Sourdough Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
Get ready to fall in love with the coziest, most delicious treat of the season. These sourdough pumpkin cinnamon rolls with pumpkin spice are the ultimate autumn indulgence.
Pillow soft cinnamon rolls get the added fall flavors from the pumpkin puree and get sweetened with delicious maple syrup to make the perfect fall treat that everyone will devour- just like my sourdough apple cinnamon roll roses!
Fluffy and gooey, these pumpkin cinnamon rolls are a perfect blend of the warm, comforting flavors you crave when the leaves start to turn. So, grab a cup of pumpkin spice latte (or a cup of coffee if you're not already all in the pumpkin season), and let's dive into it!
I have to warn you though: the icing is totally your call, but I prefer to make these without it and drizzle them with maple syrup before serving. If you DO decide to make icing as well, this cream cheese icing for cinnamon rolls is my go-to!
Quick Look
- Prep time: 1 hour.
- Cook time: 25 mins.
- Servings: 12 servings.
- Main ingredients: Sourdough starter, pumpkin puree, maple syrup, all purpose flour, egg, cinnamon, butter, sugar, coconut oil and pumpkin pie spice.
- Cooking method: Prepare the dough 🡢 let it proof 🡢 prepare the filling 🡢 roll the dough 🡢 spread the filling 🡢 roll into a log 🡢 cut into rolls 🡢 transfer to a cast iron skillet 🡢 proof again 🡢 bake in a preheated oven 🡢 top and serve.
- Difficulty: Medium.
- Serving ideas: Enjoy these sourdough cinnamon rolls on their own, topped with some maple syrup, or with a slice of sourdough apple strudel.
Jump to:
Important Ingredients
- Sourdough starter use an active, bubbly sourdough starter for best results and if you're unsure how to make one, you can start from scratch.
- Bread flour use bread flour for sweet recipes that need a fluffy texture, or all-purpose flour as a suitable alternative.
- Salt salt not only adds flavor but also strengthens the dough, traps fermentation bubbles, and improves rise and texture.
- Maple syrup use real maple syrup to give the dough color and authentic flavor, avoiding maple-flavored pancake syrup.
- Pumpkin puree use pure pumpkin puree and avoid pumpkin pie filling to prevent overly sweet or strange-tasting dough.
- Egg eggs help keep the rolls soft and prevent them from becoming crumbly.
- Coconut oil melted coconut oil adds softness to the dough without leaving a coconut flavor.
- Cinnamon + pumpkin pie spice these spices provide warm, earthy, fall-inspired flavors.
- Water use warm water to ensure proper sourdough fermentation, as water that is too cold slows rising and water that is too hot can harm the yeast.
See recipe card for quantities.
Substitutions & Variations
- For an extra pop of color, add a teaspoon of turmeric into the dough.
- Use cream cheese instead of butter to make these sourdough pumpkin cinnamon rolls a little lighter in calories.
- Don't have maple syrup? No worries. You can use honey, sugar, brown sugar, or even coconut sugar instead. I'm often out of maple syrup (European, remember?), and I usually substitute it for honey when I don't have it on hand. Honey is honestly the best substitute- I used it to make my sourdough discard graham crackers too!
- You can also substitute whole wheat flour for bread flour in this recipe, but keep in mind that whole wheat flour is denser and more absorbent. So, instead of the usual 2 ¼ cups of flour, you might only need around 3 ¾ cups (this is just an example - always go by the texture to be sure you have the right amount).
- If you're not into coconut oil, no problem. You can simply switch it out for avocado oil, which works great. If you don't have that, olive oil is another good option, followed by melted butter.
- If you can't use eggs due to allergies or any other reason, don't bother with trying to find a substitute. I forgot to add it on more than one occasion and the rolls turned out just fine without it!
- You can also add chopped pecans or walnuts for a crunchy variation. Don't forget to sprinkle some over top before serving.
How to Make Sourdough Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
Step 1: In a stand mixer, combine all the ingredients except flour.
Step 2: Add 2 ¼ cups of flour and start mixing the dough on low speed with a hook attachment. Start adding the flour little by little until it forms a ball and doesn't stick to the sides of the bowl anymore.
Step 3: Transfer the dough to a large bowl, cover it with plastic wrap and let it rise for about 6 hours.
Step 4: Wait until the dough rises by up to 75%.
Step 5: In a bowl, combine softened butter, sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon.
Step 6: Roll the dough out on a clean working surface in the shape of a large rectangle. Spread the filling all over it.
Step 7: Roll the dough in a log, starting from the long end
Step 8: Make 10-12 individual rolls. You can also cut off the edges to make the rolls more evenly shaped.
