29 Leftover Sweet Potato Recipes & Ideas for Your Spare Spuds

Sweet potato recipes are always a fan favorite in the fall. But the problem is that once you're done enjoying this tasty tuber, you're typically left with a load of leftover sweet potatoes. The most common leftover sweet potato recipes are casseroles, but for those folks who want to get creative with these saffron-colored spuds, we've got plenty of ideas!

The sweetness of whole-kernel corn pairs wonderfully with earthy sweet potatoes. For a super-easy dish, slice up a red onion and stir-fry it on the stove. When the onion is soft, add a can of drained whole-kernel corn. Then, stir in some chunks of leftover cooked sweet potato. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then heat throughly.

Talk about a meeting of the superfoods. If you're looking for a nutrient-rich combination, prepare braised kale by stir-frying it in a pan with olive oil and garlic until it wilts. Then, mix in chunks of leftover baked or boiled sweet potatoes and allow it to heat up.

For this dish, cut up a variety of root vegetables into one-inch chunks. Use any combination of carrots, parsnips, beets, onions, or turnip roots. Toss with olive oil and your choice of seasonings (such as salt, pepper, and garlic), and then roast in a 425°F oven for 30 - 45 minutes. Stir once while cooking. Finally, add cut-up chunks of leftover baked or boiled sweet potato, stir again, and cook for another five minutes.

The flavor of sweet potatoes pairs perfectly with roasted broccoli. Toss broccoli florets with oil, spread them on a cookie sheet, and cook at 400°F for about half an hour. Add chunks of cooked sweet potato during the last five minutes, stirring to combine. If desired, you can roast other veggies along with the broccoli, such as chunks of bell pepper or zucchini.

If you have leftover boiled or baked sweet potatoes, it's easy to convert them into savory mashed potatoes. Just heat them, put them in a bowl, and add water or milk, butter, salt, and pepper. Use a potato masher, fork, or electric mixer to blend until fluffy. Use them as you would ordinary mashed potatoes.

Speaking of sweetness, if you have leftover sweet potato casserole that's sugary, you can easily turn it into a sweet version of whipped potatoes. Just put them in a bowl and whiz them with an electric mixer. Depending on the texture, you may not need to add anything.

For a creative take on potato croquettes, make them with mashed sweet potatoes instead of ordinary mashed potatoes. If you want a sweet version, you can mash up candied sweet potatoes as the base for this recipe. For a savory version, start with basic baked sweet potatoes and mash them with a bit of butter and salt.

Then, follow a basic recipe for potato croquettes. You'll just need to stir in eggs and milk or cream, then roll the mixture into balls or patties, brush with an egg wash, coat with breadcrumbs, and bake.

For this recipe, use leftover boiled sweet potatoes, a few eggs, and other kitchen staples to prepare a delicious souffle. Our sweet potato souffle recipe gets its sweetness from the unique addition of canned pineapple. What a tasty, tropical treat!

Use a basic recipe for vegetable fritters to prepare savory sweet potato fritters. We love this recipe for harissa sweet potato fritters from Taste of Home.

For a sweeter treat, use an apple fritter recipe but use chunks of leftover cooked sweet potato for half of the apples. This sweet treat is similar to croquettes, though fritters are fried in oil rather than being baked in the oven.

Prepare your favorite beef stew recipe, then stir in chunks of baked or boiled sweet potatoes just before serving. Let them sit in the hot liquid for long enough to heat through. You can omit the ordinary potatoes called for in the original recipe and replace them with sweet potatoes. Or, for an extra-comforting savory dish, make the recipe as-is, adding pre-cooked sweet potato chunks to the original ingredient list.

Another great leftover sweet potato recipe involves making your favorite Shepherd's Pie recipe, whether meat-based or a vegan version, but instead of topping the casserole with regular mashed potatoes, opt for savory mashed sweet potatoes! 

If you have leftover whole sweet potatoes that have been baked or boiled, convert them to stuffed sweet potatoes. Cut each sweet potato in half and scoop out a bit of the pulp, which you can set aside to make mashed sweet potatoes. Then fill the hollow area with a mixture of your favorite vegetables, cheese, and meat.

For example, a Tex-Mex combination of corn, sliced olives, sliced jalapenos, cooked chicken, and white cheese would be absolutely delicious. Bake in 350°F oven for 20 minutes or until heated through.

Leftover vegetables are always great ingredients to add into quiches. Why not add a bit of sweetness to your recipe? Add small chunks of your cooked sweet potato and bake like normal.

Are you looking for a way to sneak more vegetables into your family's diet? Or with the high price of groceries, would you like to find a way to help make your ground meat go further?

If so, you'll be delighted to discover this hidden vegetable recipe for sweet potato meatloaf. Just mix in the potatoes with your meat, breadcrumbs, and other ingredients and bake like normal! Making this dish is a great way to use up leftover sweet potatoes while making the most of a pound of ground beef or turkey.

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, so why not include leftover sweet potatoes in this meal and get a boost of Vitamins A and C, and potassium? Cut leftover sweet potatoes into chunks or strips. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Stir-fry in pre-heated olive oil until heated through. Transfer to a plate and top with a fried egg prepared just the way you like it.

