Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon Rolls

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Fall is complete with Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon Rolls! Oooey, gooey, and full of everything pumpkin, you’re gonna LOVE this spin on my regular Cinnamon Rolls.

Speaking of everything pumpkin, we also love making Iced Pumpkin Cookies and Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins. For something a little bit more involved, I’ve got the best Pumpkin Streusel Cake!

My mom gave me the baking gene, and if you’ve been following along with me, you know that she was pretty exceptional at her craft. I’m quite certain that she baked at least once a week because she was active in her community and always seemed to be preparing for one church luncheon or another. Her gift of choice was a loaf of homemade bread or rolls, and a compliment was all the thanks she needed.

Baking is one of my favorite hobbies, especially when it involves yeast. I love making bread and rolls the best. So when I woke up yesterday and thought PUMPKIN CINNAMON ROLLS, I used my The BEST Cinnamon Rolls (my mom’s recipe) and adapted them for these!

The changes I made for this recipe are the following:

• I used brown sugar instead of granulated white sugar in the dough.
• I subbed out oil for unsalted butter.
• I added pumpkin to the dough.
• For the sugar layer, I added pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice.
• For the frosting, I added pumpkin pie spice.

Process shots for making these rolls. See below.

1. The dough mixture before adding flour
2. After it pulls away from the edge of the mixer
3. The dough before it rises
4. After it rises
5. Half of the dough pressed out into a large rectangle
6. With the pumpkin sugar mixture spread on top
7. The dough rolled from the rectangle into a log
8. The rolls before baking, after rising

Tips for making epic Cinnamon Rolls.

1. When you add warm water to the yeast and sugar – be careful to use WARM water, not hot. If the water is too hot, the yeast will disappear and you can’t make bread without yeast. Also, do not use cool water because it won’t activate the yeast.
2. Don’t add all the flour at once because every baking day is different. Some days you will need a bit more flour and some days, you will need less.
3. Powdered milk is a must. I’ve tried it with regular milk, but the powdered milk seems to make the softest dough.
4. The dough should be slightly sticky when ready, as opposed to bread recipes. Over time, you will learn exactly how much flour is needed to make the ultimate rolls.
5. When done, the bottom of the rolls should be slightly brown, and the top, a nice golden brown.

I’ve been hitting up Starbucks lately for their PSLs (Pumpkin Spice Lattes). But I’m one of “those” coffee drinkers, and my order goes like this…

• Venti
• Non-Fat
• Extra-Hot
• No-Whip
• 2-Pump
• PSL

FYI, just in case y’all want to buy me one..sometime. 🙂

Ahhh, pumpkin.

Kitchen Tools Used: (affiliate links)

• Bosch Universal Mixer – The BEST mixer for bread by a long shot. My mom had one, which is why I do too, and she used it more than I ever will.
• Silicone Baking Mat – This mat is perfect to use for rolls and bread (and scones and biscuits) because it’s non-stick and really easy to clean.
• USA Pans – I’ve recently been buying these pans and I’ve gotta admit. They’re the best and made in the USA (obviously), which is a bonus!
• Cooling Racks – I use these almost every day, for cooling off all the things.

Try these pumpkin treats next: Baked Pumpkin Donuts with Cinnamon Sugar Topping

Please let me know if you try this recipe. Be sure to comment and leave a review on the blog so I can see what you think. You can also like my Facebook Page, follow me on Pinterest, and catch me on Instagram.

xoxo ~Sue

Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon Rolls

Oooey, gooey, and full of everything pumpkin, you’re gonna LOVE this spin on my regular Cinnamon Rolls.

