My jumbo sweet potato muffins are bakery-quality treats you can make at home! They're perfectly spiced and sweet, with nostalgic gingerbread flavor swirled with bits of rich roasted sweet potato and topped with crunchy pecans.
And if you enjoy this recipe, you'll love my banana pecan bread and applesauce crumb muffins, too!
❤️ Why You'll Love this Recipe
Easy to Make - This sweet potato spice muffins recipe is extremely simple and my favorite dessert to use up leftover mashed sweet potatoes during that season between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Cozy Flavor - My sweet potato ginger muffins are fluffy and moist with tiny orange bits of sweet potato throughout. You'll taste deep spicy sweetness, rich butter, vanilla, and a touch of earthiness. My friends and family have described them as "comforting" and "pure fire." High praise!
Baking with sweet potato is one of my favorite things any time of year, so of course, I have plenty more fun confections for you to check out: sweet potato casserole with pecan streusel, sweet potato pecan pie, caramel sweet potato dessert bars, and sweet potato pie cookies!
What You'll Need for this Recipe
Sweet Potato, of course! You can roast and mash your own sweet potatoes, use leftover candied yams or homemade sweet potato puree if you keep it on deck, like I do. I recommend using either Jewel or Garnet variety and you can mash them to your desired consistency.
Molasses and Spices like cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg add the familiar flavor of gingerbread. Use the best quality ground spices you can get.
Baking Powder and Baking Soda to help give these muffins a nice rise with fluffy tops. Remember to check the expiration dates of these!
Pecans add crunchiness that balances out the soft muffin crumb. Any kind will work in this recipe, from whole to halves or pieces, however, I find it easiest to use tiny pecan bits, which are commonly sold as pecan chips or cookie pieces in grocery store bakery sections.
Check out the recipe card below for full ingredients list, measurements, nutrition facts, and step-by-step instructions!
Substitutions & Variations
Vegan - This is already an egg-free muffin recipe because sweet potato in muffins makes them moist and serves as a binder, which means you can lick the bowl! To take it from vegetarian to vegan, just use dairy-free milk and butter substitutes.
Brown Sugar is my preference here (either dark or light) but you can instead use all granulated sugar or the sweetener of your choosing without impacting the flavor much since we're already using molasses.
Size - Bake these muffins in a six-count muffin pan for jumbo size or a 12-count cupcake pan at standard size or make about 24 sweet potato mini muffins in a mini muffin pan!
Chocolate Chips are another delicious topping for sweet potato muffins. Just add them at the same time as the pecan bits.
How to Make Sweet Potato Muffins at Home
- Step 1: Roast, peel, and mash the sweet potatoes to your desired texture from smooth to chunky.
- Step 2: Mix up the wet and dry ingredients separately then stir together to create the muffin batter.
Pro Tip #1
For bakery style muffins at home, bring the cold ingredients to room temperature. And mix the wet and dry ingredients separately then combine. This is the same method I use for my jumbo lemon blueberry muffins.
Pro Tip #2
Be sure not to overwork the batter. I mix in the dry ingredients with a stand mixer just until incorporated then finishing by hand with the silicone spatula to make sure there are no dry pockets hiding.
- Step 3: Scoop the batter into muffin pan then sprinkle pecans over top.
- Step 4: Bake until golden, risen, and cooked through.
Pro Tip #3
Press the pecans into the batter to help them stick as the muffins rise.
Pro Tip #4
How to make muffins fluffy? Start with high heat. Let the muffins bake for about 10 minutes then lower oven temperature for the remaining baking time. This hot start activates the rising agents quickly for fluffy muffin tops!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! These muffins get better with time and can be made about three days ahead of time if stored properly.
Storing homemade muffins at room temperature in an airtight container is your best bet to keep them fresh, moist, and soft. Muffins will keep up to four days this way then can be stored in the refrigerator for another three days.
To freeze, wrap each muffin in a couple of layers of aluminum foil then place into an airtight container or freezer bag before putting into the freezer. They'll keep for up to three months once frozen.
How to Serve
Serve mashed sweet potato muffins warm for the very best experience! They are great for breakfast with eggs or sausage and fruit, but indulgent enough for an alternative holiday dessert at Thanksgiving or Friendsgiving.
Have an extra cozy morning by pairing with a sweet potato latte!
If you're watching your waistline or just mindful of macros, check out the nutrition information at the bottom of the recipe card below, which is set to a serving size of half a jumbo muffin or one standard-size muffin.
