Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

This shop sharing my recipe for amazing homemade pumpkin cinnamon rolls has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #NestleHolidayBaking #CollectiveBias

As hard as it is for me to believe, Thanksgiving is fast approaching. And the rest of the holidays are not far behind. For me, that means plenty of time and fun with friends and family, which I love. I love the excuse to find new ideas for recipes to share with them over the course of the season, and these pumpkin cinnamon rolls – that I can prep the night before and leave in the fridge to bake off in the morning – are a perfect example.

I love incorporating the flavors of the season into what I’m making, and I always know that a quick stop in Walmart perusing the seasonal displays will give me plenty of inspiration. This time around, I figured out exactly what I’m going to make for breakfast on Thanksgiving morning.

Obviously, I tested them out ahead of time, because I want to ensure that the recipe is exactly how I want it… and it’s a good excuse to pull out my mixer and bake something.

I’m going to let you in on a little secret. I’m not a fan of pumpkin pie. Every year, that’s the dessert I pass up, and everyone in my family thinks I’m crazy. Needless to say, when I’m in charge of the Thanksgiving menu, pumpkin pie mysteriously isn’t on it. But pumpkin is such a classic tradition that I have to incorporate it somehow. After all, LIBBY’S® 100% Pure Pumpkin, 15oz. has been a tradition for over 100 years.

Fortunately, these pumpkin cinnamon rolls are the perfect compromise for everyone. And yes, my inspiration was a walk down the aisles at Walmart where I spied their holiday baking setup. Not only was LIBBY’S® 100% Pure Pumpkin, 15oz. there, but I spotted a seasonal  NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Pumpkin Spice Morsels that sounded like they’d pair ideally with the pumpkin. As I pondered what to make with them, my eye wandered to the NESTLÉ® CARNATION® Evaporated Milk, 15oz, and the idea for these pumpkin cinnamon rolls was born.

These NESTLÉ® products are perfect for holiday baking, and they’ve got you covered no matter what you dream up. LIBBY’S® Pumpkin, 15oz. is perfect whether you’re making a sweet or a savory item, and with 100% pure and natural pumpkin, it’s ideal to use to create the flavors you want to develop in your recipe.

To make the pumpkin cinnamon rolls, I adapted my favorite cinnamon roll recipe to incorporate the LIBBY’S® Pumpkin, 15oz. (after all, it’s a superfood that is rich in vitamin A, a good source of the antioxidant beta-carotene and a good source of fiber so this counts as a vegetable, right?). As with any bread recipe where I’m using milk, I made sure to scald my 3/4 cup from the NESTLÉ® CARNATION® Evaporated Milk, 15oz, which makes for a lighter and less dense roll. Actually, with the ingredients I chose, I don’t think I could have gone wrong with this recipe, and as fast as these cinnamon rolls are disappearing from my house, I’m not the only one with that opinion apparently!

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls Recipe

These pumpkin cinnamon rolls can be made all in one day. But I love that I can also stick the formed rolls in the fridge to rise overnight so that I can wake up and pop them in the oven for a delicious breakfast, too. If you don’t refrigerate them overnight, you’ll want to bake them for five or so minutes less time, as they won’t be cold from the fridge.

I always start out by pulling all my ingredients together for each portion. The dough is step one, and once you have everything ready, it actually comes together pretty easily.

Start by scalding the evaporated milk. This won’t take long, as you’re only using 3/4 cup. Make sure to watch it so that it doesn’t burn. You want it to just start steaming but not actually boil. As soon as it’s steaming, remove it from the heat and let it cool down a bit before adding to the rest of your ingredients. If you add it to your yeast while it’s still too hot, it will kill the yeast, and your pumpkin cinnamon rolls won’t rise.

Why NESTLÉ® CARNATION® Evaporated Milk, 15oz? It adds an extra creamy and rich flavor to the pumpkin cinnamon rolls that complements the rest of the ingredients perfectly. It has a slightly more intense flavor than regular milk and is just what I wanted for this recipe. It’s the little difference that makes all the difference.

Once you’ve removed the scalded evaporated milk from the heat, add warm water to your mixing bowl. You don’t have to get an exact temperature. You want the water to be warm to the touch but not so hot you can’t stand it. Anything over body temperature is plenty warm. Add the yeast to the water and then the sugars. Stir to combine.

In a separate bowl, lightly beat your egg. This step doesn’t require anything fancy, just a fork and a few seconds to mix the yolk and white mostly together. It doesn’t need to be perfect or exact.

Once it’s beaten slightly, go ahead and add it to your water mixture and mix to combine. Add the oil, the salt, and the pumpkin and mix well to combine. Note that you don’t want to add any pumpkin pie spice to your dough. Pumpkin pie spice is primarily made of cinnamon, and cinnamon will retard the yeast reaction so that your dough and rolls won’t rise the way you want them to. That’s why cinnamon rolls always have the cinnamon in the filling and not in the dough itself.

