Today I’m introducing you to my current favorite autumn recipe: Juicy pumpkin cinnamon buns with sourdough. I already love normal sourdough cinnamon buns, but the pumpkin puree in the dough makes this version even fluffier than any I’ve baked before. The dough contains no egg and if you replace the milk and butter with plant-based alternatives, the pumpkin buns are even vegan.
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What makes pumpkin cinnamon buns so special?
The pumpkin cinnamon buns are super fluffy and light, even though the dough contains no yeast or baking powder. It is only made with natural sourdough. The dough is quick and easy to make. You don’t need a pre-dough or a flour starter and can leave it to rest in the fridge overnight. The sourdough ensures that the pumpkin and cinnamon buns taste fresh and moist for a long time. The autumnal spices and pumpkin puree give the cinnamon buns a special nutty-sweet taste.
Pumpkin cinnamon buns without yeast: Is it possible?
Baking with sourdough – cultivating and caring for sourdough starter
You can use either wheat sourdough or rye starter for this recipe. I use a universal sourdough for all types of flour. I feed my sourdough with equal parts water and flour. If you use a different mixing ratio, you will need to adjust the amount of water in the recipe.
The sourdough does not need to be freshly fed for this recipe, but it should not have been more than a week since it was last refreshed. The longer your sourdough has not been fed, the longer the dough usually needs to rest.
If you don’t have a sourdough yet, I’ve put together some methods for growing your own starter here.
Ingredients for sweet pumpkin buns
- Wheat flour (type 550) or bread flour is the standard flour for most baked goods with sourdough. It has enough gluten to give the dough a nice structure and make it fluffy and elastic.
- Pumpkin puree ( store-bought or homemade) not only gives the buns a great color, but also a fine, sweet note and extra moisture. You can simply make it from fresh pumpkin or grab a can from the supermarket – both work great!
- Water: Cold in summer and lukewarm in winter.
- Butter (or a plant-based alternative): The fat from the butter (or a plant-based alternative) makes the dough soft and smooth. It also ensures that the cinnamon buns are really moist.
- Sourdough makes the cinnamon buns fluffy, aromatic and easier to digest.
- Sugar, cinnamon and salt for flavor.
- Pumpkin spice is a mixture of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves – you can buy it, make it yourself or just use cinnamon and nutmeg.
- Oil (tasteless) to keep the filling spreadable.
Here’s how it works: Prepare vegan pumpkin cinnamon buns
Preparing the dough
For the pumpkin puree, peel the pumpkin if necessary, cut into large pieces and boil in water until soft. Then puree the pumpkin and leave to cool.
For the dough, mix* the flour, water, butter, sugar, sourdough, pumpkin spice, pumpkin puree and salt into a homogeneous mixture. Cover the dough and leave to rest at room temperature until the volume has increased significantly. This can take up to six hours. Stretch and fold once after 30 minutes. Leave the dough to rest in a covered bowl overnight or for 12 hours in the fridge.
Fill and shape the cinnamon buns
For the filling, mix* together the sugar, cinnamon, salt, soft butter and oil. Remove the dough from the fridge and roll out* into an even rectangle on a floured work surface. Spread the dough sheet with the soft cinnamon filling. Roll up the dough tightly.
Cut the roll of dough into nine equal-sized cinnamon buns. This works best with a thin thread. Wrap it around the roll and pull it tight. This will separate the individual buns. Place the cinnamon rolls slightly apart in a greased oven dish* and leave to rest for another one to two hours at room temperature.
Bake the pumpkin buns until golden brown
Preheat the oven to 180 °C with a steam tray consisting of a stainless steel oven dish* and lava stones*. Brush the cinnamon buns with (oat) milk and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake the buns for 10 minutes with steam and 20 minutes without steam until golden brown.
Which pumpkin for the sourdough cinnamon buns?
I prefer to use Hokkaido pumpkin for the cinnamon buns because you don’t have to peel it and the orange flesh gives the dough a beautiful color. However, you can also use butternut squash or any other edible type of squash. If the color is not strong enough for you, you can add a pinch of turmeric to the batter. Green pumpkins are not suitable for this recipe as they give the batter a rather unappetizing color.
Why aren’t my cinnamon buns rising?
If your cinnamon buns don’t rise, there may be several reasons for this. Firstly, it could be due to the sourdough starter. If it no longer has enough leavening power, the dough will not rise or will take a very long time. Your sourdough does not need to be freshly fed for this recipe, but the last feeding should not have been more than seven days ago. If your starter is still relatively young, you can support it with a small crumb of yeast.
