Sourdough pumpkin cinnamon rolls give a fall inspired twist to this classic recipe. Pumpkin purée is not only added to the dough, but also combined with butter, sugar, and pumpkin spice and smothered on the dough. You then roll it up, bake until your house smells delicious, and finally, top with cream cheese frosting to arrive at the most decadent, spiced breakfast treat.
Is there any food more classic fall than pumpkin? These delicious, large vegetables grow all summer as we wait for the leaves to start changing, and the weather to start cooling, to enjoy them.
Not only are they beautiful when styled on the front porch, they are also a healthy and delicious veggie to be enjoyed in a variety of ways. And sourdough pumpkin cinnamon rolls may be the most delicious way of all. It’s actually a tie between this recipe and these pumpkin rolls, but sourdough pumpkin cinnamon rolls are generally more acceptable for breakfast or brunch.
I took my sourdough cinnamon rolls and wanted to create an autumn dish incorporating my favorite vegetable, the pumpkin. Not only was it used in the filling by combining pumpkin spice, butter, and brown sugar, but I wanted to also add it to the dough.
It added some serious flavor to the dish, and I promise, the pumpkin spice flavor is not lacking. Would it be too much to serve it with a pumpkin spice latte or a Pumpkin Spice Rooibos Latte?
This makes the best fancy breakfast for a special occasion, or even a fun weekday meal. As a weekday meal, you can start them and get a headstart on chores, like milking the cow, feeding the animals, and rotating pastures.
Whenever you do bake these, I hope your family and friends love this fall influenced treat as much as ours did.
Tips:
- Substitute puréed butternut squash for the pumpkin in this recipe.
- Add toasted chopped walnuts to the pumpkin, and the pumpkin spice filling, for a yummy flavor and texture. Toast walnuts over medium heat in a cast iron skillet, stirring constantly. Turn off heat, add honey, and stir.
- I love to use a pumpkin spice blend in this recipe instead of the typical cinnamon for more delicious fall flavor, but if you don’t have pumpkin spice, you can easily just swap it out with cinnamon.
- For the most health benefits, ferment the dough at least overnight (8 hours) or up to 24 hours. If you don’t have time to ferment the dough, you can just whip it up the morning of and bake.
- Make your own puréed pumpkin using this recipe.
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Why you’ll love this recipe:
Sourdough: Fermented grains are a super healthy way to eat grains. As they ferment, they become easier to digest and their nutrients become more bioavailable.
Pumpkin spice: The epitome of fall flavors, this dish has it infused throughout, from the dough to the filling. This spice makes it super warm with a delightful heat.
Easy and fancy breakfast: This would make the best Thanksgiving breakfast! One of the best parts is it starts the night before, so in the morning you only have a few minutes of hands-on work. Better than having to wake up super early to start the dough like the typical recipe.
Tools you may need:
Stand mixer
Measuring cups and spoons
Unflavored dental floss
Bench scraper
Cast iron skillet – 14 inch
How To Make Sourdough Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
- In a bowl, combine fed sourdough starter, flour, honey, puréed pumpkin (or butternut squash), water, pumpkin spice, and melted coconut oil.
- Mix together and form into a ball.
- Place the dough in a greased bowl and cover the dough with beeswax wrap or plastic wrap, allowing it to rest in a warm place overnight for 8-24 hours. The longer it ferments, the more that delicious sourdough tang develops and the grain ferments.
The Next Day:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Place the fermented dough into a stand mixer and add eggs, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. You can also use your hands to combine. It is much easier with the stand mixer, but usually I just use my hands.
Create The Filling And Spread It Over The Dough
- In a bowl, combine softened butter, organic brown sugar, pumpkin purée, and pumpkin spice. Stir until smooth.
- Lightly dust the counter with flour, and roll out the dough to about 1/4 inch thickness.
- Spread pumpkin sugar mixture all over the rolled out dough, and top with toasted walnuts (optional). Roll the dough up as tightly as you can. When you get to the end, pull it up as tightly as you can and pinch the ends into the main roll.
Bake
- Slice to make 12-14 total sourdough cinnamon rolls. I like to use unflavored dental floss. You can also just use a knife. Place the rolls into a seasoned 14″ cast iron skillet or a baking dish.
- Pour heavy cream over top of the rolls, then place in the oven to bake.
- Bake them for 20-25 minutes or until the rolls are lightly browned and the dough is cooked through. Allow them to cool a bit.
Cream Cheese Topping
- In a stand mixer, add softened cream cheese, heavy cream, maple syrup or honey, and 2 tsp of vanilla extract. Stir until combined. Use immersion blender to get a smooth result, if desired.
- Pour over pumpkin cinnamon rolls, and enjoy!
How to Store:
Store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator. If you will have extra rolls, I would suggest not adding the cream cheese topping to all of them. This way you can easily reheat them in the oven later and top with the cream cheese topping.
