweet potato bread for breakfast or an afternoon snack on a cool day and savor the subtle spice notes and sugary sweetness!

A loaf of sweet potato cinnamon spice bread on a cutting board

Cinnamon Sweet Potato Bread Ingredients

What is sweet potato spice bread made of? Our sweet potato cinnamon spice bread is a typical quick bread recipe that includes mashed sweet potato. The sweet potato acts as a moistening agent while also adding a little extra sweetness to the bread. For the “spice” part of this sweet potato quick bread, we added cinnamon and nutmeg – two complementary flavors we love to eat (and smell) during fall and winter.

Here’s the full list of ingredients you will need to make our sweet potato cinnamon spice bread recipe:

  • All purpose flour
  • Baking powder
  • Baking soda
  • Cinnamon
  • Nutmeg
  • Salt
  • Unsalted butter
  • Granulated sugar
  • Eggs
  • Vanilla
  • Sweet potato

This sweet potato quick bread recipe yields 4 mini loaves, which you can easily make all at once with this Wilton mini loaf pan (we love ours!). Mini sweet potato loaf cakes are the perfect size for snacking on throughout the week or giving to your friends during the holidays.

Making Mashed Sweet Potato From Scratch

While you can buy canned sweet potato puree from the grocery store, it’s easy to make your own mashed sweet potatoes for this recipe! All you need is a sweet potato and some butter, and there are two methods to choose from:

  1. Roast the potatoes. Peel and dice the potato, then seal in a foil packet topped with thin pads of butter (about 1 tbsp total). Bake at 400 degrees F for about 40 to 50 minutes until soft, then transfer to a bowl and mash until smooth.
  2. Cook the potatoes on the stove. Peel and dice the potato, then melt 1 tbsp butter in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the potatoes and cook for about 5 minutes until they smell sweet, then lower heat to medium-low and cover. Steam until soft, about 5 to 7 minutes, then transfer to a bowl and mash until smooth.

Both methods yield the same result, so you can easily choose whichever fits your schedule best. No matter how you choose to prepare them, you’ll want to leave plenty of time for the sweet potatoes to cool before adding them to the quick bread batter. We often prepare the potatoes a day or two in advance and then store them in the refrigerator until we’re ready to make the sweet potato bread.

A sweet potato quick bread loaf on a cutting board with a few pieces cut

How To Make Sweet Potato Quick Bread

Sweet potato cinnamon spice bread is very simple to make and only requires about 15 minutes of prep time. Follow these 5 steps and you’ll be eating a fresh loaf of delicious sweet potato bread in no time:

  1. Mix the dry ingredients. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt until combined and set aside.
  2. Mix the wet ingredients. Cream together the butter and sugar until it’s light and fluffy, then beat in the egg and vanilla before stirring in mashed sweet potato.
  3. Combine. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.
  4. Bake. Spoon the batter into a greased loaf pan, sprinkle the top with sugar, then bake at 325 degrees F for 35 to 45 minutes or until cooked through.
  5. Cool and slice. Let the sweet potato quick bread cool completely before removing from the pan and slicing. Use a sharp chef’s knife to easily make clean cuts since the top of the bread will be crackly from the sugar.

Storing Sweet Potato Cinnamon Bread

Let the sweet potato quick bread cool completely before removing it from the pan. Then, you have a few options for storing it:

  • Slice and eat right away or store in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 5 days
  • Don’t slice and wrap tightly in foil, then store at room temperature for up to 5 days 
  • Don’t slice and wrap tightly in foil, then freeze for up to 3 months

Since this recipe yields 4 mini loaves of cinnamon sweet potato bread, we like to leave one out for the week and freeze the rest. Then whenever we’re craving a sweet treat or need an easy breakfast to bring on road trips, we just take one out of the freezer! You can leave a frozen sweet potato loaf on the counter overnight and it’ll be ready to eat by morning.