Speaking of breakfast, sweet potato pancakes are another way to sneak vegetables into your meals! Follow your favorite pancake recipes, but add in some mashed leftover sweet potatoes, And for those like me who prefer a crispier breakfast starch, follow the same waffle recipe you love, add in your potatoes, and pour the batter on the waffle iron!

This is a fantastic leftover sweet potato recipe that only requires pantry staples. First, cut up your leftover sweet potatoes into small chunks. Then, add them into a blender or food processor along with some milk, vegetable broth, shredded parmesan, and spices. Pulse until smooth.

Add some olive oil and pressed garlic into a medium saucepan and cook over medium heat. After a few minutes, add in your sauce mixture. Heat until warm. While you are doing this, cook your favorite noodles. Mix them in once they are tender!

For this dish, cook a batch of quinoa, seasoning it with salt, cinnamon, and cumin. Then, add in some diced cooked sweet potato. Chill and serve as a salad, or serve warm alongside strips of romaine lettuce so everyone can assemble their own quinoa sweet potato lettuce wraps. You could also mix in a can of drained corn and/or a can of drained black beans.

Is there anything better than a light and refreshing salad? Fruit is always a fan favorite for this type of dish, but you can also add in sweetness with leftover sweet potato chunks. Add in lettuce, shredded turkey or chicken, dried cranberries, purple onions, feta, green apple slices, and candied pecans. This pairs perfectly with a cranberry dressing. 

The base for hummus doesn't have to be limited to chickpeas. Substitute leftover mashed sweet potato for up to half of the chickpeas (also known as garbanzo beans) in your favorite hummus recipe. Serve with pita bread, celery sticks, carrot sticks, or tortilla chips.

If you have quite a few leftover baked or boiled sweet potatoes, make a batch of sweet potato soup. Use your favorite recipe for pumpkin soup, but replace the pumpkin with an equivalent amount of sweet potato.

Extend the flavor and nutrition of your favorite vegetarian chili recipe or a classic meat-based chili by adding in chunks of firm leftover sweet potatoes. So they don't get mushy, wait to add in your pre-cooked sweet potatoes until about five minutes before serving. This will give them just enough time to heat through.

Did you know that you can substitute cooked sweet potatoes for pumpkin in your favorite pumpkin bread recipe? It's true! Just puree leftover cooked sweet potatoes and substitute for canned pureed pumpkin. You can use plain sweet potato for your puree. Or if you're looking for more of a cake-like flavor, use leftover sweet potato casserole that has been sweetened.

You can make a super-quick sweet potato pound cake with a yellow cake mix, a cup of mashed sweet potatoes, and a few basic ingredients (a teaspoon of nutmeg, three eggs, and a half cup of milk). Bake at 350°F in an angel food or Bundt pan for around 45 minutes. When it cools, top with store-bought or homemade cream cheese frosting. If desired, dress it up by putting some pecan or walnut chunks on top.

Since sweet potato pie recipes call for the tubers to be cooled and peeled, this is the perfect dish to make when you have a stockpile of leftover sweet potatoes in the fridge. It's a delicious dessert that you can enjoy warm or cold. For a super-rich treat, top with fresh whipped cream and serve with eggnog.

Another leftover sweet potato recipe that is on the more sugary side of the spectrum is sweet potato cheesecake. Try this version from My Baking Addiction.

This delicious dessert is perfect to serve around the holidays, and it follows the same classic cheesecake recipes that we know and love, but it sneaks in this bright and healthy vegetable. Top it with a caramel drizzle for a touch of extra sweetness.

Sweet potatoes are often used as a substitute for eggs in vegan baking. Even if you're not vegan, this technique is a great way to use leftover sweet potatoes. Substitute ¼ cup of plain mashed sweet potato for one egg in your favorite muffin recipe.

You can replace any or all of the eggs in muffin recipes, as well as other baked goods. These make a great snack or quick breakfasts for families on the go. You can even freeze them for later.

Did you know that you can upgrade your basic oatmeal cookie recipe by adding in sweet potatoes? This gives them an added touch of sweetness and a bit of fall flavor. Don't forget the cinnamon and all spices.

Who said that all the flavorful dishes had to be for the humans in the household? If you baked or boiled way too many of these tasty tubers and you realize it before mixing them with a bunch of other ingredients, you can make some fantastic treats for your furry friends to enjoy while you have a slice of your sweet potato pie.

Just like pumpkin, sweet potato is a healthy choice for your pups. In fact, in any recipe that calls for pumpkin, you can sub sweet potato. Just keep in mind that dogs with diabetes or pancreatitis should avoid this sweet snack. 

Having leftover sweet potatoes opens the door to many delicious recipe possibilities. Try one (or more) of these tasty dishes the next time you have extra spuds lying around. You and your family may enjoy these ideas so much that you start cooking extra sweet potatoes on purpose so that you're ready to quickly prepare more of these mouthwatering morsels. You can also use these same recipe ideas anytime you have leftover yams.