Pumpkin Brioche Cinnamon Rolls

My love affair with pumpkin isn't over yet -- not even close. It's not even October yet, which means months and months of pumpkin baking ahead of me. I smile just thinking about it.

These cinnamon rolls were inspired by Peabody's Pumpkin Brioche. I made the brioche (although I misread the directions so mine ended up skipping a 4 hour rise in the fridge and ended up just getting a second 2 hour rise on the counter instead... didn't seem to hurt the flavor any...) and then used a third of it to make cinnamon rolls. Unfortunately I overbaked them a bit leaving them a tad crunchy on the outside rather than soft and chewy like I wanted them. :( Also, I didn't roll them quite tight enough so a bunch of the cinnamon sugar ended up on the bottom of the pan creating a sticky, crunchy, sugary crust that was almost, but not quite burned.

Guess I'll have to make them again... bummer.

With the other two thirds of the dough I made two 8x4 loaves, although I did give them a cinnamon swirl too so they're not that different than the cinnamon rolls. Chris brought one loaf to work and we're going to use the second loaf for French Toast for our Saturday morning breakfast. Man life is good.



Ingredients:

For the Sponge:
¼ cup whole milk, at room temperature
2 ½ tsp active dry yeast
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/3 cup sugar
1 cup bread flour

Combine the milk and yeast in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment ans whisk until the yeast is dissolved. Let stand for 5 minutes, then stir in the pumpkin puree, sugar, and flour, forming a thick batter. Cover with plastic film and let rest in a warm environment until bubbles form, 30-40 minutes.

For the Dough:
5 cups bread flour
2 tsp salt
6 large eggs, lightly beaten
½ lb(2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1.Add the flour ans salt to the sponge, then add the eggs. Mix on low speed for 2 minutes, or until the eggs are absorbed. Increase speed to medium and knead the dough for 5 minutes. The dough will begin to slap around. Hold on to the mixer when necessary.

2. On medium-low speed, add the butter, 2 TBSP at a time. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl occasionally.(Recipe did not say to, but I switched to the dough hook at this point). Knead until the dough is shiny ans smooth, about 5 minutes. Scrape out the dough, wash and dry the bowl, and coat it lightly with oil.

3.Place dough in the oiled bowl and turn it so that the top is coated with oil. Cover with plastic film and let rise at room temperature until doubled in volume, about 2 hours.

4.After the dough has doubled in volume, press down to deflate, folding one half into the other. Cover with plastic film and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. This is the second rise.

5.Spray three 9 x 5 x 3-inch loaf pans with pan spray. I used one large pan, two mini loafs and made 8 rolls.

6.Remove dough from fridge. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough evenly into thirds.

7. To make cinnamon rolls take a third of the dough and roll it into a flat rectangle. Brush with two tablespoons of melted butter and then sprinkle cinnamon sugar generously over the surface. Roll the rectangle up, starting with the side nearest you and try to get it as tight as possible. Once it's rolled, pinch the seam and cut it into 1-inch pieces. Lay the pieces cut side down in a well-greased 9x13 pan and let rise for 60-90 minutes.

8. With the other two thirds follow Peabody's directions here (or make more cinnamon rolls). With a rolling pin(that is floured), roll the dough into a rectangle equal to the length of the pan and double its width. Starting from the short side, roll up the dough like a jelly roll. If you would like you can add a filling. I added pumpkin pie spices with sugar in one of my loafs. Pinch the seam together. Place the dough seam side down in the prepared pan. Gently work the dough into the pan with your fingers so that it touches all sides. The dough should fill the pan halfway.

9.Cover the dough with plastic film coated with pan spray and let rise at room temperature until it has doubled in size and filled the pans completely, 1 ½ to 2 hours.

10.Toward the end of proofing preheat the oven to 400F. Adjust the rack to the center of the oven.

Egg Wash
1 large egg, plus large egg yolk

Whisk together the egg and yolk. Gently brush the surface of the dough with the egg wash.

Baking:

1. Bake for 10 minutes. Turn down the oven temperature to 350F and bake for 30 minutes more(the mini loaves only need 17 minutes more), with a golden crust and an internal temperature of 180F. Watch the baking closely and check them after 15 total minutes -- better to check them too often then end up with them overdone like mine...

2.Remove the brioche from the pans as soon as they come out of the oven and cool it on a rack before serving.

3.If making rolls, roll them to golf ball size. Proof in paper lined muffin cups for easy baking. Bake at 350F for 20-25 minutes.