Recipe: Pumpkin Pie Cinnamon Rolls & FitMas Week 4 Giveaway

Today, I’m sharing with you a recipe that I often receive questions about around the holidays. It’s one I enjoy making every Thanksgiving and Christmas – my family looks forward to it as well!



These Pumpkin Pie Cinnamon Rolls are made from scratch and aren’t as hard to make as you think! I had to laugh this past Thanksgiving while purchasing yeast at a local grocery store – the lady checking out in front of me asked what I was planning on using the yeast for (it was the only item in my hand). When I told her, she was shocked – “as in, you’re going to knead it and let it rise?” Why yes, I plan on doing just that…

Pumpkin Pie Cinnamon Rolls
Adapted from: Oh She Glows

Ingredients:

Yeast Mixture

•2 tsp Active Dry Yeast
•1/2 tsp Sugar
•1/2 Cup very warm water (but not too hot to touch)

Dough

•1/2 Cup almond milk
•1/3 Cup Sugar
•1/3 Cup butter
•1 tsp salt
•1 Egg
•Yeast Mixture, from above
•3Cups All Purpose Flour + more for kneading

Pecan Streusel Filling

•1/2 Cup Sugar
•1.5 Tbsp Cinnamon
•1/2 cup pecans, chopped and toasted

Pan Sauce

•1/4 Cup butter, melted
•1/6 Cup Sugar

Pumpkin Pie Filling

•1/2 cup pumpkin, canned
•1/2 tbsp cornstarch
•1/6 cup sugar
•1/2 tsp vanilla extract
•1.5 tbsp almond milk
•1/4 tsp cinnamon
•1/8 tsp ginger
•1/8 tsp nutmeg

Cream Cheese Frosting

•1/4 Cup butter
•1/3 Cup cream cheese
•1 tsp Vanilla Extract
•1 Cups Powdered Sugar

Exhausted yet? Don’t worry, keep reading – I promise it’s not as bad as it seems!

Directions:

Mix yeast ingredients together and set aside for 5 minutes – you will know the mixture is ready when it is foamy and bubbly.

Combine the wet dough ingredients (almond milk, sugar, butter, salt, and egg) in a small saucepan and heat on medium until all ingredients are combined. Mix well. Turn off heat and allow mixture to cool to room temperature. Once cooled, add in the yeast mixture and stir to combine.

In a separate bowl, combine 1.5 cups of flour with the saucepan mixture and stir with a wooden spoon. This mixture will be very wet and sticky to touch. Add in the remaining 1.5 cups of flour and mix together well (you may need to use your hands at this point because the mixture will be hard to stir). Place the contents of the bowl on a floured countertop surface and begin kneading the dough. (It’s normal for the dough to be quite tough to work with at first.) Set a timer for 8 minutes and knead the dough until it’s no longer sticky to the touch. Don’t know how to knead dough? Well, it’s pretty much like taking your frustration out on a big ball of sticky dough. Punch it, beat it, roll it, turn it over and start again! (It’s ok to add additional flour to the surface if the dough sticks…I usually have to add quite a bit more.)

After the timer goes off, shape the dough into a ball and place inside a well oiled bowl. Cover with plastic and place in a natural temperature location (I like to place mine on my stove top). Let dough rise for 90 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the pecan streusel filling by combing ingredients (from above) together in a bowl. Set aside.

As the time nears 90 minutes (around 75 minutes in or so), prepare the pumpkin pie filling (from above). In a small bowl, mix together the cornstarch and almond milk until no clumps are present. Heat in a saucepan over medium heat. Add in all other ingredients and stir until mixture thickens (about 5-8 minutes). This mixture can burn easily so be careful.

After 90 minutes of rising, your dough should have doubled in size. Poke the dough – if it does not spring back up, it’s ready to go! If your dough has not risen at all (this has happened to me), your yeast was probably bad – it’s a good idea to start over here and not continue to the end…otherwise you’ll end up with flat rolls…which has also happened to me….whomp whomp.

Using a rolling pin, spread out the dough in a large rectangle. Once you are satisfied with the shape, spread 1/4 cup of butter on the surface of the dough with a pastry brush. Take the pumpkin pie filling and spread it onto the butter – it’s going to be a little difficult to spread but keep working at it. Once the filling is spread over the dough, sprinkle the entire amount of the pecan streusel topping over the pumpkin filling.  

Take the ends of the dough and begin rolling, being careful to keep it as straight as you can. Once the dough is rolled, take a serrated knife or dental floss (floss works best) and cut into individual rolls. It’s ok to make these as small or as large as you want – this recipe can make 8 large rolls or 16 small rolls (I go for the smaller end…that means I can have two)!

Now make the pan sauce by combining melted butter and sugar (from above) and spreading them in the bottom of the baking dish being used for this recipe.

Once bottom of the baking dish is covered in sauce, place individually cut rolls inside. Cover dish with plastic wrap and place in a neutral temperature location for 45 minutes to rise.

I like to make mine the evening before – when I reach this step, I simply cover the dish and place the rolls in the fridge to rise overnight. The following morning, I remove the baking dish from the fridge and allow it to return to room temperature before baking.

Remove plastic wrap from baking dish, place in oven, and bake for 25-27 minutes until golden in color.

While rolls are baking, prepare cream cheese frosting (from above). In a large bowl, mix together the butter and cream cheese with a wooden spoon until incorporated. Add in vanilla. Slowly add in the powdered sugar, stirring frequently until mixed. Keep mixing until all clumps are gone.

Remove rolls from oven once baked and allow to slightly cool. Serve with cream cheese frosting and enjoy!



Ingredients



Yeast mixture is ready!



Wet dough ingredients



A very messy and sticky dough



Floured Surface



Ready to knead!



Kneaded and placed in a well oiled bowl covered with plastic wrap



After 90 minute rise



Pecan Streusel filling



Ready to roll!



Rectangle shape (sort of)



Buttered and spread with pumpkin pie filling



Sprinkled with pecan streusel filling



Rolled and ready for the baking dish!



Pan Sauce



After the overnight rise



Baked until golden brown



Cream Cheese icing



Ready for serving!

When I first began making this recipe, I was a bit overwhelmed. Over time, it’s become like second nature – so much so, I hardly need a recipe anymore!

Have you ever attempted to make a recipe from scratch? What’s your favorite/traditional go-to holiday recipe?

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Now it’s time for the final week of FitMas Giveaways here at Just Me & My Running Shoes! I hope you’ve enjoyed the weeks of giveaways so far! :)

The final giveaway for FitMas week 4 comes to you from the awesome guys at Flip Belt! That’s right, one lucky winner will receive a Flip Belt (size and color) of their choice! Not sure what a Flip Belt is? Here’s a review I wrote – I still don’t leave home without it! :) I’ve noticed that FlipBelt recently changed their belts to include zippers! I love it!

Enter via rafflecopter below. This giveaway will run for 1 week’s time and will end at midnight next Sunday night (12/28).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck and Merry Christmas!!

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