Find More Delicious Sourdough Recipes:
- Sourdough Strawberry Shortcake
- Sourdough Pancakes Recipe
- Breakfast Strata
- Breakfast Pizza Recipe With Sourdough Crust
- Sourdough Cherry Cobbler
- Sourdough Cheddar Waffles
If you try this recipe and love it, I would love if you could come back and give it 5 stars!
Sourdough Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
Night before:
- 1/2 cup fed sourdough starter
- 1/2 cup water
- 4 1/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup melted coconut oil
- 1/2 cup pumpkin purée
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin spice
- 1/2 cup honey
Next day:
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Cinnamon filling:
- 1/2 cup softened butter
- 1/4 cup pumpkin purée
- 1 cup organic brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin spice
Top with before baking:
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
Cream Cheese Topping:
- 6 oz cream cheese
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 cup maple syrup or honey
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a bowl, combine fed sourdough starter, flour, honey, puréed pumpkin, water, pumpkin spice, and melted coconut oil.
- Mix together and form into a ball.
- Place the dough in a greased bowl and cover the dough with beeswax wrap or plastic wrap, allowing it to rest in a warm place overnight for 8-24 hours.
The Next Day:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Place the fermented dough into a stand mixer and add eggs, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix until combined.
- In a bowl, combine softened butter, organic brown sugar, pumpkin purée, and pumpkin spice. Stir until smooth.
- Lightly dust the counter with flour, and roll out the dough to about 1/4 inch thickness.
- Spread pumpkin sugar mixture all over the rolled out dough, and top with toasted walnuts (optional).
- Roll the dough up as tightly as you can. When you get to the end, pull it up as tightly as you can and pinch the ends into the main roll.
- Slice to make 12-14 total sourdough cinnamon rolls.
- Place the rolls into a seasoned 14″ cast iron skillet or a baking dish.
- Pour heavy cream over top of the rolls, then place in the oven to bake. Bake them for 20-25 minutes or until the rolls are lightly browned and the dough is cooked through. Allow them to cool a bit.
Make Cream Cheese Topping
- In a stand mixer, add softened cream cheese, heavy cream, maple syrup or honey, and 2 tsp of vanilla extract.
- Stir until combined.
- Pour over cinnamon rolls and enjoy.
Notes
- Substitute puréed butternut squash for the pumpkin in this recipe.
- Add toasted chopped walnuts to the pumpkin and pumpkin spice filling for a yummy flavor and texture. Toast walnuts over medium heat in a cast iron skillet, stirring constantly. Turn off heat, add honey, and stir.
- I love to use pumpkin spice in this recipe instead of the typical cinnamon for more delicious fall flavor, but if you don’t have pumpkin spice, you can easily just swap it out with cinnamon.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Is there a reason in this recipe you add the eggs in the morning but on the regular cinnamon rolls you add them at night to sit overnight?
I think you should add them at night. I make the regular cinnamon rolls often and I had to mix at high speed for the eggs to blend but they were sloshing around at first and made a big mess with this recipe.
I agree next time I will add them at night – it made a big mess and it took long to mix in I had to wipe the excess off so I could roll out – but they still came out great.
Hi! It smells so good but my dough is so sticky! What did I do wrong?
Yes! Same here. I’m so bummed.
Hi can I substitute the coconut oil for a different type of oil?
I have always used coconut oil, but I would think olive or avocado oil should work okay, too.
I use butter each time. Excellent recipe!!!
These cinnamon rolls are out of this world delicious. A lot
of work though. But I might get faster if I made them again. This was my first time making cinnamon rolls with any recipe.
I’m so glad you enjoyed them.
Hi! Do you have recipe in grams?
Not yet! I am working on converting all my recipes, but it takes time to do so. In the meantime, this is the conversion chart I reference: https://www.farmhouseonboone.com/baking-conversion-chart
Just wondering what the reasoning is for not letting these rise a second time after forming the rolls before baking. I’m worried they won’t turn out if I don’t.
They use baking powder and baking soda to give them rise rather than yeast so it doesn’t need a second rise.
I’m hoping to try to make the pumpkin rolls replacing some cocoa for some flour and then making the chocolate roll filling adding the pumpkin puree in it for a pumpkin double chocolate roll. I cannot wait to see how they turn out!
Yum! Let us know how it goes!
Fall Family Favorite! Probably the easiest cinnamon roll recipe I’ve ever made. Love the time table and taste of these rolls. Makes it easy for me to fit baking with mom life. Kids beg me to make again and again.
For us too! So glad you enjoy the recipe!
I made these over this weekend to share at our church potluck and everyone who ate them LOVED them! I didn’t have enough heavy whipping cream to put on them before baking but they still turned out great!
So glad it turned out great! Have a great day!
My cinnamon rolls are currently in the oven, though I’m doubtful they’ll turn out. The dough was so wet I could hardly roll them, it was more of a mush than a roll. I followed the recipe, the only substitution was olive oil for coconut oil in the ferment. Fingers crossed they still taste ok, but they don’t look great 🙁
Sorry you are having issues with them. It could be the substitution. Next time, I would maybe use a little more flour until the come together.