More Favorite Fall Dessert Recipes
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
I hope you'll enjoy a warm batch of sweet potato pecan muffins soon and very soon. And sharing is caring so be sure to pin this fall dessert recipe for later and follow me over on Pinterest. Thanks for reading!
📖 Recipe
Spiced Sweet Potato Muffins
Equipment
- 1 mix and mash spatula or kitchen spoon
- 1 whisk
- 1 stand mixer or hand mixer
- 1 six count muffin pan or 12 count cupcake pan
- paper cupcake liners optional
Ingredients
- ½ pound sweet potato or one cup sweet potato puree
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup molasses
- ⅓ cup milk room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 ¼ cups flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon ground clove
- 1 tablespoon chopped pecans also known as "cookie pieces"
Instructions
- Spray the wells of muffin pan with nonstick oil or line with paper cupcake liners and set aside. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Pierce sweet potato a few times with a fork or knife and place on oven rack with sheet pan or sheet of foil underneath. Roast for 40 minutes or until tender.½ pound sweet potato
- Allow to cool to the touch (about 10 minutes) then peel. Press and mash sweet potato to desired smoothness and consistency.
- Using stand mixer or hand mixer, blend the mashed sweet potato, butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, molasses, milk, and vanilla extract until combined.½ cup unsalted butter, ⅓ cup brown sugar, ⅓ cup granulated sugar, ⅓ cup molasses, ⅓ cup milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- In another bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, sea salt, baking powder, baking soda, and clove. Add to wet mixture and mix until just incorporated and no dry pockets remain.2 ¼ cups flour, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon ground ginger, ½ teaspoon nutmeg, ½ teaspoon sea salt, ½ teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ¼ teaspoon ground clove
- Divide batter evenly between each well of prepared muffin pan. Sprinkle chopped pecans over top of each muffin then lightly press them into the batter.1 tablespoon chopped pecans
- Transfer pan to oven to bake for 10 minutes then lower oven temperature to 375 degrees and bake an additional 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Serve warm.
Heidi says
I was curious about how much sweet potato you used. I have giant sweet potatoes to roast, so I was wondering if it was a cup or more towards two? Thank you!
Jazz says
Hi, Heidi! I don't typically measure the sweet potato in cups but define a "large" sweet potato as about 6 inches long and 3-4 inches in diameter. These usually yield about 1 1/2 cup mashed. You can likely get away with 1/2 cup difference in either direction. Hope this is helpful.
Deb says
What would temp and time be for 12 muffins. Thanks! deb
Jazz says
Hi, Deb! The temperature would be the same but, if you’re making 12 cupcake-sized muffins, I recommend starting with 18 minutes and checking from there. If the muffins will be the same (jumbo) size as the ones in this post, you can keep the time about the same (40 minutes). I hope this is helpful.
Emily says
WOW!!! These look so amazing, I love anything gingerbread!!
-Emily
Shanika says
Wow---never thought of putting sweet potatoes and gingerbread flavor together? Sounds so good! I need to try this!
Andrea @Beautiful Eats & Things says
Those flavor combinations sound amazing! I will definitely have to give this recipe a try!
Tisha says
I have to try this! Gingerbread and sweet potato sounds like a great mix. I always eat a muffin in the mornings too lol
Jazz says
It's a great mix! I love one of these in the morning with green tea.
Erika | Black Girls Who Brunch says
*clicks tongue like a ghetto girl* NOW YOU KNOW I AM ALL FOR THIS!!! Sweet potato will win me over anytime. Gingerbread goes great with it too. This is genius.
Jazz says
LMAO not the ghetto tongue pop! These muffins are worth that, though.
Calysta says
Sweet potato and gingerbread are two of my fall flavor favorites! I’m going to have fun trying this!!!
Katherine says
I love how muffins can be so versatile with their ingredients! I never would’ve thought to put sweet potatoes and gingerbread into the same recipe, but these sound divine! I think they’re such a great recipe for all the holiday parties we’ll be going to this season!
Jazz says
So true! Hope you'll try these out. 🙂
Katrina Adams says
I Sweet Potato muffins, cake, and pretty much anything with Sweet potatoes!!!! These sound delicious!!!
Leslie says
YUM!!! These are perfect for fall and winter. I'm going to try to make them gluten free.
Marya Mesa says
These look yummy and a great way to get some veggies in!
jenna | the urben life says
These look amazing, I love sweet potatoes so much! I know my husband and I would eat these up 🙂 I need to get some molasses.
Jazz says
Yes! I only use molasses around this time of year to make gingerbread but it's a must-use. Thanks for stopping by, Jenna!