Healthy Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

Yields: 12 cinnamon rolls

These tender cinnamon rolls are the perfect fall breakfast treat! With their cozy pumpkin flavor and sweet cinnamon swirls, they’re absolutely irresistible. Leftovers will keep for at least 4 days (if not longer!) if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

4.89 from 9 votes

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Ingredients

FOR THE DOUGH

3 tbsp (45mL) warm nonfat milk (about 100-110°F)
½ tbsp (7g) unsalted butter, melted
3 tbsp (36g) coconut sugar
½ tsp salt
2 ¼ tsp (one ¼-oz package) active dry yeast (see Notes!)
¾ cup (180g) pumpkin purée
1 tbsp (8g) ground cinnamon
2 – 2 ½ cups (240-300g) white whole wheat flour (measured like this)

FOR THE FILLING

6 tbsp (72g) coconut sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tbsp (7g) unsalted butter, melted

Instructions

Coat a 9”-round springform pan (highly recommended!) or cake pan with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
To prepare the dough, stir together the milk, butter, coconut sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Sprinkle the yeast on top, and wait 10-15 minutes or until the mixture turns frothy. Stir in the pumpkin purée and cinnamon. Mix in 1 ½ cups of flour. If the dough is still wet, continue stirring in flour 2 tablespoons at a time until the dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl.
Turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface, and knead for 3-5 minutes or until the dough springs back most of the way when you gently press your index finger into it. Let the dough rest while preparing the filling.
To prepare the filling, stir together the coconut sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.
On a clean, well-floured surface, roll the dough out into a 16x10” rectangle. Brush with the melted butter, leaving a 1” border on the two longer sides. Sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar, leaving a 1” border on the two longer sides again. Carefully roll up the dough into a log, starting at one long edge and rolling towards the other one. Pinch the ends to seal. If the dough won’t stick together, gently brush the second longer edge with water before pinching to seal.
Slice the log into 12 pieces using dental floss (highly recommended – see Notes!) or a sharp serrated knife. Place the rolls into the prepared pan, and cover the pan with a clean towel. Set the pan in a warm, draft-free spot, and let the rolls rise for 30-45 minutes or until doubled in size.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake the cinnamon rolls for 18-22 minutes or until the filling is bubbling and the sides of the cinnamon rolls in the center of the pan feel firm. Cool in the pan for at least 10 minutes before serving.

Notes

IMPORTANT BAKING PAN NOTE – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: I highly recommend using a 9”-round springform pan, like this! Springform pans have taller sides than most traditional cake pans, so this allows your cinnamon rolls to rise properly without touching the top of the towel in Step 6.

IMPORTANT ROLLING NOTES – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: I highly recommend using a silicone baking mat and a silicone rolling pin, rather than a wooden one, for rolling out the dough. Their nonstick surfaces means that {a} the mat doesn’t move around much (if at all!) on the countertop, and {b} the dough doesn't stick as much to the rolling pin.

IMPORTANT RISING NOTE – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: If your cinnamon rolls don’t rise to double their original size, the two most common reasons are that {a} you used a different brand of yeast or {b} they weren’t in a warm enough spot while rising. See my yeast note below for more information!

IMPORTANT SLICING NOTE – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: I highly recommend using dental floss to slice the cinnamon rolls. When you use a knife, it often distorts the shape of the cinnamon rolls, and they turn out lopsided and more like ovals. However, using dental floss maintains their circular shape.

To do so, slide a long string of floss underneath the dough log. Lift each end of the string so it's vertical, then cross each one over to the other side above the top of the log. Gently but firmly pull on the two ends until they've sliced through the dough. (If you're a visual person, then watch my video here located directly above the recipe!)

FLOUR ALTERNATIVES: Whole wheat pastry flour or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the white whole wheat flour.

Regular whole wheat flour may also be substituted, but how much the cinnamon rolls rise depends on the brand of whole wheat flour that you use. For the best results, I highly recommend Gold Medal whole wheat flour. It performs the best out of any brand I’ve tried, and it ensures your cinnamon rolls fully double in size while rising in Step 6. (Other brands of whole wheat flour don’t rise nearly as high, if at all!)

