Irish potato candies aren’t from Ireland.
Irish potato candies originated in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania among Irish immigrants, and they have turned into a St. Patrick’s Day tradition there. Even though I consider myself a true Wisconsin girl, I was my family is actually from in Philadelphia and we’ve been making these candies for as long as I can remember.
The candies are pretty simple to make. You’ll be completely finished in under an hour, which (in my opinion) isn’t too long for such an amazing confection. Just mix up the cream cheese and coconut filling and roll it in some cinnamon. Rolling them into potato shapes is totally optional, but really does add to the cuteness. Serve them in a brown paper bag – a.k.a. a potato sack.
You might also like: baked corned beef / homemade Irish sausage / Irish beef stew
More St. Patrick’s Day desserts: Lucky Charms cookies / Guinness cake / pistachio cake
Ingredient notes:
- Cream cheese – Since we are making this recipe dairy free, I used vegan cream cheese. If you are working with dairy, just a regular block of cream cheese works. I don’t recommend the reduced fat. For dairy free, I tested the recipe with both Violife and Wayfare brands.
- Butter – To replace dairy butter, I used 1/2 stick of Earth Balance vegan buttery sticks for this recipe.
- Powdered sugar – You want store bought powdered sugar that has added cornstarch to it.
- Coconut – You will want sweetened, shredded coconut for this recipe. I don’t recommend replacing it with unsweetened as it contributes to the flavor and sweetness of the candy.
- Cinnamon – This is for coating the outside of the candy.
Making changes to a recipe can result in recipe failure. Any substitutions listed below are simple changes that I believe will work in this recipe, but results are not guaranteed.
Melissa’s tips + tricks:
- Keep it clean: I like to roll all of my filling out before starting with the cinnamon to keep the cinnamon off my hands and prevent it from getting into the center of the candies.
- Make it a potato: I roll them back and forth in the palms of my hands to make a more oval, potato-like shape with a dip in the center, rather than a round ball.
More St. Patrick’s Day recipes: corned beef and cabbage tacos / Guinness braised beef / vegan Irish soda bread / Irish shepherd’s pie
Irish Potato Candy
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup butter, softened*
- 4 ounces cream cheese, softened (1/2 package)*
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 3 cups sweetened coconut flakes
- 1 – 1 1/2 tablespoons cinnamon, for rolling
Instructions
- Make the filling. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the butter, cream cheese and vanilla extract together until smooth. Then, slowly add the powdered sugar about 1/2 cup at a time, until it's fully incorporated, scraping sides as needed. Next, mix in the shredded coconut until it's evenly distributed.
- Shape the candy. Roll the filling into tablespoon-sized balls (or shape like small potatoes) and dip each of them in a bowl of cinnamon to coat. Transfer them to a wax or parchment-lined baking sheet and chill in the refrigerator until set.
- Store and serve. Once they're cooled, transfer to an airtight container and store candies in refrigerator until ready to serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Oh my goodness.. These are simply adorable! I can’t believe I’d never seen or heard of them before! They look quite tasty also.. If it has cream cheese in it, it’s guaranteed delicious in my opinion!
Thanks! They’re really regional to the Philly area (at least I think). You totally have to try them. Do you think you could vegan-ize them? That would be really cool.
You definitely could veganize these by using Tofutti non dairy cream cheese and something like earth balance non dairy butter. I make easter eggs similar to this recipe using those ingredients. \
Yes! This post is so old, but I was planning to do that for St. Patrick’s Day this year.
I made these and since it was for saint Patrick’s day bi made a double batch. I have never been so disappointed and heartbroken after making anything in my life. Not sure if the measurements are wrong in this recipe or what but might work as a frosting for a child’s birthday cake but not for anything else. Just eat spoons of powdered sugar, less time consuming for the same eesult
How big are the irish potatoes supposed to be? I am making a batch and need to know how many I need to make.
Ha, I already thought about that! I do think I could, and pretty simply, too, with some Tofutti cream cheese! Yummmm.. I just can’t get over how much they look like little potatoes. I’d love for O to come home while I’m sitting on the couch with a bowl of them.. freak him out!
These look SO good and will be a must try!!! yUM!!!!
I made these last night, and WOW they are so good! I’m from Philadelphia and these are the best Irish potatoes that I have tried. I found that chilling the “filling” between the mixing and rolling steps made things go much smoother lol. thank you so much for the recipe!
Just made these yesterday and they’re delicious! They’re a big hit with my husband, who tends to be a bit picky. I only used two cups of coconut and chilled them before rolling them in cocoa rather than cinnamon. I’d definitely make these again! Thanks for sharing the recipe!
I will have to try the cocoa next time! I have heard that mixing the cinnamon and cocoa is good as well. I’m happy to hear that you liked them!
i’m gonna make these for a project in school they look delicious i must try them!! do they need to Be cooked?
No they don’t. Just chill them.
heads up, the link from realsimple.com is broken. this item piqued my interest and i went hunting…. but, you’re not making any cash when it doesn’t work.
Thanks for letting me know! I just checked and it seems that there’s two links on their posting. One goes to my home page and one goes to the recipe page!