5 from 2 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes

resting time: 2 hours hours

Total Time: 2 hours hours 20 minutes minutes

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Servings: 18 rolls (two pans)

Calories: 366kcal

Author: Sue Ringsdorf

Ingredients

For the dough:

• 2 Tablespoons yeast – I use Red Star
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 cups warm water – not hot, not cold
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter – melted and slightly cooled
• 1 cup pumpkin
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 4 Tablespoons powdered milk
• 5-6 cups all-purpose flour

For the pumpkin sugar mixture:

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter – softened
• 1/4 cup pumpkin puree
• 2/3 cup brown sugar
• 2 Tablespoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

For the pumpkin spiced frosting:

• 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter melted
• 4 Tablespoons heavy cream
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 3 cups powdered sugar – more or less, depending on consistency

Instructions

For the dough:

• In a large standing mixer, combine yeast, brown sugar, and warm water. Be careful to use WARM water, not hot. If the water is too hot, the yeast will disappear and you can’t make bread without yeast. Mix and let sit for about 15 minutes to get the yeast working. You should see little bubbles in the water.
• Add the melted butter, pumpkin, salt, and powdered milk. Stir with a spatula. Attach dough hook to mixer and add about half of the flour. Start the mixer and let the flour absorb. 
• Gradually add more flour, a little bit at a time until the dough is less sticky and pulls away from the sides of the mixer. You want the bread dough to be slightly sticky, but not too much. When you touch the dough, it should bounce back slightly. Be sure to leave the mixer on for several minutes after you get the right consistency.
• Grease a large bowl with canola oil. Add dough to the bowl, making sure you smooth it into a ball, by punching it down – starting in the center of the dough. Place dough with smooth side up and cover with a clean towel. Let the dough double (approximately) in size.
• Once doubled, punch down the dough again – by pushing down with your fists in the middle of the dough, pulling the outer edges in towards the middle. Re-grease the bowl with oil and place the dough with smooth side up. Let rise until doubled in size again.

Adding the pumpkin sugar mixture:

• In a small mixing bowl, combine the butter, pumpkin, brown sugar, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice. Stir until well combined.
• Take about 1/2 of the dough, and press it on a well-greased surface, into a rectangle. (See pictures above.) Using your hands, spread half of the pumpkin sugar mixture on the dough. 
  
• Gently roll the dough up into a long log. (See pictures above.) Using a serrated edge knife, cut dough log into about 1 inch sections. Place sections into greased pans, and press down slightly, so that the cinnamon sugar is visible on top.
• Continue with the other 1/2 of the dough. This recipe should make about two pans of rolls, depending on how big you make them.
• Cover the pans with a clean dishtowel, and let rise again until dough is almost doubled. This dough rises fast in Texas, and only takes about 20-30 minutes to be ready to bake.
• Bake rolls in 350 oven, for about 20-22 minutes, or until rolls are nice and golden on the top, and slightly golden on the bottom. Remove rolls to cooling racks.

For the pumpkin spiced frosting:

• Combine the melted butter, cream, vanilla, and pumpkin pie spice. Then add powdered sugar to get your desired consistency. If it’s too dry, add more cream. If too runny, add more powdered sugar.
• Drizzle the frosting all over the rolls, and serve.

Notes

Tips:

1. When you add the warm water to the yeast and sugar – be careful to use WARM water, not hot. If the water is too hot, the yeast will disappear and you can’t make bread without yeast. Also, do not use cool water because it won’t activate the yeast.
2. Don’t add all the flour at once because every baking day is different. Some days you will need a bit more flour and some days, you will need less.
3. The powdered milk is a must. I’ve tried it with regular milk, but the powdered milk seems to make the softest dough.
4. The dough should be slightly sticky when ready, as opposed to bread recipes. Over time, you will learn exactly how much flour is needed to make the ultimate rolls.
5. When done, the bottom of the rolls should be slightly brown, and the top, a nice golden brown.

These rolls freeze well, unfrosted, using freezer bags.

Nutrition

Calories: 366kcal | Carbohydrates: 63g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 29mg | Sodium: 272mg | Potassium: 117mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 34g | Vitamin A: 1420IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 51mg | Iron: 2mg

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