Pumpkin Dinner Rolls

I've been keeping secrets from you. Big, warm, doughy delicious secrets. But I did it for your own good. You see, I was saving this recipe for you so you could have it just in time for Thanksgiving!

These pumpkin rolls are a lovely compliment to your Thanksgiving spread. They are soft, plump and perfectly spiced.

The dough for these pumpkin rolls drives me wild! The color is rich and magnificent, and studded with little hints of spice.

Try them with this incredible fluffy honey butter and they will certainly contribute to your post-Thanksgiving coma. In a good way!

Pumpkin Dinner Rolls
Adapted from The Sister's Cafe

Ingredients

• 4 tsp active dry yeast, or approximately 2 envelopes

• 1/4 cup milk (not skim)

• 5 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

• 1 tsp ground ginger

• 1/4 tsp ground cloves

• 1/4 tsp ground cardamom

• 1/3 cup brown sugar

• 1 1/2 tsp salt

• 2 large eggs

• 1/4 cup melted butter

• 15 oz can of pure pumpkin

• egg wash (1 egg lightly beaten with 1 tbsp of water)

Heat milk in the microwave until it feels warm (but not hot) on your finger and pour into the bowl of your stand mixer. Stir in the active dry yeast, and let stand for at least 5 minutes. Be sure that it fizzes at least a little. If it doesn't fizz, your yeast is dead, so please start again!

Combine the flour, spices and sugar and mix well. In a separate large bowl, lightly beat the two eggs, then stir in the melted butter, and the pumpkin. 

After the yeast has been activated, add the wet ingredients directly into the bowl of your stand mixer, and stir to combine. Then add 1/2 of the dry ingredients (flour, sugar & spices) from the other bowl, and stir to mix the dry and wet ingredients together. After it is well mixed, add the remaining 1/2 of the dry ingredients and mix again. Using the dough hook, let the stand mixer knead the dough until it is smooth and still somewhat sticky (3-5 minutes). Cover with a clean towel or plastic wrap and let rise (preferably in a somewhat warm place) for approximately 1 hour (it will double in size).

Lightly grease a large baking dish or two, if needed. Then, remove the dough from the bowl, place it on a lightly floured surface and use your hands and a rolling pin to shape into a rough rectangle. Use a pizza cutter to section into 16-20 little squares. 

Then use your hands to shape into rolls, pinching the edges and placing the pinched sides face down into the pan so they are just barely touching the sides of one another. They will keep expanding during the second rise and in the oven as well.

After your dough is shaped, cover the baking dish loosely, and let it rise for another 1-1 1/2 hours.

Once your bread is ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 and brush the top lightly with the egg wash. Bake bread for approximately 30-35 minutes. Slather with honey butter if desired!