Pumpkin cinnamon rolls

Delicious sweet cinnamon mini rolls made with pumpkin purée, which gives them a beautiful orange colour (although the pumpkin flavour is not particularly noticeable in the dough). These pumpkin mini cinnamon rolls are soft, fluffy and perfect for a mid-morning snack or dessert. They’re also a great way to use up leftover pumpkin from other autumn dishes. If you prefer, you can bake them as full-sized cinnamon rolls. Highly recommended!

Which pumpkin should I use for baking? In Poland, Hokkaido pumpkin is a great choice for baking; in the UK, it is known as Red Kuri squash or Red Onion squash. It has a delicate flavour, a floury texture and an intense orange colour, and is extremely versatile in the kitchen.

Makes 20 pumpkin mini cinnamon rolls or 12 regular-sized rolls.

Ingredients for the dough:

• 525 g strong white bread flour
• 24 g fresh yeast or 12 g dried yeast
• 1 large egg
• 80 g caster sugar
• 180 ml lukewarm milk
• 185 g pumpkin purée*
• 50 g butter, melted
• ¼ tsp salt

Mix the flour with the dried yeast (if using fresh yeast, first prepare a yeast starter following these instructions). Add the remaining ingredients and knead, adding the melted and cooled butter towards the end. Knead until the dough is soft and elastic. Place in a lightly floured bowl, cover with a tea towel and leave in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1½ hours.

Divide the dough in half and roll each portion into a thin rectangle measuring approximately 35 × 25 cm, lightly dusting the work surface and rolling pin with flour to prevent sticking. Brush each rectangle with melted butter and sprinkle evenly with the cinnamon sugar filling (see below). Roll each one up tightly from the long side to form a log. Using a sharp knife, cut each log into 10 pieces. Alternatively, you can use a piece of thread: slide it underneath the rolled dough, then cross the ends over the top and pull to cut through the dough. Arrange the cinnamon rolls on two baking trays lined with baking paper, leaving plenty of space between them. Cover with a tea towel and leave to rise for about 30 minutes, or until doubled in size.

Bake the risen pumpkin mini cinnamon rolls in an oven preheated to 180°C for about 13 minutes, or until baked through. Bake the regular-sized rolls for about 22 minutes. Remove from the oven, leave to cool slightly, then drizzle with icing and serve.

Ingredients for the cinnamon filling:

• 50 g butter, melted and cooled
• 110 g caster sugar
• 2 tbsp ground cinnamon

For the icing:

• 1 cup icing sugar
• 3 tbsp boiling water

Mix the icing sugar with the boiling water using the back of a spoon or a mixer. Adjust the consistency with a little more water if the icing is too thick, or more icing sugar if it is too runny.

Method for bread machine users:

Place all the yeast dough ingredients into the bread machine in the following order: liquid ingredients first, then dry ingredients, and finally the yeast. Select the ‘dough’ programme (kneading and first rise). Once the programme has finished, remove the dough, knead it lightly, and continue according to the main recipe above.

Enjoy!