Step 9: Transfer the rolls to a cast iron skillet, leaving room for them to puff up a bit during a second rise. Remember to grease the cast iron skillet with some butter or oil to prevent the rolls from sticking to it.
Step 10: Cover the skillet with a wet tea towel and let the rolls rise for another 1-3 hours.
Step 11: Transfer to an oven preheated 350 F and bake for 23 - 26 minutes.
Step 12: Once they're golden brown on the top, remove from the oven and top them with a generous drizzle of maple syrup and enjoy!
Hint: To keep the dough from sticking to the large bowl during the bulk rise, you can apply a thin layer of oil inside the bowl.
💭Crucial Success Tips
- The biggest thing to look out for when deciding if the dough is properly fermented is the overall volume increase and the presence of at least some bubbles just below the surface. You can also try poking the dough; it should bend but then slowly spring back. Learn more about sourdough proofing here.
- Make sure you don't flour the work surface. You want the dough to stick together when you're going to roll it, so skipping the flour is necessary to create a tight roll that won't separate later after you bake cinnamon rolls.
- Use a large wooden spoon to spread out the filling all over the dough.
- Roll the dough into a nice log. You can help yourself with a bench scraper if the dough sticks to the surface a bit. Wetting your hands can also help.
- Give your dough time to go through the second rise. A lot of recipes say the second rise should last only 30 minutes to 1 hour. I find that the dough puffs up much better if we give it some more time. I have waited 3 hours or more on some occasions (especially when I make my sourdough jumbo chocolate rolls) and they were even more fluffy and soft as a result!
Baking Schedule
You can follow this schedule loosely to plan out your baking day.
- 8:00 am: Feed the starter
- 14:00 pm: Mix the dough and prepare it for bulk rise
- 14:30 pm: Bulk rise
- 20:30 pm: Put it in the fridge (to pause it)
The next day*
(*you can finish your rolls whenever you have time. I have time in the morning but if you have a job to go to, you can finish them after work.)
- 8:00 am: Transfer the dough to the countertop (to let it warm a little)
- 09:00 am (or whenever I have time that day): Roll out the dough, add the filling roll, cut, shape, and put in a cast iron skillet. Let them do a second rise.
- 11:30 am: Bake, serve and enjoy!
How To Store Sourdough Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
Let your freshly baked cinnamon rolls cool down completely. It helps them stay tasty and not get soggy. After cooling, you have a few choices.
- If you're going to eat them on the same day, don't bother too much. Just leave them in a cast iron skillet on the counter and let people eat them throughout the day (this is what usually happens at our house).
- If you're planning to eat them in a day or two, pop them into an airtight container. You can place parchment paper between layers to prevent sticking. Another option is using large Ziploc bags.
- If you want to keep them around for more than a couple of days, you can put them in the fridge. Just make sure they're sealed well to avoid drying out. They should be good for at least 4 days that way.
- If you're thinking long-term (up to 3 months), freezing is your friend. Put them on the baking sheet lined with some parchment paper and freeze them. When they are completely frozen, transfer them to a Ziploc bag to save on space- I did this when I made my fluffy sourdough discard cinnamon rolls.
- When you're ready to enjoy your frozen cinnamon rolls, simply take them out of the freezer and let them thaw at room temperature for a few hours or overnight. Microwave each roll at the highest setting (900 W) for 1 minute. You can also warm them up in the oven at a low temperature for a few minutes to freshen them up (at about 350°F (175°C) for 10-15 minutes).
Recipe FAQs
You certainly can! I would use a medium-sized baking dish and try to put the rolls in evenly, for example, 3 on the long edge and ⅘ on the short edge. Since baking dish gets hotter a lot faster than a cast iron skillet, maybe bake them for a minute or two less to avoid overbaking them.
You can, but I wouldn't recommend it. They will probably become a bit loose because they'll have no support at the sides and the filling will likely cover your entire baking sheet.
Absolutely! If you mix up the dough late at night you can shape and bake the rolls in the morning.
And if you don't have time to make them right away, just put them in the refrigerator and finish them when you have time. You can leave them in the fridge for up to 3 days!
Some people also like to use dental floss for this, but be careful not to use one that has a strong mint flavor added to it. A very sharp knife or serrated knife usually gets the job done. Just make sure to use a gentle sawing motion to get clean and even slices.
If your sourdough cinnamon rolls aren't puffing up like they should, it could probably be because your starter isn't active enough (check how to know when your sourdough starter is ready to use), or you haven't given the dough enough time to rise. It could also be because your kitchen is too cold, or the dough is too dry (learn more about hydration in sourdough baking).
