i’ve had to take a short break and i won’t bother you with the details. but i hope this will make it worth your while. to me, pumpkin can (and should) be adapted to just about any recipe, sweet or savory. i love the idea of it incorporated into a dough. while it imparts only a mild pumpkin flavor, the look and aesthetic are to die for. if you substitute as pumpkin puree for as much of the liquid as possible, you can really pump up the volume on the pumpkin-y-ness (sp? word?)
oh, kitchen aid mixer with dough hook attachment, i will name my first born after you. promise.
just look at this gorgeous dough. it just screams FALL!!
i think this shadow looks like an elephant. anyhoo, brush butter on your rolled out dough rectangle.
roll ‘er up and place cut rolls in pan. at this point you could stash them in the fridge, do your 2nd rise in the am, then bake. otherwise, you’d be getting up at 4 am to make this for a crowd. the first time i made these, we ate them at 2 in the afternoon, if that’s any indication. not that there’s anything wrong with that.
pumpkin cinnamon rolls (makes 12)
adapted from king arthur flour
dough:
1 cup canned or freshly made pumpkin puree (NOT pumpkin pie mix)
2 eggs
2 tbsp to 1/4 cup lukewarm water*
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 3/4 cups white whole wheat flour
1/4 cup non-fat dry milk
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
3 tbsp light brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp instant yeast
*adjust amount of water added depending on humidity and baking conditions-a.k.a. add less to begin with, then slowly add more to make a smooth, non-sticky dough.
filling:
2 tbsp melted butter
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup raisins, optional (i opted out, adding the same amount of walnuts instead)
glaze:*
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1 1/2 tbsp milk, or enough to make a ‘drizzlable’ glaze
*honestly, i had to double the amount of glaze, either it was because i made 12 smaller rolls (instead of the 9 the recipe states it make) or i am just crazy for glaze.
mix and knead all dough ingredients together in a standup mixer fitted with a dough hook. . alternatively, you could do this by hand, but why would you? unless you were amish. my apologies to my amish readership. remember to add the water slowly after you add all the other ingredients, until you get a smooth dough. you can always add more water, but you can’t take it out once it’s been added.
place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover, and allow to rise about 1/2 hours, until it doubles size.
turn the dough out onto a lightly greased surface and roll into a rectangle about 14″x 22″. it will appear on the this side. brush with a few tablespoons of melted butter.
mix together the filling sugar and cinnamon and spread out over the dough, leaving one short edge with no filling (this will be the end of the roll). top with raisins or nuts, if using.
starting with the short end of rectangle that is covered with filling, begin rolling dough into a log. cut log into 9 (or 12 smaller) rolls. place the rolls in a lightly greased pan that is at least 2 inches deep, to accommodate more rising. set aside, covered, to rise for 1 more hour.
preheat oven to 375 degrees. bake for 25-30 minutes, until lightly browned and rolls appear set in center. cool on a rack for about 15 minutes. while cooling, make glaze. heat butter and milk until butter melts, whisk in sugar until dissolved into mixture and drizzle over pumpkin rolls while they are still warm. if you like a frosting rather than a glaze, apply glaze after rolls are completely cool.
is this enough glaze yet? just barely.
