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Home ยป Recipe Type ยป Desserts
5 from 22 reviews

Irish Potato Candy (Pennsylvania Dutch)

15 minutes
By: Pamela Reed
Posted:3/13/23
Updated:6/22/23
Jump to Recipe

Homemade Irish Potato Candy that’s easy to make, no baking needed! This old fashioned candy looks just like potatoes! Made with cream cheese and powdered sugar.

Homemade Irish Potato Candy that's easy to make and delicious!  This old fashioned candy looks just like potatoes! Made with cream cheese and powdered sugar.

Pennsylvania Dutch Potato Candy

Irish potato candy is a favorite treat where I grew up in Pennsylvania. There used to be a candy store in the mall (remember the days that people went to malls to shop?) that sold these that I would crave every time we walked by.  During the holidays and St. Patrick’s day they were a must have to have in your kitchen!

Come many years later I was craving Potato Candy, but the mall is closed and I live in NYC. What’s a girl to do? Well, I made my own! They’re exactly how I remember as a little girl. The cream cheese and coconut mixture melts in your mouth. They have the sweet smell of cinnamon. They’re absolutely delicious and I can’t stop myself from eating them all!

Homemade Irish Potato Candy that's easy to make and delicious!  This old fashioned candy looks just like potatoes! Made with cream cheese and powdered sugar.

What Is Potato Candy?

Irish Potato Candy are delicious little treats that look just like spud potatoes. They’re made with cream cheese, powdered sugar, shredded coconut and then rolled in ground cinnamon.

Even though they’re called “potato candy” they’re not made with potatoes at all. They are a popular dessert in Pennsylvania, more specifically Pennsylvania Dutch country.

What is Irish potato candy made of?

Potato candy is made of softened butter, cream cheese, confectioners powdered sugar, shredded coconut and vanilla. The little potatoes are then rolled in ground cinnamon to give them their spud appearance.

Homemade Irish Potato Candy that's easy to make and delicious!  This old fashioned candy looks just like potatoes! Made with cream cheese and powdered sugar.

How to Make Potato Candy

Beat your softened butter and cream cheese together in a bowl with a hand mixer until it’s smooth.

Homemade Irish Potato Candy that's easy to make and delicious!  This old fashioned candy looks just like potatoes! Made with cream cheese and powdered sugar.

Add powdered sugar and vanilla into bowl and continue beating until fully mixed. It should look fluffy.

Homemade Irish Potato Candy that's easy to make and delicious!  This old fashioned candy looks just like potatoes! Made with cream cheese and powdered sugar.

Add shredded coconut and mix with a spoon.

Homemade Irish Potato Candy that's easy to make and delicious!  This old fashioned candy looks just like potatoes! Made with cream cheese and powdered sugar.

Place a couple tablespoons of ground cinnamon in a shallow bowl. Grab a scoop of cream cheese batter out of the bowl and shape into what looks like a small potato. I try to keep them around 1 – 1.5 inches long. Roll each side in the cinnamon mixture, making sure the little potato now has cinnamon all over it.

Homemade Irish Potato Candy that's easy to make and delicious!  This old fashioned candy looks just like potatoes! Made with cream cheese and powdered sugar.

Place on parchment paper lined baking sheet and chill for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator.

Homemade Irish Potato Candy that's easy to make and delicious!  This old fashioned candy looks just like potatoes! Made with cream cheese and powdered sugar.

Now my favorite part, time to eat them! Warning, they’re addictive! For any extras, you can store in the refrigerator for a few days.

Homemade Irish Potato Candy that's easy to make and delicious!  This old fashioned candy looks just like potatoes! Made with cream cheese and powdered sugar.

Other Pennsylvania Dutch Recipes:

  • Amish Shoofly Pie
  • Polish Sausage and Cabbage Soup
  • Amish Potato Stuffing
  • Amish Cinnamon Bread
  • Cabbage Roll Casserole
  • Slow Cooker Sausage and Sauerkraut

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Homemade Irish Potato Candy that's easy to make and delicious!  This old fashioned candy looks just like potatoes! Made with cream cheese and powdered sugar.
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5 from 22 reviews

Irish Potato Candy (Pennsylvania Dutch)

Print
Homemade Irish Potato Candy that's easy to make, no baking needed! This old-fashioned candy looks just like potatoes! Made with cream cheese and powdered sugar.
By: Pamela Reed
Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 0 minutes minutes
Total Time 15 minutes minutes
serves 30

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup butter softened
  • 8 ounces cream cheese
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 4 cups confectioners powdered sugar
  • 2 1/2 cups unsweetened shredded coconut
  • few tablespoons of ground cinnamon

Instructions

  • Beat your softened butter and cream cheese together in a bowl with a hand mixer until it’s smooth.
  • Add powdered sugar and vanilla into bowl and continue beating until fully mixed and fluffy.
  • Add coconut and mix with a spoon, until it's fully mixed in with the cream cheese batter.
  • Place a couple tablespoons of ground cinnamon in a shallow bowl. Grab a scoop of cream cheese batter out of the bowl and shape into what looks like a small potato. I try to keep them around 1 – 1.5 inches long. Roll each side in the cinnamon mixture, making sure the little potato now has cinnamon all over it.
  • Place on parchment paper lined baking sheet and chill for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator.
  • Eat! Enjoy! For any extras, you can store in the refrigerator for a few days.

Video:

Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Pennsylvania Dutch
Keyword: irish potato candy, potato candy
Did you make this?I love seeing what you’ve made! Tag me on Instagram at @BrooklynFarmGirl and don’t forget to leave a comment & rating below.

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5 from 22 votes (16 ratings without comment)

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  1. Brian says

    March 8, 2024 at 9:12 am

    Is it okay to use unsweetened desiccated coconut to make them less sweet?

    Reply
    • Pamela Reed says

      March 8, 2024 at 9:52 am

      Hey Brian, the recipe calls for unsweetened shredded coconut so go for it.

      Reply
  2. caroline says

    March 13, 2023 at 11:14 am

    these are the best potato candy i ever made!

    Reply
  3. Dannii says

    February 25, 2020 at 11:27 am

    I have never heard of this before, but I am going to try it and try and trick my daughter haha

    Reply
  4. Toni says

    February 25, 2020 at 11:24 am

    My kids really loved it! A must-have on St. Patrick’s Day!

    Reply
  5. Amanda says

    February 25, 2020 at 11:07 am

    What a fun recipe for St. Patrick’s Day! They look so real, and I love anything with coconut. Sounds perfect to me!

    Reply
  6. Tisha says

    February 25, 2020 at 11:01 am

    I love how simple this is! Perfect fast fix for that sweet tooth!

    Reply
  7. Cathleen says

    February 25, 2020 at 11:01 am

    Oh my goodness, this is so freaking creative! I think that I am going to be making this every year now. Thanks for the recipe ๐Ÿ™‚

    Reply

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Hi! I'm Pamela, an artist Mom who shares family recipes. My farm is a 1,000 sq ft apartment in NYC. Let's make dinner together.

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