More Fall Breakfast Recipes
- Honey Oat Sourdough Sandwich Loaf
- Cinnamon Raisin Sourdough Bread
- Easy Sourdough Sandwich Bread
- No Tools, no Dutch Oven Sourdough Bread Recipe
If you tried this sourdough pumpkin cinnamon rolls or any other recipe on my blog please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below! Happy Baking!
Sourdough Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with Pumpkin Spice
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 60 grams warm water ¼ cup
- 100 grams active sourdough starter ½ cup
- 40 grams maple syrup 2 tablespoons
- 4 grams salt ¼ tablespoon
- 1 egg
- 14 grams coconut oil 1 tablespoon
- 210 grams pumpkin puree ½ can (7.5 oz)
- 3 grams ground cinnamon ½ tablespoon
- 270 grams all purpose flour 2¼ cups (plus a little extra for adjusting the dough consistency)
For the filling:
- 35 grams softened unsalted butter 2½ tablespoons
- 50 grams sugar ¼ cup
- 3 grams ground cinnamon ½ tablespoon
- 3 grams pumpkin pie spice ½ tablespoon
Instructions
- Start by mixing all the ingredients except the flour in the bowl of a stand mixer. Turn in on high speed to incorporate everything nicely. I usually do this with a dough hook attachment and get away with it, but use another attachment if you aren't able to mix everything properly with a dough hook.
- Add in 2 ¼ cups of flour and start mixing the dough on low speed with a dough hood attachment. Wait a few minutes and then start adding flour little by little. The dough is ready when it forms a ball and doesn't stick to the sides of the bowl anymore. This should take anywhere from 5 - 15 minutes.
- Transfer the dough to a large bowl, cover it with something airtight (plastic wrap, plastic bag, aluminum foil simply a lid), and let the dough rise for about 6 hours. If you want the sourdough process to happen a bit faster, place the bowl in a warm place and the dough might be ready in 5 hours (likely not any sooner).
- After the dough is at least 75% bigger in volume, it's done with the first rise. This can also be done overnight if your kitchen is not too hot (works for me in the winter, but not in the summer).
- Prepare the filling by simply smashing together softened butter (at room temperature), sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon. I have the best results when I use a regular spoon and a small bowl for this, but you can certainly use a hand mixer or even a stand mixer with a paddle attachment.
- Take the dough out and onto a clean working surface.
- Roll the dough out with a rolling pin to make a large rectangle. Evenly distribute the filling across it.
- Roll the dough in a log, starting from the long end.
- Make 10 - 12 individual rolls, using a bench scraper. To make the pieces somewhat equally as big, mark the log lightly before cutting into it to get an idea of how thick the rolls should be.
- Some people prefer to cut off the edges of the dough because they tend to be a bit irregular in shape.
- Place the rolls in a cast iron skillet (10.25 Inch Cast Iron works best for this recipe) and make sure to leave room for them to puff up a bit during a second rise. No parchment paper is necessary, but be sure to grease the cast iron skillet with some butter or oil to prevent the rolls from sticking to it.
- Cover them with a wet tea towel and give them a chance to rise the second time for about 1 - 3 hours. Try to put them in a worm spot so they'll be ready sooner.
- After the dough becomes nice and puffy again, place it straight into a preheated oven.
- Bake the rolls at about 350°F (about 180°C) for 23 - 26 minutes. If your oven is strong, consider lowering the temperature just a bit so the rolls don't get over-baked. The goal is to get them golden brown, not deep brown.
- Take them out of the oven. Serve them with a generous drizzle of maple syrup and enjoy!
Notes
- Make sure the dough has nicely proofed before you start using it for the recipe.
- Don't flour the work surface. You want the dough to stick together when you're going to roll it, so skipping the flour is necessary to create a tight roll that won't separate later after you bake cinnamon rolls.
- Use a bench scraper to cut the dough log into clean, evenly shaped rolls.
- Give the rolls enough time for the second rise. This will help them get nice and pillowy soft.
Would be nice to have a measurement for a “large rectangular “ and a bake time
Hey Megan,
Oops, looks like I forgot to put the baking times on the recipe card – my bad! I've fixed it now. You'll want to bake the rolls at 350°F (or about 180°C) for 23 - 26 minutes.
As for the size of the large rectangle, it's kind of a 'play it by ear' thing. It really depends on how big or thick you want your swirls. I usually go for about 3/4 inch thickness – that seems to work well, but feel free to tweak it. Sorry I can't be more specific here. Hope this helps a bit!