Vegan Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

Some people say that pumpkin recipes aren't welcome in July. I say it's my party and I'll bake what I want to. And over the weekend I wanted to bake vegan pumpkin cinnamon rolls, so here we are. For my enjoyment, and for yours, too!

I've been wanting to make vegan pumpkin cinnamon rolls for many minutes now because I first tried to make them a year ago, and they turned out...ok. I've mentioned in my blog before that when I first started my baking journey I used to have really bad luck with leavened baked goods. The pumpkin cinnamon rolls I made last year did NOT rise at all. They were hard like hockey pucks.

I actually made those cinnamon rolls with the intention of bringing them to a birthday party, but I was way too embarrassed to do so. I ended up not bringing them, and just sadly ate my hard cinnamon rolls at home by myself. But these new and improved vegan cinnamon rolls are ready for a party, a wedding, a Wednesday night, literally whenever!

Vegan cinnamon rolls will always be such a fun bake. There's something about it that always brings out the kid in me. It's impossible not to smile while you're slathering on the cinnamony-sugary dough and rolling it up. And when I see those finished cinnamony-sugary spirals my happy meter automatically tops up.

Hope y'all love this vegan pumpkin cinnamon roll recipe. Whether you're reading this in July, September, March, or from some unknown time period in outer space I hope you truly enjoy making these as much as I do.

Recipe

Active time: 30 mins / Rest time: 1.25 hrs / Cook time: 30 mins

Ingredients

For the dough:

• 1 cup warm almond milk

• ¼ cup brown sugar

• 1 Tablespoon active dry yeast or instant

• ¾ cup pure pumpkin puree

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 4 Tablespoons vegan butter

• 1 large flax egg (1 tbsp ground flax meal + 3 tbsp water)

• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

• 4-5 cups all purpose flour

For the filling:

• ½ cup room temperature vegan butter

• ½ cup 100% pure pumpkin puree

• 1 teaspoon vanilla

• 1-1/2 tablespoons cinnamon

• ½ teaspoon ginger

• ¼ teaspoon nutmeg

• ¼ teaspoon cloves

• 1 cup brown sugar

• 3-4 Tablespoons flour

For the icing:

• 4 oz. vegan cream cheese, softened (I like Trader Joe's brand)

• 4 Tablespoons vegan butter, softened

• 2 cups powdered sugar

• ½ teaspoon vanilla

• 2-3 Tablespoons almond milk

Directions

For the dough:

1. In a small bowl combine warm almond milk (between 100-110 F), brown sugar, and active dry yeast and let sit 5 minutes or until foamy.

2. In a stand mixer combine pumpkin puree, salt, butter, flax egg, cinnamon, and 4 cups of flour. Pour foamy yeast mixture in and mix with dough hook on low speed for 5-8 minutes until smooth and elastic. Add another ½ to full cup of flour to make dough consistency thick and only slightly sticky. Dough should pull away from sides of bowl and not stick to fingers very much.

3. Oil a large bowl, place dough in it and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise at room temperature for one hour or until doubled in size.

For the filling:

1. In a medium bowl, combine softened butter, pumpkin puree, vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves and mix until smooth and creamy. Set aside.

2. On a floured work surface, roll dough into roughly a 24 inch by 10-12 inch rectangle.

3. Spread filling onto dough to coat entire rectangle, then sprinkle brown sugar evenly over the filling. Sprinkle 3-4 Tablespoons of flour evenly over filling (this keeps the filling from leaking out)

4. Carefully roll dough lengthwise into a long roll. Use a piece of clean string or dental floss and slide the string underneath the roll. Pick up both ends of the string, cross them, and pull tight to cut the dough into 12 equal pieces. Place rolls cut side down into an oiled 9x13 inch pan, being careful not to crowd the rolls so they have room to rise. Cover with a dish towel, and let rise for 45 minutes to one hour until almost doubled in size.

5. Preheat oven to 350 F. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until light golden brown on top. Cool 20 minutes.

For the icing:

1. In a medium bowl combine cream cheese, butter and mix until most of the lumps are gone. I microwave them for 10-20 seconds to soften them enough to mix. Mix in powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk, one tablespoon at a time until smooth. Generously spoon icing over rolls to coat evenly. Serve warm!

Adapted From: Eat Dessert Snack