pumpkin roll recipe

IN CASE YOU WERE IN NEED OF SOME FALL GOODNESS.

(adapted from the skeleton of the cinnamon roll recipe in the Williams-Sonoma Baking book.)

1 CUP milk. I used skim, but whole is nice too.

Heat up the milk in the microwave (45 seconds - 1 minute). Add a dollop of sugar; stir until it dissolves. Sprinkle over the top:

7 TEASPOONS of dried yeast.

Let that sit until bubbly (10-20 minutes).

While the yeast is doing its thing, dump

1 12-oz CAN of pumpkin

in a bowl. Add

4 eggs

1/2 CUP of white sugar

1/2 CUP of brown sugar

4 TEASPOONS salt

4 TEASPOONS (give or take a bit, can add some more cinnamon) pumpkin pie spice

3/4 CUP butter, melted

STIR. Add yeast mixture. STIR MORE.

This is where it gets a bit tricky, because I always just add flour until it gets to be the right consistency — I don’t pay attention too much to how many cups. So, I would advise that you add AT LEAST 

7 CUPS of white flour. Mix/knead this into the dough, then start adding flour one cup at a time and keep kneading until the dough is firm but not stiff. I used about 10 cups eventually I think. 

Put dough in a greased bowl and let rise for 2-3 hours, until soft and puffy.

For the filling:

1/2 CUP butter, softened (22 seconds or so in the microwave and stir)

and… about. . . 1/2 CUP brown sugar?

Split the dough in half. Roll it into a large flat rectangle on your workspace, something like 20” x 12” (exact dimensions don’t matter, it just needs to be longer than it is wide and big and flat.) Spread 1/4 cup of the softened butter across the rectangle, then sprinkle with as much brown sugar as seems appropriate to you. I suspect I actually used about 1/2 cup for EACH half to make sure it was nice and evenly coated, but I’m not sure. Roll up the rectangle and cut into between 12-20 rolls, depending on big you like your rolls. Separate the rolls on the pan if you like crisp sides, and put them closer together if you like soft sides. Let them rise in the pan for another 20 minutes to an hour, ideally whilst the oven is heating up to 350 degrees F. Bake for 20 minutes (this was just about perfect on all three pans I made.)

We put about 1/2 tablespoon of commercially ready dipping caramel on each one while it was hot; it melted down and made delicious sticky topping. If I come across a good recipe for soft caramel sauce, I’ll share it.

This recipe makes 24-40 rolls, depending on into how many pieces you cut each of the two long rolls you make.