Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon Buns
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
These Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon Buns are soft, fluffy, and packed with cozy fall flavor from real pumpkin purée, warm pumpkin spice, and a buttery cinnamon sugar swirl. Finished with cream cheese frosting, they bake up pillowy and tender—just like bakery-style cinnamon buns, perfect for fall mornings and holiday brunch.
If you love pumpkin spice and everything nice, you’ll love Caramel Pecan Pumpkin Cheesecake, Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Scones, Gooey Caramel Pumpkin Brownies, and Pumpkin Cookies with Brown Sugar Frosting.
Why This Recipe Works
Moist and fluffy – You can’t get away with just adding pumpkin pie spice to the dough and expecting really rich pumpkin flavors to come through in the end results. Using pumpkin puree really amps up the pumpkin flavor and keeps this pumpkin cinnamon bun dough really moist and fluffy!
Flavor in layers – There’s lots of warm pumpkin spice flavor mixed throughout this pumpkin spice cinnamon buns recipe (more than just the filling!) so you get that comforting, cozy flavor in every single bite.
Bakery style – These pumpkin spice cinnamon buns have such a soft, pillowy texture without being dense!
Cream cheese frosting – The best pumpkin spice cinnamon buns with cream cheese icing needs this exact recipe — it really makes these pumpkin spice buns richer and more indulgent!
Ingredients
Flour – I use all purpose flour here.
Instant Yeast – When I want cinnamon buns, I want them fast. This helps to keep your prep and rise time to a minimum!
Pumpkin Pie Spice – cinnamon, ground ginger, ground nutmeg, ground cloves (or ground allspice), and a pinch of ground black pepper.
Canned Pumpkin Puree — Make sure you’re using canned pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie filling.
Cream Cheese – it’s really not cream cheese frosting without the cream cheese, you know? Using full-fat will yield even richer, creamier results but reduced fat is okay here too if that’s what you have on hand.
How to Make Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon Buns
- Combine 2 cups flour, sugar, dry yeast and salt in a large mixer bowl and stir until blended. Place water, pumpkin and butter in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on HIGH in 15 second increments until very warm but not hot to the touch (120° to 130°F. Butter won’t melt completely). Add flour to the mixture with egg.
- Beat 2 minutes at medium speed of electric mixer, scraping bowl occasionally. Add 1 cup flour; beat 2 minutes at high speed, scraping bowl occasionally. Stir in just enough remaining flour so that the dough will form into a ball.
- Knead on lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic and dough springs back when lightly pressed with 2 fingers, about 6 to 8 minutes. Cover with a towel; let rest for 10 minutes.
- For filling, combine brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Roll dough into a 15 x 12-inch rectangle using a rolling pin. Spread 3 tablespoons butter over dough stopping at least 1/2-inch from the edges on the long sides. Sprinkle it with the sugar mixture.
- Beginning at the long end of each rectangle, roll up tightly. Pinch seams to seal. Cut into 12 equal pieces. Place, cut sides down, in a greased 13 x 9 inch baking pan. Cover with towel; let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 45 minutes.
- Bake in a preheated 350ºF oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until the buns are golden brown. Cool on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes.
- Combine all frosting ingredients in a large bowl and beat, adding just enough milk until the frosting is creamy. Spread over buns and sprinkle with chopped pecans if desired and serve.
FAQs
Yes, you can totally make these soft pumpkin spice cinnamon buns ahead of time. The best way to do this is to put the fluffy buns together and then cover them tightly and put them in the fridge overnight. The next day, take the buns out of the fridge and let them rise at room temperature for about an hour before putting them in the oven.
You can also freeze the assembled, unrisen pumpkin buns with cinnamon sugar on a tray. Once frozen, break the buns apart and put into a bag for up to a month. Take out as many as needed, let them thaw in the fridge, then rise at room temperature before baking and icing as directed.
If you’re also freezing the frosting for these fluffy pumpkin spice cinnamon buns, remember to thaw the frosting in the fridge as well before frosting the warm buns.
Yes, you can use pumpkin pie spice while making both the pumpkin spice breakfast buns and the filling.
Are you as impatient as I am? Then you may have not let your buns rise long enough. That’s usually the culprit. When using yeast, you have to give it time to let the dough rise. You just do. No shortcuts here. If you make the buns before they’ve doubled in size, then you will have denser pumpkin spice cinnamon buns.
No stand mixer? No problem. Start by mixing the wet and dry ingredients together with a wooden spoon, then when the dough is sticky, turn it out onto a floured surface and knead the pumpkin spice cinnamon buns by hand until the dough is elastic and smooth.
Expert Tips for Soft, Fluffy Cinnamon Buns
- Be sure to measure flour correctly, when baking it’s important to not “guess” at measurements. Use measuring cups and be sure to level off the flour with a knife.
- Adjusting liquid: Should your canned pumpkin appear too runny, you can always use ⅛ to ¼ less water to account for excess pumpkin moisture.
- To ensure these fluffy pumpkin spice cinnamon buns rise well, put the buns to rise in a warm spot. I like to set them by a window or on a wooden table or counter. If your house is very cold you can even set the buns on a heating pad set to “low.”
- The perfect time to frost/glaze homemade pumpkin spice cinnamon buns
for best texture is after they have cooled on a wire rack for about 20 minutes or so. Any sooner and the frosting will melt.
