This Sweet Potato Purée is the kind of simple side I love having in my back pocket. With just one main ingredient and 30 minutes of mostly hands-off roasting, you'll have creamy, naturally sweet mashed potatoes that work for any meal, from busy weeknights to Thanksgiving dinner, and is perfectly smooth for your littlest eaters. And if you are as obsessed with sweet potatoes as I am, try my Foolproof Roasted Sweet Potatoes next. I can't stop eating them!
TL;DR - Sweet Potato Puree
- 🧡Why you'll love it: Only 2 ingredients, naturally sweet, and perfect for both family dinners and homemade baby food.
- ⏱️Prep Time: 5 minutes
- 🔥Cook Time: 20-40 minutes depending on cooking method.
- ♨️Multiple cooking options: Roast for deep flavor or boil for faster prep.
- 🥄 Texture tip: Add water or milk 1 tablespoon at a time until smooth and creamy.
- 🧊 Storage: Keeps 4 days in the fridge or up to 3 months in the freezer (portion in cubes for easy freezing).
- 🍼 Baby food version: Skip salt and seasoning; use plain water for thinning.
- 🥔 Loving sweet potatoes: Try my making my Sweet Potato Casserole with Canned Yams next.
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Key Ingredients
Sweet potatoes: Regular jewel sweet potatoes are my go to. Try to get ones that are all about the same size so they cook at the same rate.
How to make sweet potato puree
For sweet potato puree you have two choices for cooking the potatoes. You can either roast them (as shown below) or microwave them. Roasting leads to more depth of flavor, but microwaving is quick in a pinch.
Step 1: Roast the sweet potatoes. Cut them in half and put them cut side down on a parchment covered baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil. Roast at 425 degrees until fork tender (about 30 minutes).
Step 2: Squeeze the cooked sweet potatoes out of it skin and into the blender.
Step 3: Blend, adding additional liquid to get a smoother consistency, if desired.
Step 4: Once pureed, add in any additional seasoning you'd like.
🧑🍳 Marni's Tips for the Best Sweet Potato Puree
- Double-duty recipe. For adults, stir in butter, cinnamon, or maple syrup for a side dish. For babies, keep it simple and smooth, it's naturally sweet enough on its own.
- Choose the right potato. Look for bright orange sweet potatoes with smooth skin, they're naturally sweeter and blend into a creamier puree.
- Roast for flavor, boil for speed. Roasting adds rich, caramelized flavor and keeps the puree thick; boiling is faster and great for baby food.
- Watch the texture. Add just a splash of liquid at a time (water, milk, or breast milk for babies) so the puree stays silky, not soupy.
- Batch it. Make extra and freeze in small portions. These Souper Cubes work great for this. Small cubes for baby food, larger sizes for a quick prep weekday side dish.
Serving Suggestions
- As a side dish: You can either leave this puree plain or get creative with adding flavor. We love adding in grated ginger and some coconut milk as the puree liquid. Or lean into the warm cozy vibes with a splash of maple syrup and some melted butter swirled in. For a real savory spin, stir in a tablespoon of miso butter.
- For Babies: The sweet potato puree will pair well with homemade applesauce, black bean puree, blueberry puree, Greek yogurt, rice cereal or spinach puree. Mix and match flavors to keep it interesting for your littlest eaters.
Recipe FAQ's
Sweet potatoes are a great source of beta carotene, Vitamin C and potassium as well as being relatively high in fiber. The fiber in sweet potatoes can aid in your babies digestion and can help with constipation. And the natural sweetness ensures they'll love them!
Leftover sweet potato puree is one of those things that never goes to waste around here. You can stir it into pancakes or muffins, swap it for pumpkin in my pumpkin overnight oats or a pumpkin smoothie, use it to thicken soups, or freeze portions for easy baby meals at the ready.
Add a little liquid at a time while blending until it's smooth and spoonable. If you added too much liquid, you can blend in a bit of oat flour to help thicken it back up. Start with a tablespoon at a time.
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More purees that double as side dishes
📖 Recipe
Sweet Potato Puree (2-Ingredients)
Ingredients
- 3 lbs Sweet potatoes
- 1 Tablespoon Olive oil
Instructions
To Roast the Sweet Potatoes:
- Thoroughly wash the sweet potatoes. Pat dry, slice in half and place cut side down on a parchment lined baking tray.
- Drizzle the olive oil over the sweet potatoes being sure to cover both the cut side and the skin side. Roast at 425 degrees for about 30 minutes (until fork tender).
To Microwave the Sweet Potatoes:
- Wash the sweet potatoes and pat dry. Then use a fork to poke each one about 5 times.
- Place them on a microwave safe plate and use the "potato" button on your microwave to cook. They will be done when they are fork tender.
Puree the Sweet Potatoes after cooking with either method:
- Squeeze the cooked sweet potato out of its skin and into a high speed blender and puree until smooth. Add liquid a Tablespoon at a time if you want a thinner puree. Once pureed, stir in any additional seasonings you'd like.
- Serve immediately, refrigerate for up to a week, or freeze in cubes for up to 2 months.
Notes
- Homemade purees can be kept in the fridge up to a week in an airtight container. I keep mine in small mason jars like these, for baby food on the go.
- To freeze the puree, portion into trays like this, and then once frozen, store in a freezer safe air tight container (like a zip top bag) for up to 2 months.
Marni Katz says
This puree isn't just for babies. My kiddos ate it as a side dish with dinner instead of mashed potatoes and asked for thirds!