Julie Clark
Updated:
Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
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There are no eggs in these fluffy, pumpkin cinnamon rolls! Pumpkin dough with real pumpkin filling for the ultimate pumpkin flavor. The heavy cream makes them extra gooey.
This fall I went on a pumpkin spice cinnamon roll testing spree. Within a matter of 2 days I had over 100 cinnamon rolls in my kitchen. Dangerous, right?
Our pumpkin cinnamon rolls have real pumpkin puree in the dough and inside the cinnamon swirls. They taste like the holiday season!
And guess what…they are egg free! One thing I love about pumpkin is that it can often be used as a replacement for eggs. So while our homemade cinnamon rolls use eggs to help keep the dough soft and tender, this recipe uses pumpkin. It’s a great way to add flavor and perfect for those with an egg allergy.
And if you need to make them dairy free or vegan, use vegan butter.
How to Make Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
Making homemade cinnamon rolls seems like a complicated process, but if you take things slowly, step by step, you’ll have the process down in no time. It takes around 2 hours of total time, but some of that time is just “rise time” so you can throw in a load of laundry or do dishes while you are waiting for the rolls.
- Warm the milk in a bowl in the microwave for just about 1 minute until it is warm. Pour it into a large bowl.
- Add in the sugar and salt, then stir the mixture. The mixture should measure about 105-110 degrees F in order activate the yeast. Add 1 package of instant yeast right to this milk. Allow the yeast to sit for 3-5 minutes until the yeast is slightly frothy and activated. **Our favorite yeast is Red Star Platinum Yeast. It works perfectly, every time!**
- Add the softened (almost melted) butter, pumpkin, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon and vanilla. Stir this gently until it is all blended together.
- Gradually add in the flour, 1 cup at a time. Add in the last ½ a cup and start to knead the dough with your hands until the last ½ cup of flour is incorporated in.
- Turn the cinnamon roll dough out onto a floured surface and continue to knead the bread for about 7 minutes until it is smooth and elastic. Add a bit more flour as you need to during kneading. The dough should still feel sticky, but it will not stick to your hands.**
- Place this dough in a greased bowl and cover it. Allow the dough to rise in a warm place until it has doubled, about 30-40 minutes.
We wanted real pumpkin puree in our cinnamon roll filling. It’s just a touch, but paired with the pumpkin in the dough itself, it has the perfect flavor.
- In a medium bowl, combine the soft butter, brown sugar, spices and pumpkin puree, mixing until well combined. Set aside until you are ready to use it.
At this point the dough should be super soft and easy to handle. It’s time to roll out the rolls.
- Sprinkle a pastry mat generously with flour. Turn out the dough onto the pastry mat and sprinkle the top of the dough with additional flour.
- Flour a rolling pin and roll the dough to about a 24×15″ rectangle. (the size of the rectangle can vary…it does not have to be exact!)
- Use a rubber spatula to smooth the pumpkin filling over the rolled dough rectangle.
- Starting on the long end, roll the dough up tightly jelly roll style. Cut into 15 slices with a sharp knife or with floss and place in a greased 9×13 baking dish. If you have a slightly larger baking pan, that would be good to use. You can also use two round or square pans.
- Cover the pan and allow the rolls to rise for 20 minutes or until nearly double.
Right before baking, you’ll tackle our secret weapon for THE BEST homemade cinnamon rolls: Heavy Cream.
Heavy cream bakes around the cinnamon rolls and makes them ooey gooey delicious. It may sound strange, but just give it a try. It’s amazing!
- Warm the heavy cream until the chill is off. Don’t make it hot…you just don’t want it cold. It should be warm to the touch. If the cream is too cold it could “shock” the rolls and affect their rising.
- Once the rolls have risen, pour the heavy cream over the top of the rolls, allowing it to soak down in and around the rolls. It’s ok if the cream puddles some. It will bake in around the rolls.
- Bake at 350ºF for 25-28 minutes, until the cinnamon buns are lightly golden brown and the center rolls are cooked through. Note…the time will vary based on how big the rolls are, what type of pan, how close the rolls are packed, etc.
pro tip
If the rolls are getting too brown, place a piece of foil over the rolls during the last part of baking.
Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
This cream cheese cinnamon roll frosting will literally melt in your mouth! It’s amazing. And it’s easy to whip up. If you want just a drizzle instead of a full layer of frosting, make half of the recipe. This will save calories, too!
- In a large bowl, combine the softened cream cheese and butter using a hand mixer. Blend well.
- Add in vanilla extract, cinnamon and the powdered sugar. Beat until combined. This would also be good with maple cream cheese frosting.
- Spread the frosting over the cooled rolls. If you spread the frosting over warm rolls, it will sink in. This makes the rolls even more gooey, so if you like that, go for it!
Can I make pumpkin cinnamon rolls the night before?
We often make the pumpkin cinnamon rolls and get them to the point of the second rise (when they are rolled out, cut up and put in the pan). Cover and refrigerate until morning.
The morning you want to bake them, pull them out of the refrigerator and allow them to rise. Plan about at least an hour for this so you aren’t waiting too long! Then let them do their second rise. Pour on the cream and let them bake.
How to Store Cinnamon Rolls
The pumpkin cinnamon rolls are safe to store at room temperature for about 48 hours. After that you’ll want to refrigerate them.
Be sure to keep the pumpkin rolls covered so they don’t dry out.
How to Reheat Cinnamon Rolls
We find that the easiest way to reheat day old cinnamon rolls is to microwave them for 15-20 seconds, depending on the size.
If the pumpkin cinnamon rolls are not frosted, you could cover them with foil and reheat in the oven, but frosted rolls will get quite melty as you warm them so beware of that. Set the oven to 325º Fahrenheit and watch them closely.
Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
There are no eggs in these fluffy, pumpkin cinnamon rolls! Pumpkin bread dough with real pumpkin filling. The heavy cream makes them extra gooey!
Servings 15
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Rise Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Total Time 2 hours
Ingredients
For the rolls:
- 1 cup warm milk
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 package Red Star Platinum Superior Baking Yeast (instant yeast)
- 1/2 cup salted butter (softened)
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
- 2 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
For the filling:
- 1/3 cup salted butter (softened)
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1/3 cup pumpkin puree
- 1/2 cup heavy cream*** (to be poured over rolls before baking)
For the frosting:
- 6 ounces cream cheese (at room temperature)
- 1/3 cup salted butter (softened)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
Make the dough:
- Warm the milk in a bowl in the microwave for just about 1 minute until it is warm. Pour it into a large bowl. 1 cup warm milk
- Add in the sugar and salt, then stir the mixture. The mixture should measure about 105-110 degrees F in order activate the yeast. Add 1 package of instant yeast right to this milk. Allow the yeast to sit for 3-5 minutes until the yeast is slightly frothy and activated. ½ cup brown sugar, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 package Red Star Platinum Superior Baking Yeast
- Add the softened (almost melted) butter, pumpkin, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon and vanilla. Stir this gently until it is all blended together. ½ cup salted butter , ½ cup pumpkin puree, 2 ½ teaspoons pumpkin pie spice, 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Gradually add in the flour, 1 cup at a time. Add in the last ½ a cup and start to knead the dough with your hands until the last ½ cup of flour is incorporated in. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and continue to knead the bread for about 7 minutes until it is smooth and elastic. Add a bit more flour as you need to during kneading. The dough should still feel sticky, but it will not stick to your hands.** 4 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- Place this dough in a greased bowl and cover it. Allow the dough to rise in a warm place until it has doubled, about 30-40 minutes.
Make the filling:
- While the dough is rising, prepare the cinnamon filling. In a medium bowl, combine the soft butter, brown sugar, spices and pumpkin puree, mixing until well combined. Set aside. ⅓ cup salted butter, 1 cup brown sugar, 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice, 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon, ⅓ cup pumpkin puree
Assemble the rolls:
- Sprinkle a pastry mat generously with flour. Turn out the dough onto the pastry mat and sprinkle the top of the dough with additional flour. Flour a rolling pin and roll the dough to about a 24×15" rectangle. (the size of the rectangle can vary…it does not have to be exact!)
- Use a rubber spatula to smooth the pumpkin filling over the whole dough rectangle.
- Starting on the long end, roll the dough up tightly jelly roll style. Cut into 15 slices and place in a greased 9×13 baking pan. If you have a slightly larger baking pan, that would be good to use. You can also use two round or square pans.
- Cover the pan and allow the rolls to rise for 20 minutes or until nearly double.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Warm the heavy cream until the chill is off. Don't make it hot…you just don't want it cold. It should be warm to the touch.
- Once the rolls have risen, pour the heavy cream over the top of the rolls, allowing it to soak down in and around the rolls. ½ cup heavy cream***
- Bake at 350 degrees for 25-28 minutes, until the rolls are lightly golden brown and the center rolls are cooked through. Note…the time will vary based on how big the rolls are, what type of pan, how close the rolls are packed, etc.
- If the rolls are getting too brown, place a piece of foil over the rolls during the last part of baking. Allow the rolls to cool slightly.
Make the frosting:
- In a large bowl, combine the softened cream cheese and butter using a hand mixer. Blend well. 6 ounces cream cheese, ⅓ cup salted butter
- Add in vanilla extract, cinnamon and the powdered sugar. Beat until combined. 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract, ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon, 2 cups powdered sugar
- Spread the frosting over the cooled rolls.
Notes
**I like to use a stand mixer to knead the dough. Use the dough hook attachment and beat on medium speed for 5-7 minutes. You can also use the dough setting on a bread machine to make the dough. Add the ingredients in the order the bread machine suggests.
The calories shown are based on the recipe making 15 rolls, with 1 serving being 1 frosted roll. Since different brands of ingredients have different nutritional information, the calories shown are just an estimate. **We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information.**
Nutrition
Calories: 497kcal | Carbohydrates: 70g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Cholesterol: 63mg | Sodium: 258mg | Potassium: 143mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 39g | Vitamin A: 2855IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 80mg | Iron: 2mg
Cinnamon Rolls: I made this last week and everyone loved the rolls. Next, I am going to make the cinnamon rolls. Why do you use AP flour in this recipe and bread flour in the cinnamon roll recipe?
Thank you.
This looks like a wonderful recipe. I’m a little disappointed that your comment about using a stand mixer to knead the dough was not in the actual recipe portion. I kneaded the dough by hand, and could never get it the right texture. I am continuing with the recipe, but I have a feel my dough was not the right consistency. I have a stand mixer with a dough attachment that I would’ve used had I realized that was an option. It would be more helpful if in the instructions mentioned you can either knead the dough by hand or… Read more »
Hello, can I use canned, sweet pumpkin puree? If so do I have to add less sugar to the dough?
Hi! I was wondering, if I doubled the batch and put them into a really big cake pan, would the baking time change?
Made this recipe this morning and oh my goodness what beautiful huge buns! Super moist and great spice and pumpkin flavour. I followed the recipe ingredients as written, the ONLY thing I did different was used my stand mixer to help me knead the dough. My mixer has a metal bowl so I warmed the bowl with hot water for a little while and then added my warmed milk sugar and yeast to proof. These are wonderful recipes!
How much yeast do I use if I have a large jar of red star instant yeast?