Soft and gooey homemade pumpkin cinnamon rolls with cream cheese frosting are the coziest fall breakfast! My from-scratch recipe is beginner-friendly but produces bakery-style results. Recipe includes a how-to video!
Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls From Scratch
Pumpkin cinnamon rolls are the ultimate fall breakfast treat. They’re made with real pumpkin, perfectly spiced, and finished off with pumpkin’s favorite pairing: cream cheese frosting (or your favorite frosting, I also have a cream cheese-less cinnamon roll icing). Best enjoyed warm with a mug of coffee and your coziest sweatshirt!
Why This Recipe WORKS
- Soft, pillowy texture because we enrich our dough with an extra egg yolk and some melted butter. Don’t want to waste your leftover egg white? Use it to make some candied pecans!
- Pumpkin puree adds a nice earthy sweetness and festive color, but it’s not so flavorful on its own. Adding a bit of pumpkin spice and cinnamon really nails that classic flavor.
- Not too sweet with just the right touch of tang from my all-time favorite cream cheese frosting. I do include a few other frosting options in the FAQ section below if cream cheese isn’t your thing.
- Suitable for all skill levels, thanks to my step-by-step instructions and a how-to video. And if you still have questions after reading through the post/watching the video, you can always leave me a comment below!
Jump to:
Ingredients
- Bread flour. I prefer bread flour here for the best texture (more gluten = softer & chewier rolls), but all-purpose will still work. You will use the same amount (and as usual with yeast recipes, the exact amount will vary).
- Pumpkin puree. Make sure you grab a can of pure pumpkin and not pumpkin pie filling, which looks very similar. On its own, pumpkin doesn’t really impart too much flavor, so we’ll add some pumpkin pie spice to really sell that classic taste…
- Pumpkin pie spice. Also known as pumpkin spice, this is a blend of warm and cozy spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. If you don’t have any on hand, you can make your own using my recipe for homemade pumpkin spice.
- Active dry yeast. Make sure your yeast is fresh (don’t use expired yeast!). Instant yeast should also work in this recipe; your rise times will just be a bit shorter and you won’t need to activate it first.
This is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
IMPORTANT FLOUR NOTE: Like when making my homemade cinnamon rolls or orange sweet rolls, you’ll notice I list a range of flour in the recipe. This is because the amount of flour you will need varies from kitchen to kitchen. Start with the lower end and add more as needed until you have a dough that is slightly tacky, but not sticky. You don’t want to add more than you need.
How to Make Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
- Step 1: Make the dough. Activate your yeast with a pinch of sugar in warm milk. Add your remaining dough ingredients, but only 2 cups of the flour. Gradually add more flour until you have a slightly tacky dough that pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Knead until smooth and elastic using your hands or a mixer and dough hook.
- Step 2: First rise. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm spot until doubled in size. This can take between 1-2 hours depending on how warm your kitchen is.
- Step 3: Add the filling. Deflate and form the dough into a 20×8″ rectangle, then spread your butter overtop. Sprinkle your filling over the butter and use your hands to press it in.
- Step 4: Roll it up. Starting with the long edge, roll your dough up into a log. Make sure to pinch the seam along the entire length so the filling can’t leak out in the oven.
- Step 5: Cut & let rise again. Cut the dough into 12 even pieces, then place in a lightly greased pan. Cover and let rise again until puffed–this usually takes less than an hour.
- Step 6: Bake, frost & enjoy. Bake until cooked through; I use an instant read thermometer and look for 185F. If you don’t have one, you can use a toothpick to pry into the dough and make sure it’s not raw/gooey. Frost as desired, then enjoy!
SAM’S TIP: If you’d like, you can cover and refrigerate the rolls after cutting and resume the recipe the next day. You’ll just need to let them come to room temperature and puff up before baking (nice for a Thanksgiving brunch!).
Frequently Asked Questions
Personally, I love the version I’m sharing here today. If you want to try something new, you could always add some toasted pecans to the filling or swap the frosting with the topping from my sticky buns or apple cinnamon rolls. Brown butter frosting, coffee frosting (a bolder choice), or my classic cinnamon roll icing would all be great here too!
Your rolls will keep for 5 days if you store them in the fridge (reheat before enjoying!) or 2 days if you keep them at room temperature.
