Picture your perfect fall morning. Crisp air, cozy sweater, big mug of coffee and, you guessed it, freshly baked pumpkin cinnamon rolls!! Ughh there’s literally nothing better!
I loooove making cinnamon rolls! I started making them from scratch a few years back and they quickly became a family favorite. There’s of course the OG classic cinnamon roll variety, which you can never go wrong with. Then last year I came up with my Mom’s favorite, an apple cinnamon roll. And today I’m introducing you to the BEST pumpkin cinnamon rolls yet!
These honestly took a few tries to get just right. I wanted to incorporate enough pumpkin so you can actually taste it but still maintain the ultra soft and fluffy texture from the classic dough. The filling is close to the original, except that I added pumpkin spice instead of just cinnamon to the mixture. If you don’t have pumpkin pie spice on hand you can definitely swap it out for regular cinnamon. But I find that the extra warming spices in the blend really enhance the overall pumpkin / fall flavors. (There’s a reason it’s popular this time of year, just sayin’!)
Lastly, I added my own little twist on the topping by incorporating vanilla beans into the cream cheese frosting. It’s a small adjustment but makes the frosting a little extra delicious and a little extra special, in my opinion. I really hope you try these pumpkin cinnamon rolls out. You’ll be glad you did!
Tips for Success
- Activating the yeast: it’s very important to make sure your yeast is active and alive before adding it to our dough. Without activated yeast our dough will not rise or become fluffy. Warm your milk in the microwave for about 30 seconds. It should be warm to the touch but not scalding, about 110-120°F. Let the yeast rest in the warm milk for 5-10 minutes. It is activated when it looks lightly foamy and has small bubbles forming on the top.
- Amount of flour: you’ll see there is a range in the amount of flour that can be used in this recipe. That is to account for variations in the environment you’re working in.
- For example, I only ever need to use 3 1/2 cups of flour to make this recipe work in my kitchen. However, I live in California where it is a dry climate with very low humidity. If you live in a more tropical climate with high humidity your dough may feel stickier and require extra flour to come to the correct consistency.
- If you find you need to add more flour to the dough, only add a little bit at a time! Slowly and gradually increase the flour until it is no longer sticky.
- Rise time: please, please, please don’t rush the rise (or proofing) time of the dough! There are two separate rise times in this recipe and it’s important that each rest period is enough to allow the dough to puff up properly. I give approximate rise times for each rest period (1 hour, 30-60 min) but again, every kitchen/environment is different and you may require more or less time than indicated. What you are looking for is that the dough has greatly expanded in volume. It should be light and airy. This will help us achieve perfectly fluffy rolls!
- The picture above on the left is the dough before it’s second rise. The middle picture is after rising for about an hour. See how the rolls have expanded and are touching each other?! This is exactly what we want. (The picture above on the right are the rolls after baking.)
Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with Vanilla Bean Cream Cheese Frosting
- Prep Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 25 min
- Total Time: 3 hours
- Yield: 12 rolls 1x
Description
The BEST pumpkin cinnamon rolls! Fluffy, gooey, filled with pumpkin flavor and fall spices and glazed with perfect vanilla bean cream cheese frosting.
Ingredients
Dough
- 1/2 cup warm whole milk (about 110-120°F)
- 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 large egg
- 3 1/2 – 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
Filling
- 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
- 1 tbsp pumpkin pie spice (or cinnamon)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 large egg, beaten for egg wash
Frosting
- 3 oz cream cheese, softened
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste (or extract)
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2–1 tbsp whole milk (if needed)
Instructions
Dough
- In a measuring cup, combine warm milk and yeast. Gently stir and let sit for 5-10 minutes until the yeast is foamy and activated.
- Using a paddle attachment in a stand mixer, mix together the melted butter, sugar, pumpkin puree, and egg on low speed.
- In a separate large bowl, whisk together 3 1/2 cups flour and salt. Add half of the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir on low speed. Add in the activated yeast/milk mixture. Then add the remaining dry ingredients. Switch to the dough hook attachment and beat at a medium-low to medium speed until the dough is smooth, elastic and begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl. If needed, gradually add in the remaining 1/2 cup of flour if the dough appears sticky.
- Grease a large bowl with cooking spray and place dough in the bowl, turning over once to grease all sides. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm location for about 1 hour or until doubled in size.
- Lightly punch down the dough and let rest for 5 minutes. Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface and roll into an 14×18″ rectangle, with the shorter length closest to you.
Filling & Assembly
- In a small bowl combine brown sugar and pumpkin pie spice.
- Spread the softened butter evenly over the rolled out dough, leaving a 1/2 inch boarder on the farthest edge. Sprinkle the sugar mixture on top of butter. Brush the beaten egg on the boarder without filling. Starting with the edge closest to you, roll the dough into a log and pinch the end seam together to seal the rolls. Use a large serrated knife to trim each edge of the log to make the ends clean. Then slice into 12 rolls and place cut side up into a lightly greased 13×9″ pan.
- Let rolls rise in a warm area until they are puffed and toughing each other, about 30-60 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake for 25 minutes, until rolls are lightly golden brown. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before applying frosting.
Frosting
- Beat together the softened cream cheese and butter until creamy. Add in powdered sugar and mix on low speed. Add in the vanilla bean paste and beat until frosting is light and smooth. If needed, gradually add in milk to thin frosting. Spread onto warm rolls.
Notes
- Overnight preparation: Make dough and complete first rise. Roll out dough, fill, roll into log, and cut into 12 rolls. Allow to complete second rise (through step 3 of Assembly). In the morning, allow dough to come to room temperature before proceeding with baking and frosting.
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