Potato Bread Recipe Using Leftover Mashed Potatoes (2024)

Most of the potato bread recipes I've seen used powdered mashed potatoes – not something I keep in my pantry. I love this potato bread recipe because it uses real mashed potatoes. It's also easy to make and stores well.

When we were first married, my husband was a fan of store bought potato bread. (It resembles cotton candy in bread form, and I'm pretty sure they use potato flakes…)

I was tickled to find a bread recipe that uses real mashed potatoes. If I'm using leftover mashed potatoes, they go right into the bread with butter, milk, salt and pepper.

Recommended Bread Baking Supplies

Some of my recommended bread making supplies and equipment:

• Pyrex 2-cup glass measuring cup
• King Arthur Organic Bread Flour
• Nutrimill Grain Mill
• Bosch Universal Plus Kitchen Machine
• Pampered Chef Stoneware loaf pans
• Nordic Ware Extra Large Cooling Racks

Potato Bread Recipe Using Real Mashed Potatoes

The recipe I use is based on one from The Bread Machine Cookbook V.

This recipe produces a moist, dense loaf that is great for sandwiches and toast. It keeps on the counter for the better part of a week. For longer storage, it freezes very well, in case you want to make a double or triple batch.

Note: See bottom of post for print friendly version of recipe.

Ingredients

• 7 ounces cooked potato (you can use leftover mashed potatoes, or cook up a small potato and mash it)
• Warm water, enough to equal 1 3/4 cup when combined with the potato. (Put the mashed potato into a 2 cup measuring cup. Add water to bring the level up to 1 3/4 cup)

• 2 tablespoons softened butter
• 2 1/2 tablespoons sugar (or honey)
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 3 1/2 cups bread flour (I usually use a mix of fresh ground wheat flour and pre-milled flour)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons saf-instant yeast or bread machine yeast

How to Make Potato Bread

I normally mix the dough with a dough hook in my Bosch Universal Plus Kitchen Machine. After it rises, I form it into loaves, let rise, and bake in the oven.

(I finally bought a Bosch after killing three different bread machines. It's more expensive, but can handle double batches of whole wheat bread without a fuss, unlike lighter machines.)

I add everything into the machine and mix for 6-8 minutes, adding additional flour if needed.

Add the last of flour slowly – you want your potato bread dough to be smooth and elastic. Too much flour will give you hard dough and dry bread.

If kneading by hand, mix wet ingredients in a large bowl with yeast until thoroughly blended. Add dry ingredients, adjusting flour as needed to give a soft, elastic dough.

This dough will be a little bit more sticky than many bread doughs. This is normal. If you look closely, you can see little bits of brightly colored blue potato.

Let bread rest and rise for around 20 minutes, then punch down and allow to rise again. (This develops the flavor and gluten of the bread.)

Forming the Loaves and Baking the Potato Bread

Once the dough doubles in size, form it into loaves and place in greased bread pans. A single recipe makes one large loaf (9×5) or two smaller loaves of potato bread.

If you make a double batch (shown here), divide it into three 9×5 loaf pans. I like to bake several loaves so I can keep the extras in the freezer to have on hand when needed.

My favorite bread pans are the Pampered Chef Stoneware loaf pans. They are naturally somewhat non-stick, but not entirely. I do grease them a little, but bread tends to stick much more frequently in the glass pan than the stoneware.

Some other companies make less expensive stoneware loaf pans, but there are often strange design decisions, such as bulged sides. I like my Pampered Chef pans better.

Preheat oven to 350F. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from pans and cool on wire racks.

Try to wait for the bread to cool before cutting, if possible. When you cut open a steaming loaf of bread, steam escapes, leaving the remainder of the loaf dry. Of course, if it all disappears within a matter of minutes, this is a non-issue. 😉

I let this batch rise a bit too much, so the finished loaves (shown below) don't look picture perfect.

Remember, bread will rise a bit in the oven, so bake before it is overflowing the pans. (And don't get involved in another project and forget about your bread…)

Not every batch of bread may be “picture perfect”, but they all taste good!

The top and bottom photos in this post are from another batch of potato bread. Dunc and I braided some loaves for a different look. (Plain loaves are easier much easier!)

To Bake in a Bread Machine

If using a bread machine, select “wheat”, “sweet”, or “white bread” setting. Do not use a delayed bake timer.

Substituting Active Dry Yeast

To substitute active dry yeast for SAF-INSTANT yeast: Use 2 teaspoons active dry yeast. Proof in one cup of the warm water prior to mixing with the rest of the ingredients.

Potato Bread Dinner Rolls

If you'd like to bake your potato bread as potato rolls, that works great, too!

Simply portion the dough out and roll them to the size you prefer. Place on a greased or parchment lined baking sheet. Place them closer if you want soft sides, farther apart if you don't want the rolls to touch. Let rise until double in size.

Bake in a 375F oven for 12-15 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove from oven and cool on wire rack.

Need More Bread Recipes?

If you're looking for more than just potato bread, check out my book, Never Buy Bread Again: 20+ Homemade Bread Recipes!

Learn more and order your copy here.

In this book you’ll find:

• Troubleshooting tips so you can bake without fear
• Easy everyday breads such as sandwich bread and crusty French bread
• Quick breads such as buttermilk biscuits, corn bread and pancakes
• Gluten free breads
• How to Make a Sourdough Starter and Basic Sourdough Bread
• Holiday and special occasion breads, like fruit filled kolache, Polish doughnuts and pretzel bread
• How to store and freeze breads (before and after baking) for best quality
• Fun bread “go alongs” like flavored butters and cheese fondue
• Recipes to make with leftover bread

The book includes full color photos, and stories from our family about the recipes and baking traditions. It has a spiral binding so that it lays flat on the kitchen counter for easy reading while cooking.

Print

What goes better with homemade bread than homemade soup?

We have over 100 made from scratch recipes on the site, including:

• Chicken and Gnocchi Soup, Olive Garden Style – another handy way to use up a small amount of leftover mashed potatoes
• Cheesy Broccoli Soup with a Surprise Ingredient
• Cheese Soup with Homemade Bread Bowls

We hope you enjoy this bread as much as we do. Don't forget to Pin it for later, and share your comments and recipe requests below.

Originally posted in 2011, updated in 2019.