Pumpkin Party

the reason for the season

In this series we’ve gone over all the reasons certain recipes don’t get photos in cookbooks: they’re ugly, there isn’t enough space, they look too similar to another dish in the book. But today we’re talking about the goofiest one: you already know what they should look like. Such was the fate of the Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls in Hungry as Hell. We all know what cinnamon rolls should look like and while the dough in this recipe is a beautiful golden color from the roasted pumpkin, they aren’t particularly original looking. There was no way to justify giving this recipe a full-page picture when whatever you imagine in your head when you read the title is essentially correct. But like many of us, what makes them interesting and unique lies beneath the normcore exterior.

I put this recipe in the breakfast chapter to try and get your attention. I imagined them languishing in the dessert section, destined to be overlooked. But they are made for long holiday mornings spent at home with friends and family, everyone in pjs and chatting in low voices. They are incredible with coffee, and you can pretend that the pumpkin and nuts in the recipe make them healthy. It’s my favorite move. Most pumpkin cinnamon roll recipes call for pumpkin in the dough which is great but not really a game changer. In these I decided to really go for it and slathered the inside with a brown sugar and roasted pumpkin mix instead of the butter heavy sugar bomb that you usually find. While it makes them slightly messier to roll up, the resulting ribbon of sweet, custardy pumpkin makes them both more filling and somehow lighter. I’m not big on frosting so I drizzled simple maple glaze over the top of the baked rolls with some pecans thrown in. Leave them out if they aren’t your thing. But damn, you’ve gotta try these rolls.

nuts are optional but so pretty

There are some hot tips you should keep in mind when you are baking with pumpkin puree. One, any sweet winter gourd is fine. Roast up some delicatas, butternut, or honey nut squash if you can’t find a baking pumpkin. Second, the amount of water in your pumpkin puree is gonna vary wildly depending on what you are using. Canned pumpkin puree (which is rarely ever actually pumpkin) will usually have a high water content. Steaming your own pumpkin chunks at home is great too but that will also have a higher water content than if you roast the pumpkin. This is all a long way to say that you might have to add more or less nondairy milk to your dough to get it going depending on how thick your pumpkin puree is. If your dough isn’t coming together, add more milk, a couple tablespoons at a time until you reach that sweet spot and a soft but firm dough ball starts to appear. A little more flour if the dough is too wet and sticky. You’ll know. Just trust yourself because you are fucking smart, ok? Don’t let some dough boss you around.

don't forget the milk bath

Lastly, if you want to make these babies ahead of time, you’ve got some options. You can make the dough and stick in the fridge, covered, after the first rise and then finish baking them the next day. Just give the dough 30 minutes to warm up on the counter before you shape them. Or you can add the filling, cut them up, then freeze them just like that. Stick them in the fridge the night before you want to bake them to thaw out a little then stick them right in the oven in the morning. Or lastly, you can bake them all the way through then freeze them. Let them defrost in the fridge and then warm them up in the oven in the morning and add the glaze for a perfect lazy weekend at home. Whatever works best for you is the way to go. Don’t forget that Tiktok trick I mentioned in the date caramel rolls post from a couple weeks ago.  Just pour ½ cup of nondairy milk or creamer over the rolls right before they go in the oven and you’ll get some extra plump cinnamon rolls and your whole place will smell like a Cinnabon. And I mean that in the very best way.