Like my classic homemade cinnamon rolls, you can drizzle a few Tablespoons heavy cream over the rolls before baking. This will make them extra gooey and tender!
More Pumpkin Recipes
Are you interested in more non-traditional cinnamon roll recipes? I’d love to hear your suggestions below!
Enjoy!
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Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
Cinnamon Rolls
- ½ cup (118 ml) whole milk
- 2 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast
- 2 Tablespoons + 1 teaspoon granulated sugar divided
- 1 cup (240 g) pumpkin puree
- ¼ cup (57 g) unsalted butter melted
- 1 egg + 1 egg yolk room temperature preferred
- 1 Tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1 ½ teaspoons table salt
- 4 cups (500 g) bread flour (you may need more or less depending on dough consistency)
Filling
- ½ cup (100 g) light brown sugar firmly packed
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon table salt
- 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter softened
Icing
- 2 oz (56 g) cream cheese softened
- 2 Tablespoons (28 g) butter unsalted butter, softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon table salt
- 1 cup (125 g) powdered sugar
- 1 Tablespoon milk or heavy cream
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
Cinnamon Rolls
- Heat milk in a small saucepan or in the microwave to 110-115F (43-46C).½ cup (118 ml) whole milk
- Pour warmed milk into a large mixing bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, and add yeast and a teaspoon of your sugar. Allow mixture to sit for 5-10 minutes until yeast is foamy (if yeast doesn’t foam after 10 minutes it is likely dead and you will need to start over).2 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast
- Once yeast is foamy, add remaining 2 Tablespoons sugar, pumpkin, melted butter, egg and egg yolk, pumpkin pie spice, salt, and 2 cups (250g) of bread flour. Stir until well-combined.1 cup (240 g) pumpkin puree, ¼ cup (57 g) unsalted butter, 1 egg + 1 egg yolk, 1 Tablespoon pumpkin pie spice, 1 ½ teaspoons table salt
- Gradually add remaining flour as needed until dough is soft and tacky, but not sticky and begins to cling to itself and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
- Knead dough with your stand mixer or transfer dough to a clean, lightly floured surface and knead by hand.. Knead until dough is smooth and elastic, adding more flour if dough becomes too sticky (typically about 10 minutes by hand, or 5 minutes with a stand mixer).
- Lightly grease a large bowl with oil. Place dough in bowl, turn to coat all over with oil, and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until dough has doubled in size, about 1-2 hours.
Filling and Assembly
- In a small bowl whisk together brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.½ cup (100 g) light brown sugar, 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, ⅛ teaspoon table salt
- Lightly grease a 13×9” (33x23cm) pan with butter, set aside.
- Once dough has finished rising, punch down to deflate and transfer to a clean, lightly floured surface. Use a rolling pin to form into a 20×8” (50x20cm) rectangle.
- Spread the surface of the dough evenly with your softened butter, leaving a ½” (1.5cm) perimeter around the edges.4 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- Sprinkle filling evenly over the surface and gently press it into the butter.
- Starting with the longer end, tightly roll the dough into a log, pinching the seam to seal.
- Use a sharp knife to cut into 12 even slices and transfer to prepared baking pan, evenly spacing slices. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise for 30-60 minutes, or until rolls are puffed. While rolls are rising, preheat oven to 350F (175C).
- Once rolls have risen, remove the plastic wrap and transfer to center rack of 350F (175C) preheated oven. Bake for 26-30 min, until edges of rolls begin to slightly brown. You can use an instant read thermometer to test the thickest part of an outer cinnamon roll and it should reach 185-190F (87C) when done. Prepare icing.
Icing
- Beat together cream cheese, butter, vanilla extract, and salt until creamy and smooth.2 oz (56 g) cream cheese, 2 Tablespoons (28 g) butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ⅛ teaspoon table salt
- Gradually add powdered sugar, stirring until combined.1 cup (125 g) powdered sugar
- Add milk or cream and stir well, until smooth and uniform.1 Tablespoon milk or heavy cream
- For a gooey glaze, allow rolls to cool only slightly (about 10 minutes) before applying frosting, for a thicker frosting allow rolls to cool completely before applying. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Storing
Cover tightly and store at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. I recommend reheating rolls before serving (especially if you refrigerated them!).Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
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