Brown Butter Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll - brown butter in the dough, filling, and frosting makes for a nutty, fluffy, pumpkin spice dessert.

I've made a lot of pumpkin cinnamon rolls in my kitchen, but somewhere around batch three of testing this one, I stood at my stove browning yet another stick of unsalted butter and thought, why am I only doing this for one part of the recipe. So I browned the butter for the dough. Then the filling. Then the frosting. All three. It felt a little unhinged at 9pm on a Tuesday, but the second these brown butter pumpkin cinnamon rolls came out of the oven, golden brown and smelling like a bakery. I knew it was worth every dirty saucepan. The brown bits from the butter cut right through the pumpkin spice instead of getting lost in it, and that's the whole reason this recipe exists.

If you love a good cinnamon roll project, you'll also want to check out my Caramel Apple Cinnamon Rolls and my original Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls, both of which share the same strip and spiral shaping method I use here.

Why You'll Love Brown Butter Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll

The brown butter shows up in three places, so every bite has that toasty, nutty depth instead of just tasting like pumpkin spice
The dough is soft, fluffy, and holds up well even after an overnight rise in the refrigerator
Strip and spiral shaping means more swirl in every single roll
The cream cheese icing has brown butter mixed right into it, not just melted on top
Great for a fall weekend baking project or a holiday breakfast centerpiece, especially served as warm rolls fresh out of the dish

Ingredient Overview

Here's a closer look at a few of the ingredients doing the heavy lifting in this recipe. Full amounts are on the recipe card below, along with the total time for the whole process.

Unsalted butter: Browned for the dough, filling, and frosting. Cooking the butter until it's golden and nutty adds a depth of flavor plain melted butter just cannot give you.
Pumpkin puree: Adds moisture and a subtle pumpkin flavor to the dough without making it dense. I like Libby's, but any plain canned pumpkin puree works, just make sure it's not pumpkin pie filling.
Active dry yeast or instant yeast: Either works here, you're just looking for that first rise and second rise to give the dough its fluffy texture.
Whole milk: Warmed gently, this activates the yeast and adds richness to the dough that water just can't.
Large eggs: Give the dough structure and a soft, tender crumb.
Dark brown sugar: The base of the filling, it caramelizes slightly while baking and pairs perfectly with the brown butter. Light brown sugar works too if that's what you have on hand.
Cream cheese: Softened cream cheese blends smoothly with the brown butter for a frosting that's tangy, rich, and not overly sweet.
Heavy cream: Poured over the rolls right before baking, this is what keeps the inside soft and a little gooey. A splash of vanilla bean paste in the frosting instead of vanilla extract also adds a nice flecked look if you want to get fancy.
Pinch of salt: Balances the sweetness in both the filling and the frosting.

How to Make Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll Dough

Brown the butter in a small saucepan until it's foamy, golden, and smells nutty, then pour it into the bowl of a stand mixer and let it cool slightly.
Whisk the warm milk, yeast, and a bit of sugar together and let it sit until foamy.
Combine the cooled brown butter with sugar, eggs, cinnamon, flour, pumpkin puree, and salt, then add the milk mixture.
Using the dough hook attachment, knead the dough until it's smooth, elastic, and slightly tacky, whether by stand mixer or by hand.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rise at room temperature for the first rise, about an hour.
Do a single stretch and fold, then chill the dough in the refrigerator for the second rise, at least two hours or up to overnight.

Common Mistakes - Brown Butter Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll

Skipping the cold second rise, which is what makes this dough easier to roll and gives it better flavor
Using butter that's still hot when mixing it into the dough, which can kill the yeast.
Not measuring flour correctly, which leads to a dense or dry dough, bread flour especially can throw off the ratio if you're not weighing it.
Rolling the dough into an uneven large rectangle, which causes some rolls to bake faster than others.
Overfilling the dough so the filling squeezes out during shaping instead of staying tucked inside.
Not proofing the shaped rolls in a warm environment before baking, which leaves you with dense, under risen rolls.

How to Make Brown Butter

Browning butter is simpler than it sounds, it just takes a little patience. Add your unsalted butter to a small saucepan over medium heat and let it melt completely. Keep stirring as it starts to foam, and don't walk away here because it can go from perfectly golden to burnt in under a minute. You're looking for small brown bits at the bottom of the pan and a deeply nutty smell. Once it hits that point, pull it off the heat right away and pour it into a separate bowl so it stops cooking in the hot pan.

