Disclaimer: I was planning to take MUCH better photos (you know, with actual bakeware and shots of the individual pillows of pumpkin-y goodness) but I’ve been so busy prepping and cooking for Thanksgiving, I didn’t have time to bake & photograph these pumpkin spice cinnamon rolls in all their beautiful, delicious glory. So bear with the easy-to-transport foil tray and total lack of styling – I promise this recipe is worth making, even if I didn’t prove it to you with better photos! I’ll re-shoot this next year, when the pumpkin spice craze kicks back in 😉
It only took 2 attempts to nail the ultimate pumpkin spice cinnamon roll recipe. This is a little more involved than your typical cinnamon roll, but the pumpkin-packed result is well worth the extra effort. While researching, I found that most pumpkin spice cinnamon roll recipes flavored either the filling OR the dough, but never both… which obviously wasn’t going to work for me. As a pumpkin fiend, I wanted the dough AND the filling to taste like a pumpkin spice latte. And also I wanted to use an entire 15 oz can of pumpkin because, really, who knows what to do with 1 leftover cup of pumpkin. If you are trying to get rid of a half-used can of pumpkin, you could definitely make either the dough or the filling and have just a hint of pumpkin flavor – I won’t hold it against you 😉
Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon Rolls – Recipe & Notes
- If you’re in a hurry, you CAN skip chilling the dough, but it will be much harder to roll out & cut
- You can make the dough using a stand mixer & a dough hook, or by hand with a wooden spoon (and some elbow grease). I had equal results with both methods.
- This recipe uses active dry yeast because that is the easiest for me to find at my local supermarkets. I have not tested it with instant yeast – if you do, let me know how it goes!
- Cinnamon roll toppings are very personal – some like a thick smear of cream cheese frosting, others prefer a thin milk glaze. I’ve provided a few variations – baker’s choice. I like a slightly thinned our cream cheese frosting.
- These rolls really benefit from a full cool – they’re much easier to serve and eat once the filling has had a chance to set up. The flavor is also much more pronounced. For this reason, I recommend waiting to frost or glaze until just before serving.
ingredients
- 1/2 C Whole Milk
- 1 Packet Active Dry Yeast (approximately 2 1/4 tsp)
- 1 1/2 C All Purpose Flour
- 3/4 C Bread Flour
- 1/8 tsp Table Salt
- 3 TBSP Butter
- 1/3 C Dark Brown Sugar
- 1/2 C Pumpkin Puree
- 1 Egg
- 1/2 tsp Ground Cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp Ground Ginger
- 1/8 tsp Ground Clove
- 1 TBSP Butter
- 1/2 tsp Ground Cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp Ground Ginger
- Pinch of Ground Clove
- The rest of the can of Pumpkin Puree
- 3/4 C Dark Brown Sugar
- 8 oz Cream Cheese, at room temperature
- Powdered Sugar to taste (usually 1 C is a good starting point)
- Whole Milk to taste
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
instructions
- Mise en place, and read this recipe all the way through
- Heat 1/2 C whole milk to 110 degrees
- While constantly stirring the milk with a fork, sprinkle the yeast into the milk. The constant stirring will prevent the yeast from clumping together, which will prevent it from activating properly.
- The yeast should foam within 5 minutes and smell yeasty. If this doesn't happen, restart the process with a fresh packet of yeast.
- Whisk together the all purpose flour, bread flour, and table sat in a medium sized bowl and set aside.
- Melt 3 TBSP butter with 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground ginger, and 1/8 tsp ground clove. You can do this in the microwave or in a small saucepan over medium heat.
- Transfer the melted butter and spice mixture to a large bowl and add the 1/2 C pumpkin puree and the 1/3 C dark brown sugar. Stir to combine.
- Whisk the egg into the milk and yeast mixture, then add it to the pumpkin mixture and whisk to combine.
- Switching to a wooden spoon (or dough hook if using a standing mixer), add all of the flour to the pumpkin mixture and stir to combine. Continue to stir (or let the mixer run) for 7 minutes to knead the dough and help the gluten develop.
- Generously oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to it. Cover with plastic wrap that has also been oiled, and let rise in a warm, draft free place for 1 hour or until the dough has doubled in size.
- Make the filling while the dough proofs (instructions below)
- After the dough has proofed for one hour, transfer to the fridge and let it chill for another 1-2 hours. Chilling the dough will make it much easier to roll out and slice.
- In a small saucepan, melt 1 TBSP butter
- Add 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, ground ginger, and ground clove. Cook until just fragrant
- Add the what's left of the 15 oz can (or box - 16 oz is ok!), and the 3/4 C dark brown sugar, to the saucepan. Stir to combine
- Let the filling simmer over medium heat until it begins to sputter - you should see big bubbles break the surface and then collapse into themselves.
- Transfer the filling to a heatproof bowl and let cool 10 minutes on the counter.
- Cover by pressing plastic wrap into the surface of the filling (to prevent a skin from forming) and refrigerate.
- Combine the room temperature cream cheese and 1 C powdered sugar in a large bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer) and beat to combine.
- Continue adding powdered sugar in 1/2 C increments until the frosting is as sweet as you like it.
- Add vanilla, then add milk in 1 TBSP increments until the frosting is the desired consistence.
- If you prefer a thin glaze, whisk together milk, vanilla, and powdered sugar until the glaze is to your desired sweetness and consistency - do this right before you're ready to glaze the cinnamon rolls because it will set up quickly.
- Generously flour a cutting board or clean surface - the dough is very soft and sticky, so you'll need a fair amount of flour to prevent it from sticking while rolling it out.
- Using a floured rolling pin, roll the dough into a 14 inch tall by 20 inch wide rectangle (this is approximately the dimension of my favorite cutting board which makes it super easy to eyeball).
- Spread the cooled filling over the dough, leaving half an inch at the very top of the rectangle uncovered.
- Use your fingertips to start gently rolling the dough into a 20 inch log - roll towards the uncovered top edge. If the dough sticks to the board, use a small metal spatula like this to help release the dough and continue rolling.
- Once you get to the top, pinch the dough together to seal the log, and roll it over so that the seam is on the cutting board.
- Cut the log in half, then cut each half into thirds, and finally cut each third into thirds. You should have 18 perfectly equal cinnamon rolls.
- Transfer to two buttered 8x8 square pans, or slightly squish into one buttered 9x13 pan.
- Cover and let proof for an hour and a half to two hours, until the rolls are puffed and touching on all sides.
- Bake at 350 for 25 minutes.
- Set pan(s) on top of a wire rack and let cool completely.
- Glaze and serve. Enjoy!
Looks so delicious! Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Thanks Tonie! Same to you 🙂