Make pumpkin cinnamon rolls with pillowy pumpkin dough, gooey brown sugar filling, warm fall spices, and silky cream cheese glaze in every swirl!

Soft, golden, and swirled with buttery brown sugar, these pumpkin cinnamon rolls bring everything you want from a fall breakfast into one gloriously sticky pan!

Ingredients

For the Tangzhong

• 3 tablespoons bread flour
• 1/2 cup whole milk

For the Pumpkin Dough

• Prepared tangzhong, slightly cooled
• 3/4 cup pure pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling
• 1/3 cup whole milk, warmed to 100°F to 110°F
• 2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast, one standard packet
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 4 cups bread flour, plus up to 1/4 cup more only if needed
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• 1 1/4 teaspoons fine salt

For the Cinnamon Filling

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, very soft but not melted
• 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1 tablespoon bread flour
• 1/4 teaspoon fine salt

Before Baking

• 1/3 cup heavy cream, warmed until just lukewarm

For the Cream Cheese Frosting

• 4 ounces full-fat block cream cheese, softened
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted if lumpy
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• Pinch of fine salt
• 1 to 2 tablespoons whole milk or heavy cream

Servings: 12 pumpkin cinnamon rolls
Preparation time: 35 minutes

How to Make Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

Add 3 tablespoons bread flour and 1/2 cup whole milk to a small saucepan, then whisk until no dry flour remains.

Place pan over medium-low heat and continue whisking for 2 to 4 minutes, scraping around edges as mixture thickens.

It is ready when it resembles soft mashed potatoes and your whisk leaves clear lines across bottom of pan for a second or two.

Transfer it to a large mixing bowl and let it cool for about 10 minutes, until warm rather than piping hot.

While tangzhong cools, combine warm milk, yeast, and about 1 teaspoon of measured granulated sugar in a small cup. Leave it for 5 to 8 minutes. Instant yeast does not always produce a dramatic foam cap, but you should notice bubbles or a creamy-looking surface.

If absolutely nothing happens and your yeast has been lingering in a cabinet since a previous presidential administration, start again with a fresh packet.

Add pumpkin puree, remaining granulated sugar, egg, melted butter, vanilla, and yeast mixture to slightly cooled tangzhong. Whisk until mixture looks evenly orange and mostly smooth.

A few tiny pieces of tangzhong are perfectly fine and will disappear while kneading.

Add 4 cups bread flour, pumpkin pie spice, and salt. Stir with a sturdy wooden spoon until a shaggy, sticky dough forms and no large pockets of dry flour remain.

If using a stand mixer, attach dough hook and knead on medium-low speed for 7 to 9 minutes.

If kneading by hand, turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 10 to 12 minutes, using a bench scraper to lift it whenever it sticks rather than continually showering it with flour.

Pay attention to how dough feels before adding extra flour. Pumpkin dough should be soft, supple, and slightly tacky, so a finger may stick for a moment before releasing cleanly. It should not flow across counter or coat your hands like cake batter.

If it remains extremely sticky after five minutes of kneading, add extra bread flour 1 tablespoon at a time, allowing each addition to mix completely before deciding whether you need another. Most batches need no more than 2 to 4 additional tablespoons.

Continue kneading until dough becomes smooth and elastic. Pinch off a small piece and gently stretch it between your fingers.

If it forms a thin, nearly translucent sheet before tearing, gluten is developed enough. If it tears immediately with rough edges, knead for another two minutes and test again.

This little windowpane test is more reliable than staring at a timer and hoping dough has read recipe instructions.

Shape dough into a ball and place it in a lightly buttered bowl, turning once so its surface receives a thin coating.

Cover bowl with plastic wrap or a clean damp towel and let dough rise in a warm, draft-free place for 60 to 90 minutes. Because pumpkin adds weight, this dough may rise more slowly than plain cinnamon roll dough.

Look for it to become roughly doubled and noticeably puffy; time is a guide, but volume tells you when it is ready.

While dough rises, stir dark brown sugar, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, flour, and salt in a medium bowl.

Use your fingers to break apart any firm sugar lumps because those stubborn pebbles can tear dough while you roll it. Keep softened butter separate so it can be spread directly over dough.

