Give Your Cinnamon Rolls Fall Flavor With This Simple Addition

Whether the leaves have changed color or you are just desperate for a taste of autumn all year round, there's nothing like pumpkin to get you in the cozy mood. Fortunately, pumpkin is an extremely versatile winter squash that beautifully pairs with espresso martinis, herbed potato gratin recipes, and even matcha lattes. Just as you can use the squash in your favorite Thanksgiving maple bourbon pie recipe, you can add pumpkin to flavor your cinnamon rolls. Yes, you can get that great-tasting fall flavor by incorporating some pumpkin puree into your homemade cinnamon rolls. Cinnamon rolls use rich dough, which has larger amounts of fat, dairy, and sugar, leading to softer, decadent results.

Pumpkin puree not only adds that earthy seasonal flavor, but it also provides your dough with moisture, leading to that nice, goey texture found in cinnamon rolls. Because of the moisture, though, you should use less butter, as having too much of both can weigh the dough down too much. A half cup of pumpkin puree and a couple tablespoons of butter should be plenty. A pinch of nutmeg can also help boost the fall flavor in the dough, but don't add cinnamon itself to the dough. Cinnamon can negatively affect the rise of dough because it inhibits yeast fermentation, so it's best to reserve cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice for the sugar and butter filling mixture.

If you want to take the flavor to the next level, top your pumpkin cinnamon rolls with a homemade maple cream cheese icing. Make the sweet autumn topping by mixing butter, powdered sugar, cream cheese, and, of course, pure maple syrup. Adding a pinch of salt to your maple cream cheese icing will result in a dynamic, sweet, salty treat. You can also use common pantry staples like butter, brown sugar, heavy cream, and more to make a salted caramel frosting.

If you are interested in fall flavors but want to step out of the pumpkin box, you have plenty of options. Want to lean into the flavor of maple? Add ¼ cup of maple syrup to your filling to get maple-flavored cinnamon rolls. You also have the option of incorporating maple into a nice icing for your rolls. Another option is to add green apple slices to the filling to get apple cinnamon rolls that taste like a harvest pie.