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Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

Name: Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
Prep time: 60 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 80 min
Ingredients: 2 1/4 tsp (1 packet) dry active yeast; 1/4 cup warm water (100-110 degrees); 4 2/3 cups all-purpose flour, (divided (plus more for rolling dough)); 1 cup pumpkin puree; 1/2 cup whole milk; 1 cup (16 Tbsp) unsalted butter, (melted, divided); 1/2 cups + 2 Tbsp granulated sugar, (divided); 3 tsp pumpkin pie spice, (divided); 1 tsp salt; 1/4 cup packed brown sugar; 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon; 1 cup confectioners' sugar; 1 Tbsp milk; 1 tsp vanilla

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When there's a chill in the air, all I want to do is cuddle up on the couch with a cinnamon roll and a cup of coffee. These Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls are packed with pumpkin spice flavor and drizzled with a deliciously sweet icing, making for the perfect fall breakfast or afternoon treat.

Overhead view of a pumpkin cinnamon roll with icing on a white plate with pie plate of cinnamon rolls and fall leaves in background with recipe title at top

(This recipe for Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls was originally published in November 2010, but has been updated with new photos and content in 2019).

Let's be clear: There is no wrong time for cinnamon rolls. I'm talking no wrong time of year and no wrong time of day. You can ask, are they best for leisurely summer brunches or better for snowed in days? Are the perfect for breakfast or do they make more sense as a decadent dessert?

But then you can stop asking those questions because the answer is ALL OF THE ABOVE. Cinnamon rolls are perfect all day any day.

Now that we have that out of the way, let's talk about these pumpkin cinnamon rolls. While I'm not going to tell you to stop eating pumpkin in the summer (eat it whenever you want! Just please don't bring pumpkin beer into my house in July because that annoys me), I am going to tell you these pumpkin cinnamon buns are a serious fall obsession of mine.

Right when the chilly weather hits (even if it's only in the morning), I want these in my house.

They're pretty traditional cinnamon rolls, but with pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie spice in the dough and plenty more pumpkin pie spice in the filling.

They are totally appropriate for breakfast, snack, or dessert. And I wouldn't even blame you if you made them simply to have the fragrance of pumpkin cinnamon rolls filling your kitchen (but I bet you won't be able to resist eating at least one).

How to Make Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

These cinnamon rolls aren't difficult to make, but they are a little bit of a process and require some dough rising time.

If you want these for breakfast and don't want to get up at the crack of dawn, you can assemble the cinnamon rolls up until you place them in their baking dishes, keep them in the fridge overnight, and pop them in the oven in the morning. It doesn't get any easier than that!

You'll want to start by making the dough. I find it easiest to do in my stand mixer, but if you don't have one, you can do it in a large bowl with a hand mixer or even a whisk. You'll just have to knead the dough for a little bit longer on your countertop.

Start by stirring the yeast and warm water together in the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl. Let sit for 2 minutes.

Then add 3 ⅔ cups of flour, pumpkin puree, milk, 5 Tbsp melted butter, 2 Tbsp sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and salt.

Overhead view of mixing bowl with flour, pumpkin puree, melted butter, pumpkin pie spice, and milk ready to be mixed

Beat at medium speed until smooth.

Then it's time to get kneading the dough. If you have a dough hook on your mixer, knead with this for about 6 minutes, adding the remaining cup of dough little by little throughout the process.

If you want to do it by hand, it will probably take you about 10 minutes on a well floured surface. Again, add the remaining cup of flour a little at a time if you're doing it this way.

Place the dough in a large bowl that has been lightly coated in oil (I used vegetable). Make sure the dough is coated in the oil, cover the bowl with a kitchen towel, and let it rest for about an hour in a warm spot. If your kitchen is cool, you can always keep your oven on low and place the bowl on top.

Once dough has risen, punch it down and let it rest for about 5 more minutes.

Collage showing process for making dough, including dough mixed in bowl, dough after kneading covered in oil and resting in bowl, and dough after rising in bowl

In the meantime, make the filling. Combine granulated sugar, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon in a bowl.

Once done rising, place dough on a well-floured surface and, using a rolling pen, roll dough into a large rectangle, about 30×10 inches (if you don't have a big enough surface, you can split the dough into two portions and make two separate rolls).