Sweet potato cinnamon spice bread on a cutting board, with a few pieces sliced already

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Sweet potato cinnamon spice bread is fluffy, moist, and subtly spiced for a perfectly sweet and easy quick bread recipe you can enjoy all winter long. The flavors aren’t overly powerful, so you can pair this bread with your favorite coffee and tea drinks for a delicious treat. Oh, and you’ll want to save the best bites for last, so eat from the bottom up and indulge in the crunchy, sugary topping at the end!

Try the recipe below for sweet potato cinnamon quick bread and don’t forget to rate, comment, and share if you love it. We can’t wait to hear what you think!


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A sweet potato quick bread loaf on a cutting board with a few pieces cut

Cinnamon Sweet Potato Bread

Nicole
An easy cinnamon sweet potato bread recipe that you can enjoy throughout fall and winter for a tasty breakfast or an afternoon snack.
5 from 2 votes
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Course Breakfast, Snack, Snacks
Cuisine American
Servings 4 mini loaves
Calories 784 kcal

Equipment

Ingredients
 
 

  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 4 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon nutmeg
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 10 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
  • 1 cup granulated sugar plus extra for topping
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 cup mashed sweet potato about 1 medium potato

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 325 degrees F and grease the sides and bottom of a mini loaf pan with cooking spray.
  • First, mix the dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt until combined. Set aside.
  • Next, mix the wet ingredients. In a large bowl, cream together softened butter and sugar, then beat in the eggs and vanilla extract. Finally, add the mashed sweet potato and stir thoroughly until fully incorporated and the consistency is smooth.
  • Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until combined.
  • Spoon the batter into the mini loaf pan (it will be thick!), filling the wells about halfway. Smooth out the top and sprinkle with extra sugar.
  • Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
  • Let loaves cool completely before removing from the pan and slicing or storing.

Notes

Preparing mashed sweet potato: To make mashed sweet potato from scratch, you can either roast it or cook it on the stovetop (see directions below). Just make sure to let it cool completely before using it in this recipe! We recommend preparing it one day ahead of time and storing in the fridge until you’re ready to use it.
  1. Roasting the potatoes. Peel and dice the potato, then seal in a foil packet topped with thin pads of butter. Bake at 400 degrees F for about 40 to 50 minutes until soft, then transfer to a bowl and mash until smooth.
  2. Cooking the potatoes on the stove. Peel and dice the potato, then melt 1 tbsp butter in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the potatoes and cook for about 5 minutes until they smell sweet, then lower heat to medium-low and cover. Steam until soft, about 5 to 7 minutes, then transfer to a bowl and mash until smooth.
Baking other size loafs and/or muffins: You can also make one large loaf with one batch of this recipe, or one large loaf and some muffins (depending on what size loaf pan you typically like to use). For a large loaf, bake anywhere from 50 minutes to 1 hour and 15 minutes. For muffins, fill the wells two-thirds of the way and bake for 25 to 30 minutes. As always, you can check for doneness with a toothpick inserted into the center.
Storing sweet potato bread: Store sweet potato quick bread at room temperature either wrapped in foil or in an air-tight container for up to 5 days. You can also leave the loaves whole, wrap tightly in foil, and freeze for up to 3 months. When you’re craving a sweet treat, put one on the counter overnight and it’ll be ready to eat by morning!

Nutrition

Calories: 784kcalCarbohydrates: 115gProtein: 11gFat: 32gSaturated Fat: 19gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 168mgSodium: 737mgPotassium: 457mgFiber: 5gSugar: 55gVitamin A: 14469IUVitamin C: 14mgCalcium: 139mgIron: 4mg
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Keyword baking powder, baking soda, christmas, cinnamon, eggs, flour, granulated sugar, holiday, loaf pan, nutmeg, snacks to go, sweet potato, thanksgiving, unsalted butter, vanilla
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Join the Conversation

  1. Ruby Melchior says:

    I used 3/4 cups sugar and it was still awesome! I would recommend maybe adding oil so the bread doesn’t turn out dry.

    1. Nicole Author says:

      So glad you enjoyed it! We opted for creamed butter and sugar instead of oil as this method yields a lighter and less dense quick bread. IF it’s turning out too dry, you could try baking it for less time, or being careful not to over-mix the dough.

5 from 2 votes (2 ratings without comment)

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