Pumpkin Cinnamon Buns and Why Insomnia Makes Me a Good Cook

My breakfast this morning was a freshly baked Pumpkin Cinnamon Bun! I’ve been meaning to make a pumpkin version of the traditional sweet bun for a while now and I finally put it together last night, let it rise overnight, and baked it this morning. It’s not a Pumpkin Pie Cinnamon Bun, but I think it easily could be turned into one with the addition of some pumpkin pie spice. If you try it, let me know in the comments how it turned out!

I’m pretty happy with this version: there’s cornstarch in the dough, which makes it extra light and fluffy, and there a pumpkin-caramel sauce in the base of the pan for that extra-sticky yumminess that makes a cinnamon bun so good! I will say that there is a lot of butter in this recipe, but it doesn’t taste overly buttery.

Want to make some fall-flavoured cinnamon buns yourself? Bake on!

Pumpkin Cinnamon Buns

Dough

• 1 c. warm milk
• 1/2 c. and 1 tbsp. pumpkin puree
• 3 eggs
• 1 tbsp.  yeast
• 5 c. flour
• 1/2 c. sugar
• 1/2 c. corn starch
• 1 1/2 tsp. salt
• 6 tbsp. butter, softened

Mix all dry ingredients together in a mixer. Heat the milk and pumpkin puree in the microwave until warm but not hot and add to dry ingredients. Mix in eggs and soft butter. Let rise in a warm space for at least an hour. Then punch down and roll out on a floured surface.

Filling

• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tbsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 4 tbsp soft butter
• pumpkin pie spice to taste
• 1/2 c. pumpkin puree

Mix all the filling ingredients together until it forms a spread. Spread over surface of dough. Roll up dough length-wise, and cut into slices.

Pumpkin Caramel Base

• 1/2 c butter
• 4 tbsp. pumpkin puree
• 1/2 brown sugar
• 1 tbsp corn syrup

Cook all the pumpkin caramel base ingredients together in a saucepan (I used a frying pan because it was closer to me. Meh. Whatever works!) until all bubbly and melty and caramelly. A very precise science, obviously. Spread in the bottom of a lasagna pan (you can fit 8 in a lasagna pan. Then I had to use a pie plate as well. This recipe makes a bunch!) 

Place slices of rolled-up dough on the sauce, and let the buns rise for another hour or overnight. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes or until golden on top and cooked through. Drizzle with a mixture of icing sugar and milk while still warm. And bite into a nourishing and delicious cinnamon bun!

As I said above, I baked these last night. I pulled out my bowls and flour and spices at 11 pm because I couldn’t sleep and wanted to make something yummy. I do a lot of cooking in the evenings, I find. A decade (or two, to be honest) ago, I used to be a morning person. But these days I’m a night owl to end all night owls. I actually have an official sleeping disorder — two, to be exact. Initial Onset Insomnia as well as Sleep Phase Shift Disorder. Which is why you’ll often find that I post at night. But I like being alert in the evening hours. It gives me a chance to make delicious things for the next day. Speaking of which, I’m trying out something new tomorrow. Stay tuned!

Next Post: Parisian-Style Baking and an On-Line Baking Group. Plus cookies. And chocolate. Because chocolate!

Linking up at Meal Plan Monday!