Pumpkin cinnamon rolls with cream cheese and honey frosting

Pumpkin cinnamon rolls made from a spelt yeast dough with Hokkaido squash, filled with cinnamon, ginger and coconut sugar, with a cream cheese and honey frosting. Family-friendly autumn desserts for sharing.

At a glance

• Serves 12
• Prep time: 100 min
• Cooking time: 35 min
• Total time: 135 min
• Calories: 251 kcal per serving
• Protein: 6 g
• Fat: 10 g
• Carbs: 34 g

Ingredients

• 200g Hokkaido squash
• 120ml milk
• 400g spelt flour
• 1 egg
• 90g butter
• 60g honey
• 60g coconut sugar
• 100g cream cheese
• 1/2 cube of fresh yeast
• 1 pinch of salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger

Method

You’ll need: oven · baking dish · stick blender · chopping board · knife · sieve

1. Cook the diced squash, covered, in a little water for 10 minutes until soft, drain it and purée it finely. Leave the purée to cool until lukewarm.
2. Warm the milk until lukewarm and dissolve the yeast in it. Knead it with the spelt flour, pumpkin purée, egg, half the butter, two thirds of the honey and the salt for 5 minutes into a dough. Leave it to rise, covered, for 1 hour.
3. Roll the dough out on a floured surface into a 30 × 40 cm rectangle. Brush it with the remaining butter and sprinkle over the coconut sugar, cinnamon and ginger.
4. Roll up the dough from the long side, cut it into 12 slices and place them in a greased baking dish. Preheat the oven to 180 °C (160 °C fan) and leave the rolls to rise for 20 minutes.
5. Bake the rolls at 180 °C for 22 to 25 minutes until golden brown.
6. Mix the cream cheese with the remaining honey and spread the frosting over the warm rolls.

Good to know

Cinnamon rolls with pumpkin in the dough are an autumn classic from the US. The pumpkin makes the dough soft and gives it colour, and the filling tastes of cinnamon and ginger. On top, a cream cheese and honey frosting melts in.

Swaps

Coconut sugar → maple syrup (moister filling). Spelt flour → plain flour. Cream cheese → skyr (less fat). Hokkaido squash → butternut squash.

Cooking tips

The pumpkin makes the dough soft and a little sticky; only add as much flour as you need to roll it out. Cut the roll with a thread instead of a knife so it doesn't get squashed.

Storage

Without the frosting, they keep for 2 days in a tin or 2 months in the freezer; warm them briefly in the oven at 150 °C.

Allergens

Contains gluten (spelt), milk and egg; nut-free. Because of the honey, not suitable for children under 1 year; suitable during pregnancy.

Frequently asked questions

Can you freeze pumpkin cinnamon rolls?

Without the frosting, they keep for 2 days in a tin or 2 months in the freezer; warm them briefly in the oven at 150 °C.