By this point, the milk that should have cooled down somewhat and you can add it to your mixture. Add the flour, in portions. Add two cups and mix well, then add another cup and stir until you have all the flour incorporated into your dough. Continue kneading with your dough hook for ten or so minutes to let the gluten strands form. This is a more sticky dough than a typical bread dough, so don’t feel like you have to continue adding flour to it. Relax and be ok with it as is.

Once your dough is well kneaded, remove the dough hook and cover the top of your bowl with a damp towel. Let it rest in a warm, sunny spot for an hour to rise.

While the dough is rising, prepare a 9×13 pan to bake the rolls and the filling for your pumpkin cinnamon rolls. Generously butter your baking dish to ensure your rolls don’t stick. Don’t use a nonstick spray. You want to go ahead and rub it with butter. I tend to let a tablespoon or two of butter soften and then use the wrapper of my butter to spread it throughout the pan without getting myself dirty.

For the filling, combine the sugars, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl and mix with a fork until everything is well distributed within it. Set aside until you’re ready to fill your pumpkin cinnamon rolls.

Once your dough has risen, generously sprinkle flour on your work surface and turn the pumpkin cinnamon roll dough onto it. Sprinkle some more flour atop the dough and either using your hands or a rolling pin, form it into a rectangle about 24 by 12 inches. It doesn’t need to be exact, but you want it somewhat in that vicinity.

Once it is a rectangle, let it rest for a moment while you melt your butter. Again, you don’t need this to get too hot, just enough to melt. Using a pastry brush or a spatula, spread the butter across all the rectangle except for the top half inch or so of the long part of your rectangle. Sprinkle your prepared filling over the butter and spread with your fingers to distribute evenly, again leaving that top half inch or so border. Sprinkle a half cup (or more – go ahead, be generous) of the NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Pumpkin Spice Morsels over the filling.

Once your pumpkin cinnamon rolls have the filling spread on them, carefully being to roll up the long edge. Start in one corner and roll just a touch, and slide your hands down to continue rolling that same little touch all across the long edge. Once you reach the end, roll a little more and work your way back like a typewriter.

Once the entire log is rolled, push it over just a bit so that the seam is on the bottom.

Cut the dough into 12 pumpkin cinnamon rolls. The easiest way to do this is to use a serrated knife (a bread knife), so it cuts through the dough without compressing it. Cut it in half, then cut each half into quarters. Finally, slice each quarter into three pieces to give yourself as evenly cut rolls as possible. If they aren’t perfect, they’ll still turn out fine.

Carefully pick up the pumpkin cinnamon rolls one at a time and place them into your buttered baking dish. Leave plenty of space around each one, as they will rise together later. Place the end pieces cut side up so that they’re prettier when you bake them. If there is any filling that has spilled out while moving them to the pan, go ahead and scoop it up and sprinkle it over your pumpkin cinnamon rolls.

If you are letting these rise overnight in the fridge, cover with that damp cloth again and place in the fridge overnight. If you are making them right away, let them rise with the damp cloth over them for a half hour before baking.

The next morning, remove the pumpkin cinnamon rolls from the fridge and preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Let the rolls rest on the counter while the oven preheats. Bake for 30-35 minutes (25-30 minutes if not refrigerating overnight), until they are golden brown and the filling is lightly bubbling around them. (See how they’ve risen and now touch each other without crowding?)

Remove from the oven, and let them cool while you make the piece de la resistance – your pumpkin frosting. It has just a touch of cream cheese for that tangy richness, plus the just right amount cinnamon and spices from the NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Pumpkin Spice Morsels. After all, it wouldn’t be fall without the rich taste of pumpkin spice – and since it’s a flavor only available in the fall months, now is the time to take advantage.

In a saucepan, melt together the butter and NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Pumpkin Spice Morsels over low heat, stirring constantly to ensure the morsels don’t burn. Once they are melted, remove from the heat and don’t fret if the butter and morsels separate a little.

Add them to your mixing bowl with the cream cheese and mix to combine thoroughly. Add the powdered sugar and stir on low until incorporated before turning up the speed to whip the frosting for 1-2 minutes.

Spread over the still slightly warm pumpkin cinnamon rolls and serve immediately. Sit back and enjoy the oohs and ahhs.

These are best immediately but will keep for up to 2 days in a tightly sealed container on your counter. You can also double wrap the pumpkin cinnamon rolls individually and freeze them for up to a month to enjoy when at your leisure.

Need some more inspiration? NESTLÉ® is here to help. Check out their Pinterest account or this baking board for more ideas, or catch them on Instagram or Facebook for fresh inspiration.

Have you ever made pumpkin cinnamon rolls? How would you use some of NESTLÉ®’s fall baking favorites?

Enjoy this article? Please share it and save it for later!