If using a different brand of regular whole wheat flour, then I recommend substituting ½ to ¾ cup (60-90g) of all-purpose flour for an equal amount of whole wheat flour to ensure your cinnamon rolls rise properly. (For example, use ¾ cup {90g} of all-purpose flour and 1 ¼ cups (150g) regular whole wheat flour.)

YEAST NOTE: For the yeast, I used Red Star® Quick Rise Yeast. It performs the best out of any yeast I’ve used, so I highly recommend it! It isn’t always easy to find in grocery stores, so I buy mine online here. (Both their rapid rise dry yeast and regular active dry yeast work equally well!)

Other brands don't necessarily rise as high — if at all! If substituting another brand of yeast, then I'd recommend considering substituting ½ to ¾ cup (60-90g) of all-purpose flour for an equal amount of white whole wheat flour to ensure your cinnamon rolls rise properly. (For example, use ¾ cup {90g} of all-purpose flour and 1 ¼ cups (150g) white whole wheat flour.)

MILK ALTERNATIVES: Any milk may be substituted in place of the nonfat milk.

BUTTER ALTERNATIVES: Salted butter may be substituted for the unsalted butter. For a dairy-free option, I recommend using stick-style vegan butter instead. (I really like this one and this one.) You may substitute coconut oil, but the cinnamon rolls will taste different, and the yeast won’t turn frothy in Step 2.

CINNAMON NOTE: I highly recommend Saigon cinnamon! It tastes a bit stronger, richer, and sweeter. I buy it online here. It’s really inexpensive and affordable, and it's basically the only kind I now use in my baking recipes.

SWEETENER ALTERNATIVES: Light brown sugar may be substituted in place of the coconut sugar. (The cinnamon rolls will no longer be clean-eating friendly with this substitution.)

PUMPKIN PURÉE NOTES: Pumpkin purée is also called “100% pure pumpkin” or “canned pumpkin.” For the best results, the only ingredient on the label should be “pumpkin.” I don’t recommend substituting pumpkin pie mix because it contains other ingredients, which affects the way it behaves in baking recipes.

I haven’t tried using homemade pumpkin purée, so I’m not personally sure how that will work. If you do, would you leave me a comment below? I’d love to hear how your cinnamon rolls turned out!

"OVERNIGHT METHOD" NOTE: I haven’t had great luck with the overnight method; the cinnamon rolls don’t seem to rise quite as much or turn out quite as fluffy. If you’d like to serve them warm (without spending as much time preparing them first thing in the morning!), then fully bake them the night before but leave them in the pan. The next morning, if you’d like to serve them warm, then tightly cover the top of the pan with foil, and put them in the oven on your oven’s lowest temperature setting until they’re fully warmed through. (The foil should prevent the tops from drying out while you reheat them.)

GLUTEN-FREE NOTE: I haven’t had good luck substituting gluten-free flours in this recipe. The cinnamon rolls don’t rise the way they do with wheat-based flour due to the lack of gluten.

EGG-FREE, DAIRY-FREE + VEGAN OPTION: Substitute your favorite dairy-free milk in place of the nonfat milk. Substitute stick-style vegan butter (I like this one and this one) in place of the unsalted butter. (You may substitute coconut oil, but the cinnamon rolls will taste different, and the yeast won’t turn frothy in Step 2.)

HOW TO STORE: Store leftover cinnamon rolls in an airtight container in the refrigerator. They should keep for at least four days (if not longer!), and they reheat beautifully, if you'd like to serve them warm.

For more information and tips, please see my blog post above. You can also watch my step-by-step video here (located directly above the recipe) for my classic cinnamon rolls recipe to see how I make cinnamon rolls!

{egg-free, dairy-free option, vegan option, clean eating, low fat, low calorie}

DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?I'd love to hear what you think of it in a comment below! If you take a picture, tag @amys.healthy.baking on Instagram or use the hashtag #amyshealthybaking.