If your sourdough is fit and active, it could also be due to the temperature. Cinnamon buns are perfect for cool autumn temperatures, but the dough prefers summery temperatures. So find the warmest possible place for your cinnamon bun dough, for example near a heater or in a switched-off oven.
Can you still eat pumpkin cinnamon buns the next day?
Thanks to the pumpkin puree and the sourdough in the dough, the sourdough cinnamon buns still taste fluffy and moist after a few days. If you want to store the pumpkin buns for longer than four or five days, I would recommend freezing them. To do this, wrap the buns airtight after cooling and freeze them. Before serving, leave them to defrost at room temperature and then bake them again briefly in the oven.
Make your own pumpkin spice
Pumkin spice or pumpkin pie spice goes perfectly with the nutty-sweet taste of pumpkin. You can either buy the autumnal spice mix ready-made or make it yourself. To do this, mix four parts cinnamon with two parts ground ginger and one part each nutmeg and ground cloves. If this is too much effort for you, you can simply replace the Pumkin Spice in the recipe with cinnamon and a pinch of nutmeg.
If you like the pumpkin buns, you might also be interested in these recipes
- Soft Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls Overnight
- Spelt Cinnamon Rolls with Sourdough (Vegan)
- How to Make Sourdough Cardamom Buns
- Brioche buns with almond filling – recipe with sourdough
Helpful tools – My recommendations
✨ The links with an star* are affiliate links. If you click on one of these links and buy something, I get a small commission and you support my work (thanks for that 🧡). This does not change the price for you. You can find more information on privacy policy here.✨
- A grain mill* for freshly ground wholemeal flour.
- A Danish Whisk* – especially if you don’t use a kitchen machine. This allows you to mix your ingredients without the whole dough sticking to the spoon.
- A kitchen scale*.
- You can use a stainless steel dough knife* to cut your dough pieces or shape your loaves.
- The round enamel cake tin* is scratch-resistant, durable and ideal for cakes and tarts.
- A wooden rolling pin*.
- A steam tray consisting of a stainless steel oven mould* and lava stones*. The tray is filled with the stones and placed on the bottom of the oven during preheating. When you put your bread in the oven, pour hot water onto the stones. This creates steam, which ensures that your bread rises well.
- A cooling rack* or bread, rolls and waffles.
- A pizzacutter* for sweet knots, croissants, etc.
- A sharp bread knife*.
- A stainless steel toaster* for slices of bread, toast and rolls.
You can find more product recommendations here.
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Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with Sourdough | Soft, Fluffy Perfect for Fall!
Ingredients
For the dough
- 500 g flour
- 220 g Pumpkin puree store-bought or homemade
- 120 g water
- 60 g butter or a plant-based alternative
- 50 g sourdough starter
- 30 g sugar
- 1 tsp. Pumpkin Spice or cinnamon and nutmeg
- 1 pinch salt
For the filling
- 100 g sugar
- 70 g butter
- 2½ tsp. cinnamon
- 1 tsp. oil with neutral taste
- 1 pinch salt
Toppings
- Oat milk for brushing
- coarse sugar optional
Instructions
Day 1
- For the pumpkin puree, peel the pumpkin if necessary, cut into large pieces and boil in water until soft. Then puree the pumpkin and leave to cool.
- For the dough, mix* the flour, water, butter, sugar, sourdough, pumpkin spice, pumpkin puree and salt into a homogeneous mixture*. Cover the dough and leave to rest at room temperature until the volume has increased significantly. This can take up to six hours. Stretch and fold once after 30 minutes.
- Leave the dough to rest in a covered bowl overnight or for 12 hours in the fridge.
Day 2
- For the filling, mix* the sugar, cinnamon, salt, soft butter and oil*.
- Remove the dough from the fridge and roll out* into an even rectangle on a floured work surface.
- Spread the pastry sheet with the soft cinnamon filling. Roll up the dough tightly.
- Cut the roll of dough into nine equal-sized cinnamon buns. This works best with a thin thread. Wrap it around the roll and pull it tight. This separates the individual buns.
- Place the cinnamon rolls a little apart in a greased oven dish* and leave to rest for another one to two hours at room temperature.
- Preheat the oven to 180 °C with a steam tray consisting of a stainless steel oven dish* and lava stones*.
- Brush the cinnamon buns with (oat) milk and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
- Bake the snails for 10 minutes with steam and 20 minutes without steam until golden brown.
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