Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls are oh-so-easy when you make them with crescent roll dough! Swirls of pumpkin puree, brown sugar, and pumpkin pie spice add cozy fall flavor, while the cream cheese frosting takes them over the top.
Cinnamon rolls are one of life’s simple pleasures—well, they’re simple unless you’re making them yourself, in which case they’re a pleasure, but not exactly simple. These Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls take all that ooey-gooey goodness you love, add pumpkin and cozy spices, and it does it all with crescent roll dough.
No cinnamon roll dough means no yeast, no kneading, and no rising. These Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls are done lickety-split!
Whether it’s for our Crescent Roll Breakfast Casserole, Easy Apple Dumplings, or Taco Ring, crescent roll dough is one of our favorite kitchen shortcuts. It bakes up golden brown and puffy, and you can turn it into just about anything. Like magic!
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Pin RecipeEasy Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls Recipe
We love Pumpkin Pie and Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake but if you’re craving pumpkin for breakfast, these Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls are the perfect option. (Okay, maybe pumpkin pancakes too. Also delicious!) Bake up a batch on the weekend and your kids will suddenly forget their plans to sleep in!
While traditional cinnamon roll recipes involve brushing the dough with melted butter and then sprinkling a mixture of brown sugar and cinnamon over the top, these Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls skip the butter and use pumpkin puree instead. (Hmm, you might even say these cinnamon rolls are… healthy?!)
The pumpkin puree holds the sugar and spices in place, and it also makes a deliciously gooey filling. Slather them with tangy and sweet cream cheese frosting and you’ll want to make these Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls all year round!
Ingredients
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
For the Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls:
- Crescent roll dough – The kind sold in tubes in the refrigerator section at the grocery store.
- Pumpkin puree
- Dark brown sugar – Dark brown sugar gives the filling a deeper, more caramel-like flavor, but you can use light brown sugar if that’s what you have on hand.
- Pumpkin pie spice – Use homemade pumpkin spice made with cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, etc., or store-bought.
- Kosher salt
For the Frosting:
- Cream cheese – Let this come to room temperature so it’s easy to combine with the rest of the frosting ingredients.
- Powdered sugar
- Unsalted butter – This also needs to be room temperature.
- Vanilla extract
- Whole milk
Variations
- Make them nutty. Scatter toasted pecans over the top of the frosting.
- Make them extra-decadent. Drizzle caramel sauce over the rolls before serving.
- Make them lighter. Make a simple milk and powdered sugar glaze instead of using cream cheese frosting.
How to Make Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls With Crescent Roll Dough
1. Prepare
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and grease a 9×13 baking dish with butter or cooking spray.
2. Prepare and Top the Dough
On a lightly floured surface, use a rolling pin to roll out the dough until it’s a flat rectangle. Pinch the seams together, then spread the pumpkin puree over the entire surface of the dough in an even layer. Sprinkle the brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and salt over the puree.
3. Form the Rolls
Roll the dough into a log, then use a sharp knife or dental floss (seriously, it works!) to cut the log into 8 or 9 slices. Place each roll in the baking dish.
Tip: It’s important to roll the dough as tightly as you can because the rolls are going directly into the oven, not rising like they would if you were using traditional yeast dough. This means that if your rolling is slack, you may end up with gaps in your finished cinnamon rolls.
4. Bake
Place the pan in the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls are golden brown. Let them cool in the pan for 10 minutes.
5. Make the Frosting
While the rolls cool, start the frosting. Whisk together the cream cheese and powdered sugar in a medium bowl, then beat in the butter and vanilla. If needed, stir in milk a tablespoon at a time to thin the frosting until it reaches your desired consistency.
6. Finish
Frost the Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls after they’ve cooled slightly, but are still slightly warm. Serve immediately.
How to Store Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
These Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls are definitely best enjoyed fresh, but if you have any leftovers, you can pop them in the fridge in an airtight container for 2 to 3 days, or just leave them in the pan and cover it with plastic wrap.
Let the rolls come to room temperature before serving, or heat them up in the microwave just enough to warm the rolls without completely melting the frosting.
FAQs
The best way to freeze Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls is unfrosted! But, that’s not usually an option, so here’s your next best bet. Set the rolls on a parchment-lined sheet pan and place this in the freezer; once the frosting is solid, you can transfer the cinnamon rolls to a freezer bag or airtight container for up to 3 months. (If you have to stack them, parchment paper will keep them from sticking to each other.)
Cinnamon rolls aren’t exactly healthy, but everything in moderation, right? These Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls are a little healthier than the typical recipe, though, because instead of spreading butter over the dough, we use pumpkin puree, which is a good source of fiber, vitamins, and minerals. They’re also lower in calories thanks to the crescent roll dough.
You can freeze traditional cinnamon rolls before baking, but the pumpkin mixture in these Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls may release liquid after thawing, so I don’t recommend freezing this recipe before you bake.
More Pumpkin Recipes for Fall
Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
Rolls
- 1 can crescent rolls
- ¾ cup pumpkin puree
- 4 tbsp dark brown sugar
- 1 tbsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1 tsp kosher salt
Frosting
- 3 oz cream cheese room temperature
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp whole milk as needed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a 9×13 baking dish.
- On a clean work surface, roll out the dough until flat. Pinch the seams together. Spread the pumpkin puree evenly over the entire surface of the dough. Sprinkle the brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and salt over the top.
- Roll the dough into a log and cut into 8-9 pieces. Place each piece into the prepared baking dish. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes.
- While the rolls cool, prepare the frosting by whisking together the cream cheese and powdered sugar. Beat in the butter and vanilla. Use the milk to thin, if needed, to the desired consistency.
- Drizzle frosting over the slightly cooled rolls to serve.