Butter a 9 x 13-inch baking dish, making sure you coat corners as well as bottom. Turn risen dough onto a lightly floured counter and gently press it into a rough rectangle to release large air pockets.

Roll it into an 18 x 12-inch rectangle, keeping thickness as even as possible. If dough repeatedly springs back, cover it and let it rest for 8 to 10 minutes.

Gluten will relax, your rectangle will cooperate, and nobody needs to get into a wrestling match before breakfast.

Arrange dough with one long side facing you. Spread softened butter evenly across its surface, leaving a 1/2-inch bare border along far long edge.

Butter should be soft enough to spread without pulling dough but not melted, since liquid butter encourages filling to escape.

Sprinkle brown sugar mixture over butter, then gently press it down with your palms so it adheres.

Starting at long edge closest to you, roll dough into a snug log. Use your fingertips to lift and roll rather than pushing hard, which can squeeze filling forward.

Keep roll firm enough to create defined spirals but not so tight that centers pop upward during baking. Pinch bare edge against log to seal it, then position log seam-side down.

Mark log into 12 equal pieces before cutting, first dividing it in half, then dividing each half in half, and finally cutting each quarter into three rolls.

Unflavored dental floss gives you clean spirals: slide floss under log, cross ends over top, and pull in opposite directions.

A very sharp serrated knife also works if you use gentle sawing motions and avoid pressing downward.

Arrange rolls in prepared baking dish with a little room between them. Cover loosely and let them rise for 35 to 50 minutes, until visibly puffy and nearly touching.

A properly proofed roll should slowly spring back when lightly pressed with a floured fingertip. If it snaps back immediately, give it another 10 minutes.

If indentation remains completely and roll feels fragile, bake it promptly because it may be slightly over-proofed.

About 20 minutes before rolls finish rising, place an oven rack in center position and heat oven to 350°F.

Home ovens often announce that they are ready before reaching a stable temperature, so giving yours enough preheating time helps rolls rise evenly instead of drying while oven catches up.

Slowly pour lukewarm heavy cream around rolls and over their tops just before baking.

Cream should not be refrigerator-cold, since cold liquid can shock yeast and slow that final burst of oven spring.

Let it soak around spirals for a minute, then place pan on center rack.

Bake for 24 to 29 minutes, rotating pan after about 18 minutes if your oven browns unevenly.

Rolls are ready when tops look lightly golden, centers appear set rather than wet, and an instant-read thermometer inserted into a center roll registers 190°F to 195°F.

If tops brown before centers finish, loosely place foil over pan for remaining baking time.

Set pan on a cooling rack for 10 to 15 minutes. This short rest allows crumb to finish setting, but do not wait until rolls become cold.

Frosting belongs on warm rolls so part of it slips into spirals while some stays creamy on top!

Beat softened cream cheese and butter for 1 to 2 minutes, until completely smooth. Add powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt, then beat on low speed until sugar is incorporated. Increase speed and beat for another minute.

Add milk or cream 1 teaspoon at a time until frosting becomes soft and spreadable. It should fall slowly from a spoon in a thick ribbon rather than run like glaze.

Spoon frosting across warm rolls and gently spread it toward edges. For a prettier finish with a thicker white layer, use half while rolls are warm, wait another 10 minutes, and spread remaining frosting on top.

Serve while centers are soft, filling is gooey, and frosting is still deciding whether it wants to melt or stay put!

Serving Suggestions

Serve these pumpkin cinnamon rolls warm with coffee, chai, hot apple cider, or cold milk.

For brunch, add something salty alongside them, such as scrambled eggs, crisp bacon, breakfast sausage, or a vegetable frittata. Sweet rolls taste even better when your plate gives them a little savory competition!

For a fall dessert, warm one roll for 15 to 20 seconds in microwave and serve it with a small scoop of vanilla ice cream. Chopped toasted pecans can be sprinkled over frosting for crunch, while a light drizzle of maple syrup makes each roll even more decadent.

Warm from oven, these pumpkin cinnamon rolls have tender orange-gold layers, buttery cinnamon spirals, and enough cream cheese frosting to make every forkful feel like a proper fall celebration! 

Hungry for more feel-good meals? Explore these 21 Anti-Inflammatory Breakfast Recipes for a nourishing start and 10 Anti-Inflammatory Dinner Recipes for delicious evenings that make healthy eating easy!