What Are Some Tips for Brown Butter Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll

Brown your butter in a light colored small saucepan if you have one, it makes it much easier to see the color change and catch it before it burns
Let the brown butter cool until it's soft and spreadable before adding it to the dough, filling, or frosting, since butter that's too hot can affect texture or even kill the yeast in the dough
Use a kitchen scale for the dough ingredients if you can, cinnamon roll dough is forgiving but flour measured by volume can vary a lot from person to person
Don't skip the overnight chill in the refrigerator if your schedule allows for it, the dough is genuinely easier to roll out cold and the flavor deepens overnight
Keep your filling at a spreadable, creamy consistency rather than melted, this keeps it from soaking straight into the dough while you work
Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface with a rolling pin, working from the center out so you get an even large rectangle
Use a sharp knife or a pizza cutter for slicing the strips, a dull blade will drag and squish the dough instead of cutting cleanly through it
Starting from the long side farthest from you makes rolling each strip into a tight spiral much easier
Give your large rolls a little breathing room in the greased pan before the final rise, they'll expand more than you'd expect
Warm the heavy cream in the microwave in short bursts just until it loses its chill before pouring it over the rolls
If the tops start browning too fast in the oven, tent the pan loosely with foil rather than pulling them out early

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are a few questions that come up most often with this recipe.

Can I make the dough ahead of time? Yes, the dough is actually meant to sit in the refrigerator for its second rise, anywhere from two hours up to overnight, which makes this a great make ahead recipe.
Do I have to brown the butter for all three components? You don't have to, but it's what gives this recipe its signature flavor. If you're short on time, the dough is the one place I'd say browning it matters most.
Can I use canned pumpkin? Yes, I use Libby's, just make sure it's plain pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie filling, which has added sugar and spices.
Can I use active dry yeast instead of instant? Yes, just bloom it in the warm milk with the sugar for a few extra minutes until it looks foamy before mixing it into the dough.
Why did my rolls turn out dense? This usually comes down to either too much flour being packed into the measuring cup, or the dough not getting a full first rise and second rise before baking.

Storing and Freezing

To store these rolls, keep them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two days, or in the refrigerator for up to five. If you're storing them in the fridge, let them come to room temperature or give them a quick warm up in the microwave before serving so the cream cheese icing softens back up.

These also freeze well after they've been fully assembled and frosted. Wrap the dish tightly with plastic wrap or transfer individual rolls to an airtight container, and they'll keep in the freezer for up to two months. Thaw them overnight in the refrigerator, then let them sit on the counter or warm them gently before serving.

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Recipe

Brown Butter Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll

Molly Murphy

brown butter in the dough, filling, and frosting makes for a nutty, fluffy, pumpkin spice dessert.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings

Ingredients

For the pumpkin dough

¾ cup unsalted butter 170g
1 cup lukewarm milk 240g
1 ½ teaspoons instant yeast 5g
2 teaspoon granulated sugar 6g
½ cup granulated sugar 100g
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
5 ¾ cups all purpose flour plus more for dusting 720g
1 cup pumpkin puree 220g
2 ¼ teaspoons salt 14g

To Pour on Before Baking

¼ cup heavy whipping cream 60g

Filling

¾ cup unsalted butter 170g
1 cup packed brown sugar 220g
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon 15g

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

4 oz cream cheese softened (113g)
¾ cup unsalted butter 170g
1 teaspoon vanilla extract 4g
3 cups powdered sugar 360g
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 3g
Pinch of salt

