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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I cut it to 3 cups of powdered sugar and these were still too sweet for my family to enjoy. Cute idea though…
They are definitely a sweet treat, and I’ve made them to be like the ones you can buy around St. Patrick’s Day in Philadelphia. We don’t eat a ton of sugar in our house either so that are a bit much sometimes. Definitely not a everyday indulgence. You may be able to balance the sweetness out with a good pinch of salt, but they might just not be for you either. I’m sorry you didn’t like them!
How big are the irish potatoes supposed to be? I am making a batch and need to know how many I need to make.
They should be about 1 inch.
My Irish Grandmother, from Philly, used to make these and always used about 1/4 cup of cooked potato in them. You would never taste but they are delicious!