Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon Rolls

A twist on classic cinnamon rolls with tangzhong pumpkin dough, pumpkin spice and topped with whipped cream cheese frosting for a comforting seasonal treat.

A cinnamon roll is always a delicious treat, but often the dough hardens once cooled and no one wants that. I have incorporated tangzhong into the dough so that the rolls stay supple and pillowy even when cooled so that no matter when you eat the bun it will be squishy and soft. Tangzhong is an Asian technique that helps yeast-leavened breads stay fresh longer and prevents them from drying out and going stale. It involves heating some of the flour and liquid from the recipe to make a roux-type slurry. The heating process gelatinizes the flour so that the final dough can retain more moisture once cooked. Incorporating the tangzhong method is a great way to get the effect of tender and delicate dough without using as much fat or sugar to enrich the dough. As a result, using tangzhong is a great alternative to using butter and eggs in vegan baking.

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Rising Time: 2.5 hours

Cook Time: 20-25 minutes

Ingredients:

The dough:

• 400g bread flour

• 200g milk

• 150g pumpkin puree

• 57g or 1/4 cup unsalted butter (softened)

• 40g turbanado sugar

• 10g kosher salt

• 7g active dry yeast

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Pumpkin Spice Mixture:

• 114g or 1/2 cup unsalted butter (softened)

• 100g or 1/2 cup turbinado sugar or light brown sugar

• 4 tbsp pumpkin spice

Cream Cheese Frosting:

• 42g unsalted butter

• 42g cream cheese

• 80g powdered sugar

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 1-2 tbsp milk as needed

Instructions:

1. Prepare the tangzhong by weighing out flour and milk and then from that removing 3 tbsp flour and 1/2 cup of milk and putting in a pot set to medium heat.

2. Cook stirring the roux mixture until thickened, it should reach approx 150°F or 65.5°C, then allow to cool.

3. Combine the flour, milk, the cooled tangzhong, and the rest of the ingredients for the dough in the bowl of a stand mixer or in a regular bowl if kneading by hand.

4. Stir to mix the ingredients, then knead with the dough hook on medium speed for about 8 minutes. If kneading by hand this will take a little longer, 10-20 minutes (depending on how you handle the dough). Kneading is complete once the dough pulls away from the bowl and is tacky, not sticky.

5. Cover and let rise for 1-1.5 hours, depending on the temperature of your kitchen.

6. While the dough is rising make the pumpkin spice mixture.

7. Lightly flour your work surface and roll the dough out into a rectangle measuring about 12 inches x 20 inches (30cm x 50cm).

8. Spread pumpkin spice mixture onto the dough, leaving about 1/2 an inch bare on one of the lengths of the dough.

9. Roll the dough into a log

10. Cut 1 1/2 inch thick pieces (I use unscented dental floss for this because it makes very clean cuts).

11. Arrange on a baking dish with about 1 cm between each roll, cover with a cloth and allow to proof for about an hour or until the dough passes the finger dent test.*

12. Bake at 375°F or 190°C for 20-25 minutes or until the inside of the rolls registers 190°F or 88°C.

13. Make whipped cream cheese frosting (omit if you prefer uniced buns) and spread the frosting evenly over pumpkin spice cinnamon rolls.

14. Enjoy!

Additional Notes:

*The finger dent test means that when poked with a finger, a properly proofed dough will have a slight dent remain but it will spring back somewhat. If under-proofed the dough will spring back almost immediately to its original position and if over-proofed, the finger dent will remain and there will be no spring back from the dough.