Old Fashioned Potato Candy is a recipe from the Great Depression era that still is a favorite today among all ages. Made with only 3 ingredients, this holiday candy is sure to be a crowd-pleaser.

My side hustle is that I own a small in-home bakery business. The holidays are some of my busiest times of the year. In the past, I have made candies to sell like my 2 ingredient Fudge or my Cinnamon rock candy. This year, I decided to make an old-fashioned potato candy recipe, which was a hit with everyone.

How to Make This Old Fashioned Potato Candy Recipe

For this recipe, you only need 3 simple ingredients —

2 pounds of Powdered sugar (or as some call it — confectioner's sugar) — this roughly works out to be about 8 cups of confectioners sugar
leftover mashed potatoes (use 3 small potatoes or you can also use Instant potatoes)
creamy peanut butter
Vanilla Extract (optional)

While this recipe has potatoes in it, it doesn't taste like potatoes at all. The dough has a cookie dough-like consistency and the peanut butter mixed with the powdered sugar gives it a soft fudgy feel.

Start by peeling, dicing, and boiling the potatoes until tender. If you use a small potato for this, you may need more sugar when it comes to rolling the dough.

If you are short on time, you can make this recipe using instant mashed potatoes. Let the potatoes cool to room temperature and then mash well.

Add the potatoes and the powdered sugar in a large bowl and combine well using a hand mixer. If the dough seems too dry, add a few drops of water until you get the right consistency. It should look and feel like cookie dough. Now, wrap the potato mixture in plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator until firm.

When ready to roll out, grab a piece of parchment paper or a sheet of wax paper and sprinkle powdered sugar on it. Lay the dough out and use the rolling pin to roll it out into a rectangle about 1/4″ thick.

Spread the layer of peanut butter across the dough leaving about 1″ around the dough clean.

Roll the Dough

Once you have the peanut butter on, roll the dough up from the long side. Use the parchment paper to help roll it. Slice the peanut butter potato candy into thick slices and store in an airtight container. Place sheets of parchment paper in between the layers so that the candy doesn't stick to each other.

Place the container in the fridge to allow the candy to firm up all the way.

Enjoy this tasty treat any time of day. I will tell you that this old-fashioned recipe is very rich so one piece goes a long way.

This recipe makes about 40 pieces of candy and is a great dish to take to a get-together during the holiday season.

Is Potato Candy the Same as Irish Potato Candy?

A lot of people get these two candies confused. Irish potato candy isn't even made with potatoes. In fact, it is made with cinnamon, cream cheese, and coconut. The reason they call it potato candy is because once you have the cinnamon rolls, it looks a little bit like a russet potato thanks to the candy's potato shapes.

Additional Add-ins

For an extra added flavor, take some chocolate chips and melt them. Then, take the melted chocolate and dip the potato candy halfway. Nothing tastes better and chocolate and peanut butter together.

Check out these other delicious candy recipes

Yield: 40 pieces

Old Fashioned Potato Candy

Name: Old Fashioned Potato Candy
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 2 h
Total time: 2 h 10 min
Yield: 40
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1/2 cup of mashed potatoes; 2 pounds of powdered sugar; 1/2 cup of creamy peanut butter

This old fashioned potato candy is easy to make with only 3 simple ingredients.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Chill Time 2 hours

Total Time 2 hours 10 minutes

Ingredients

1/2 cup of mashed potatoes
2 pounds of powdered sugar
1/2 cup of creamy peanut butter

Instructions

Peel, dice and boil the potatoes ( 3 small or 2 medium) until fork tender. Mash with a potato masher and allow it to cool to room temperature.
In a large bowl, combine the potatoes and the powdered sugar. Mix with a hand mixer until the dough comes together and looks like cookie dough. You may or may not need to add more sugar to get the right consistency.
Wrap in plastic wrap and place in the fridge until firm. Remove from the fridge and roll out on a piece of parchment paper dusted with powdered sugar.
Roll the dough out to 1/4" thickness. Take the peanut butter and spread across the dough.
Roll up using the parchment paper on the long side. Place in the fridge until firm. Then slice into thick slices.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 110Total Fat: 2gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 25mgCarbohydrates: 24gFiber: 0gSugar: 22gProtein: 1g