Variations and Substitutions
Want to make these pumpkin spice cinnamon buns overnight? On day one, make the dough up through step 6 and then cover and put the buns in the fridge. Then, the next day, let the dough come to room temperature and rise before baking.
If you would like to make mini pumpkin spice cinnamon buns, when you get to step 5, make two or three rectangles of the dough instead of one (depending on how “mini” you’d like these buns to be), then follow the directions for filling and rolling. Check the buns for doneness after 20 minutes to be sure they don’t overbake.
Storage and Reheating
- To store, you can either cover tightly and store at room temperature for up to five days or you can put them in the fridge for up to one week.
- To freeze any baked, leftover pumpkin spice cinnamon buns, put them in a freezer-safe container (taking care not to smush the icing down) for up to 3 months.
- The best reheating method for keeping buns soft is to reheat them individually in the microwave for 20-30 seconds. If you microwave them too long they will get hard.
More Cinnamon Roll Recipes
- Easy Homemade Cinnamon Rolls – warm, gooey swirls of sweet comfort you’ll crave again and again.
- Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls – rich, chocolatey and topped with pure sweet indulgence in every bite.
- Apple Pie Cinnamon Rolls – sweet, cozy and bursting with all the comfort of homemade fall baking.
- Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with Maple Icing – a warm, bakery-style treat
made for slow mornings and second helpings.
When you make this recipe, snap a photo and tag me on social – I love connecting with you and seeing what you’re up to in the kitchen!
Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon Buns
Ingredients
- 4 ¼ – 4 ¾ cups all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
- ⅓ cup sugar
- 2 envelopes Fleischmann’s® RapidRise Yeast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup water
- ¾ cup canned pumpkin puree
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 egg
Filling
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 3 tablespoons butter, very soft
Frosting
- 3 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 2 tablespoons butter, softened
- 2 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1-2 tablespoons milk, as needed
Instructions
- Combine 2 cups flour, sugar, dry yeast and salt in a large mixer bowl and stir until blended. Place water, pumpkin and butter in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on HIGH in 15 second increments until very warm but not hot to the touch (120° to 130°F. Butter won’t melt completely). Add to flour mixture with egg.
- Beat 2 minutes at medium speed of electric mixer, scraping bowl occasionally. Add 1 cup flour; beat 2 minutes at high speed, scraping bowl occasionally. Stir in just enough remaining flour so that the dough will form into a ball.
- Knead on lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic and dough springs back when lightly pressed with 2 fingers, about 6 to 8 minutes. Cover with a towel; let rest for 10 minutes.For filling, combine brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Roll dough into a 15 x 12-inch rectangle using a rolling pin. Spread 3 tablespoons butter over dough stopping at least 1/2-inch from the edges on the long sides. Sprinkle with sugar mixture. Beginning at long end of each rectangle, roll up tightly. Pinch seams to seal. Cut into 12 equal pieces. Place, cut sides down, in greased 13 x 9 inch baking pan. Cover with towel; let rise in warm place until doubled in size, about 45 minutes.
- Bake in preheated 350ºF oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until rolls are golden brown. Cool on wire rack for at least 20 minutes.Combine all frosting ingredients in a large bowl and beat, adding just enough milk until frosting is creamy. Spread over rolls and sprinkle with chopped pecans if desired and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
adidas d rose 773 iv td zapatillas de deporte exterior para hombrenike air max 270 just do it pack black ah8050 014 03 hommenike zoom hyperdunk 2011 elite black metallic gold schoenenadidas stan smith pharrell bbc palm tree green homme
adidas originals eqt support adv shoes for women 16739 982
new balance steel toe 627v2 leather schuhe damenmens adidas cloudfoam ilation 2.0 high top basketball dameadidas white rose w schuhenike air vapormax flyknit moc dark stucco womens aa4155 013 uomo
nike zapatillas futbol sala
thank you for sharing recipe .. iwill try I’m living in irelnd alone .
I hope that you love this recipe! Hello all the way over in Ireland 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!
What’s up,I read your blog named “Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls | Creme De La Crumb regularly.Your writing style is awesome, keep doing what you’re doing! And you can look our website about Multi Maca Saudi Arabia
Multi Maca Saudi Arabia
The canned pumpkin that is required in the pumpkin cinnamon rolls, is that pumpkin purée or pumpkin pie filling
Not pumpkin pie filling- canned pure pumpkin!
I started making this at breakfast and I didn’t finish making it until lunch! As a first time baker the directions that didn’t specify amounts or time made me anxious.
Otherwise even though the kitchen was a mess they WEre delicious even though the pumpkin flavor was mild
Happy to hear that you enjoyed these! Way to go making your first cinnamon rolls! 😉
love this recipe, especially that it is both from scratch and also more easily made with rapid rise yeast, thank you!
So excited that you love this, Sabrina! These cinnamon rolls are on repeat over here!
So nicely put together ! Great ! As usual ! 🙂
Thank you SO much! 🙂
I made these for my family this Morning. They were delicious and perfectly gla flavored.
So excited to hear that they turned out awesome for you guys!! Thanks, Ashley!
What a perfect recipe for fall. Thank you for sharing the recipe!
You are spot on with that one! 🙂