Once the dough is rolled, pour about 10 Tbsp of the melted butter on top. And sprinkle the sugar and spice mix all over the top.

Ready to roll? Starting from the long edge furthest from you, roll the dough tightly, pressing firmly to eliminate air pockets.

Pinch seams and ends to seal.

Collage showing process for rolling dough out into large rectangle on counter; coating dough in butter with pumpkin pie spice, sugar, and cinnamon; and rolling up dough

Cut the roll into 1-inch- 1 ½-inch slices. Lightly brush two baking dishes or pie plates with remaining melted butter and place cinnamon rolls in dish taking care not to overcrowd.

Cover the dish with a kitchen towel and let rise for another 20 minutes.

Otherwise, while they're rising pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees.

And bake the rolls for about 17-20 minutes or until they're golden brown.

One photo showing sliced cinnamon rolls in a pie dish and a second photo showing pumpkin cinnamon rolls just baked and out of oven

While they're baking, whisk together confectioners' sugar, milk, and vanilla in a bowl. And then when the cinnamon rolls come out of the oven, pour the icing over them.

Cream cheese frosting would also be delicious on these pumpkin cinnamon rolls if you want to use that instead.

Tips for Making Ahead of Time

A lot of people ask if you can make cinnamon rolls ahead of time and there are a couple of different ways you can do this. Here are my tips:

To make the day before: Once you have the pumpkin cinnamon rolls sliced and in the baking dish, cover dish in plastic wrap and put them in the fridge. In the morning, remove from fridge, bring to room temperature, and bake.

To make days/weeks/a month before: You can also put them in the freezer if you want to enjoy them much later (whenever I make this recipe, I keep a pan to enjoy now and put a pan of them in the freezer for later). Simply wrap the dish tightly in plastic wrap and foil and place in freezer. When you're ready to enjoy them, remove from freezer, thaw, and bake. If you don't want to wait for them to thaw, you can place them in the fridge the night before and let come to room temperature in the morning.

To make AND bake ahead of time: I think cinnamon rolls are best fresh out of the oven, but if you want to make things even easier, you can bake them, let them cool in the pan, and then wrap the pan in plastic wrap and foil and freeze. When ready to enjoy, remove from freezer, let them thaw, and pop them in oven to warm them up. Frost them while they're warm.

Oh, hello there, heaven.

Bird's eye view of a white pie plate filled with pumpkin cinnamon rolls and drizzled in icing with fall leaves and bowl of icing in the background

Being the cinnamon bun lover that I am, I'm absolutely obsessed with these. The pumpkin taste isn't overpowering by any means, but is most definitely there. You'll first notice it while these are baking and your kitchen starts to smell absolutely delicious.

And then when you dig in, you'll absolutely love the touch of pumpkin spice in every bite.

Overhead closeup of a pumpkin cinnamon roll covered in icing on a white plate with more cinnamon rolls in background

So, would you rather have one of these cinnamon rolls first thing upon waking up in the morning or in the middle a long day of work when you just want to relax for a bit with a cup of coffee or tea and a treat? See, not such an easy decision is it? It's OK, there's no right answer.

Trust me, I've experimented quite a bit and have indulged in cinnamon rolls at pretty much every hour of the day.

And they're all equally amazing.

Landscape overhead view of pumpkin cinnamon roll on a white plate drizzled with icing and with fall leaves in the background

I think cinnamon rolls are quickly becoming one of my most often made recipes since I can't seem to have a brunch gathering without a dish of them. I've made all different kinds, but these pumpkin cinnamon rolls might just be my favorite variation.

Serve them with cup of pumpkin spice coffee and I'm even more in heaven.

Overhead view of a pumpkin cinnamon roll with icing on a white plate with pie plate of cinnamon rolls and fall leaves in background

Just one more reason to love fall!

Have you made your own cinnamon rolls before?

If you like these pumpkin cinnamon rolls, be sure to check out my Blueberry Funfetti Cinnamon Rolls and my Gingerbread Rolls with Eggnog Glaze. Next up, I want to try this Crock Pot Cinnamon Roll Casserole from Daily Appetite!

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