Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon Rolls that are Ewwwey Gooey... and healthy?? wait what? really? can it be?

yes, yes it can... read on to find out how :) Oh and did I mention they are totally super easy to make??? awesome.

John's mom has been hinting to him that she misses getting to eat my various baking creations. *guess it's been a bit since I've brought something over... woops!* so this past weekend I figured it was time to whip something up for his mom and pops. She had made mention at one point that she likes cinnamon rolls, so I decided to give them a try... why is it I always try out recipes on his parents?? I've been lucky to not have any bombs yet haha.

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
Servings: 8

These cinnamon rolls are an adaptation/abstraction based on a recipe from the cook book Quick Recipes which was put together by the people at Cook's Illustrated.

Filling
1/4 c packed splenda blend brown sugar (1/2 c packed dark brown sugar)
2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp cloves
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 c pumpkin puree

Dough
2-1/2 c whole wheat flour
1 T splenda baking blend (2 T granulated sugar)
1-1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1-1/4 c buttermilk
2 T melted butter
1 T melted butter (to drizzle on top)

Icing (I made 1/2 of the icing to put on top instead of the whole thing)
2 T cream cheese, softened
1 T buttermilk
1 c powdered sugar


Heat oven to 425 degrees.

Spray a 9-inch round non stick cake pan (I used a silicon cake pan and it worked great, no spray needed)

Make filling
Combine sugars, spices and salt. Add pumpkin puree and stir until combined, set aside

Make dough
Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl. whisk buttermilk and 2 Tbs melted butter in measuring cup or small bowl. Add liquid to dry ingredients and stir until liquid is absorbed (dough will look very shaggy). Transfer dough to lightly floured work surface and knead until just smooth and no longer shaggy.

Pat dough with hands into 12 x 9- inch rectangle. Sprinkle evenly with filling, leaving 1/2 inch boarder of plain dough around edges. Press filling firmly into dough.

Using bench scraper (i used a plastic spackle spatula that we bought at home depot and never used... I claimed it for the kitchen... John wasn't too pleased hahahaha), loosed dough from work surface. Starting at a long side, roll dough, pressing lightly, to form a tight log. Pinch seam to seal.

Roll log seam side down and cut evenly into eight pieces. With hand, slightly flatten each piece of dough to seal open edges and keep filling in place.

Place one roll in center of pan, then place remaining seven rolls around perimeter of pan. They should touch, but not be crammed. Drizzle with 1 Tbs of melted butter.

Bake until edges are golden brown, 23 to 25 minutes. Loosen with a spatula. without separating, slide buns out of pan onto greased cooling rack. Cool about 5 minutes before icing.
Making icing and finish
Set rack of rolls over foil-lined baking sheet (for easier clean-up). whisk cream cheese and 1 Tbs of buttermilk in large bowl until thick and smooth. sift powdered sugar over. whisk until smooth glaze forms - add up to 1 additional Tbs of buttermilk if too thick. spoon glaze evenly over the buns. Serve warm, they dry out a bit after they cool, so eat them all up warm! :)

Next time I think I would double the filling and roll the dough out thinner so I got more spirals :)

chow!