Instructions

At least four hours before you want to make the dough, Add the butter to a medium saucepan and cook over medium heat until melted, foamy, starts making crackling noises, and deeply golden with brown flecks and a nutty aroma, stirring frequently, then immediately into a bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl (if hand mixing)
¾ cup unsalted butter
In small bowl, whisk together the lukewarm milk, instant yeast, and sugar. Let sit for 5-10 minutes, or until slightly foamy.
1 cup lukewarm milk, 1 ½ teaspoons instant yeast, 2 teaspoon granulated sugar
Once the butter has cooled and soft, add the the other granulated sugar, eggs, ground cinnamon, all purpose flour, pumpkin puree, salt and the milk yeast mixture.
½ cup granulated sugar, 3 large eggs, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 5 ¾ cups all purpose flour plus more for dusting, 1 cup pumpkin puree, 2 ¼ teaspoons salt
Using the dough hook, mix on low speed until the dough comes together, then increase to medium speed and knead for 6-8 minutes, or until the dough is smooth, elastic, and slightly tacky. It should pull away from the sides of the bowl but still cling lightly to the bottom.
If you are doing it by hand, this will work, it will just take about 10 minutes to hand knead it. Knead it until the dough all mixed and somewhat smooth, you can start with stretch and folds and then knead with the palm of your hands.
Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl. Cover and let rise at room temperature for 1 hour. While the dough is proofing start on the brown butter for the frosting/ filling. (*see "shaping and Filling) for instructions.
After 1 hour, perform one stretch and fold (lift one side of the dough and fold it over itself, repeating on all four sides). Cover again.
Place the covered dough in the refrigerator and chill for 2 hours or up to 12 hours overnight. This cold proof develops flavor and makes the dough easier to work with when rolling out.

Shaping and Filling

Add the rest of the butter for the filling and the frosting to a medium saucepan and cook over medium heat until melted, foamy, starts making crackling noises, and deeply golden with brown flecks and a nutty aroma, stirring frequently. Pour half of the brown butter into a small to medium bowl, and the other half in either a stand mixer bowl, or a large bowl for a hand mixer.
¾ cup unsalted butter, ¾ cup unsalted butter
The butter doesn't need to be completely cooled, but it shouldn't be too hot either that it melts the dough. Once the butter is ready whisk together the brown sugar, ground cinnamon, and unsalted butter by hand until nice and creamy. You want it fluffy to easily spread! Set aside.
1 cup packed brown sugar, 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
Lightly flour a clean work surface. Roll the chilled dough into a large rectangle, about 10x16 inches in size. You want about ¼ inch thick. You will need to flour the top of the dough because the dough is very sticky. Flour as needed so the dough doesn't stick to the table. Try to keep the edges as even as possible so the rolls bake uniformly. Spread the filling mixture evenly over the dough, using an offset spatula or the back of a spoon to get it all the way to the edges. Leave about ½ inch of dough bare on one long side to help seal the log.
Starting with the long edge farthest from you, cut the dough into 12 even strips using a sharp pizza cutter. Each piece should be about 1⅓ inches wide. Take your time to keep the cuts straight so the rolls bake up evenly.
Working one at a time, roll each strip into a tight spiral, starting from the bottom edge and rolling upward until you reach the top. As you roll, gently tuck in any filling that tries to escape and keep light, even pressure so each roll stays compact and uniform. Once rolled, pinch the end seam lightly so it stays closed.
Lightly grease or line a 9x13-inch baking pan with parchment paper before adding the rolls.
Repeat with the remaining strips until all 12 rolls are shaped, then place them in the prepared pan, leaving a little space between each one to allow room for their final rise. Let them proof/rise for 45-60 minutes.

Baking Instructions

Once the rolls have finished their second rise, preheat the oven to 375°F. Warm the heavy whipping cream just until it loses its chill (microwave for about 15-20 seconds). Gently pour the cream evenly over the tops of the risen rolls, letting it soak down into the layers.
¼ cup heavy whipping cream
Place the pan in the oven and bake at 375°F for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and continue baking for 20-25 minutes, until the rolls are deep golden brown on top.
If the rolls begin to brown too quickly, loosely tent the pan with foil during the last 10 minutes of baking.
Remove the pan from the oven and let the rolls cool for at least 15 minutes before frosting

Cream Cheese Frosting Instructions

Make sure the rest of the brown butter is completely cool and no longer hot to the touch, and in the stand mixer or with a a hander mixer, cream the cream cheese, and the browned butter on medium speed for 2 minutes. Scrape the bowl, then beat for 2 more minutes until smooth and fluffy.
4 oz cream cheese
With the mixer on low, add powdered sugar, then vanilla, cinnamon, and salt. Mix until combined.
1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 3 cups powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, Pinch of salt
Increase speed to medium-high and beat 2-3 more minutes until light and fluffy. If too soft to pipe, chill for 10-15 minutes.

Assembly

Once the cinnamon rolls have cooled slightly, spread the cream cheese buttercream evenly over the tops of the rolls. I did dollops with a piping bag for a pretty look, but you can do whatever you like! Serve warm or at room temperature.

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