These fluffy pumpkin dinner rolls are amazing! The addition of pumpkin and rosemary take the flavor and texture to the next level. SO GOOD!
It might be hard to believe that the world could really need one.more.dinner.roll recipe, but one taste of these fluffy pumpkin dinner rolls, and you’ll be a believer.
These rolls are so fantastic! The pumpkin flavor is subtle (my kids say they can’t taste it at all), but it lends a beautiful hue AND a magically soft texture to the rolls that is unparalleled.
Pumpkin + Rosemary
For the pumpkin, you can use every day canned pumpkin puree or a homemade pumpkin puree.
Because homemade pumpkin puree can sometimes be more watery than store bought, if you use homemade, drain as much liquid as possible and also realize you may need to add a bit more flour than the recipe calls for, which is totally fine!
For the rosemary, try to use fresh if you can find it. It makes a world of difference in the fresh, fragrant flavor. Fresh rosemary is usually pretty easily available in most grocery stores.
You can also leave the rosemary out for a still-delicious, plain pumpkin dinner roll.
Basic Roll Dough
Other than the addition of rosemary and canned pumpkin, this is a pretty basic yeast roll dough.
As with all yeast doughs, remember that it’s ok if you have to add more or less flour than called for in the recipe.
The exact amount of flour will depend on many different factors, like elevation, humidity, how you measure flour, etc.
Let it Rise
I am a major lazy pants these days, and I usually let the dough rise right there in the mixing bowl (covered). If that makes you uncomfortable for any reason, you can transfer the dough to a greased bowl and let it rise there. Either will work.
After the dough has risen and doubled in bulk, divide it into pieces (20-ish), roll each piece into a cute little sphere, and place on a parchment lined baking sheet.
Bake and Butter
Once the rolls have risen and are noticeably puffy, pop them in the oven and bake until they are golden. (Spoiler alert: your house is going to smell amazing while these bake.)
Right out of the oven, butter the tops of the warm rolls.
You don’t have to get fancy here. Cutting off a chunk of butter and precariously holding on to the papered end is totally acceptable. Melted butter + pastry brush also works.
Just get butter, and lots of it, on top of those rolls as soon as they come out of the oven.
If you want to level up your homemade roll making game, these fluffy pumpkin rosemary dinner rolls are the answer.
Perfect for a holiday meal, they are also fantastic with a simple soup or as a side dish for any other meal that could benefit from a homemade dinner roll. In my world, that basically means any and every meal. 🙂
The soft and fluffy texture makes them ultra-special. I cannot wait to sandwich them with mustard, leftover turkey, and a slice of sharp white cheddar cheese (my go-to after Thanksgiving leftover meal…for days).
Recipe Source: adapted slightly from this recipe (after a reader, Loretta, sent it to me – thanks, Loretta!) – I omitted milk, increased water, increased yeast and rosemary, altered mixing method, and a few other changes.
