Pumpkin Bread Rolls

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These soft and easy-to-pull-apart pumpkin sourdough bread rolls are bound to be the centerpiece of your next dinner party! These autumn-themed rolls are both beautiful and absolutely delicious.

Recipe Intro: Pumpkin Bread Rolls
Recipe Run Through
How to shape: Sourdough Pumpkin Bread Rolls
Tools I Recommend
Recipe Card
Recipe Video
Bakers Schedule

The Perfect Autumn Bake

These fluffy, gorgeous pumpkin bread rolls are gently sweetened with brown sugar and pure pumpkin purée and have a pleasant sourdough flavor. Of course, it is entirely up to you if you want to use store-bought or homemade pumpkin purée to make these – just make sure you are using pure pumpkin purée where the only ingredient is pumpkin.

This recipe is naturally leavened with sourdough starter. As with all my sourdough recipes, some waiting and planning are involved in making these. To help plan your bake, I have included a baker’s schedule at the end of this post. Please also make sure you read through the whole recipe before you begin.

Enjoy pumpkin sourdough bread rolls with your favorite soup or casserole or on its own with butter, honey, and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt.

Recipe run through

Day one

Prepare the levain – Start by gathering all your ingredients and adding them to a bowl or starter jar. Use a rubber spatula and mix until just combined. Cover the bowl and let it rise for 4 hours at around 78°F/26°C until it has doubled in size.
Make the tangzhong – Add milk and flour to a small pot. Heat up over medium heat while stirring with a whisk. Once the mixture has thickened and reached the temperature of 150°F/65°C, it is ready. Next, transfer the tangzhong to a clean bowl. Cover with plastic wrap that touches the entire surface of the tangzhong. Cool to room temperature before continuing with the next step.

Mix up the main dough – Pop all the ingredients, except butter, into your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Knead until the dough comes together (1-2 minutes). Then cover the bowl and let the dough rest for 30 minutes.
Add butter – You want your butter to be soft and at room temperature but not melty. Cut it into cubes, and slowly add one cube of butter at a time while the mixer is on. When you have added all the butter, scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl and continue mixing at medium speed until the dough passes the window-pane test. Depending on your mixer, this can take 10-25 minutes.
First proof – When finished kneading, roughly pre-shape the dough into a round with your hands and a bench knife. Next, transfer the dough to a clean, lightly oiled bowl and proof for three hours at around 78°F/26°C. The dough should rise to about 60% during this time. I like to use my Brød and Taylor proofer to manage the temperature.
Overnight rest in the fridge – Place the dough in the fridge overnight. This second rest stiffens the dough, making it much easier to handle during shaping. The overnight rest in the fridge also helps develop a lot of flavor in the pumpkin sourdough bread rolls.

Day two

Prepare kitchen twine – Cut nine pieces of roughly 40 inches/1 meter food-safe kitchen twine. Add to a bowl and toss in neutral oil. Set aside.

Shape into rounds – Take the dough out of the fridge and divide it into nine equal pieces. Each piece will be around 84 grams. Use a kitchen scale for accuracy. Working with one piece at a time, flatten it slightly, fold it into somewhat of a round, then use your hands and work surface to roll it into a tight, seamless, and even ball.

How to shape Sourdough Pumpkin bread rolls

We use oiled kitchen twine to create those cute pumpkin shapes. I’ve got you covered with step-by-step photos to guide you through the process.

Scroll to view all images.

Take a piece of oiled kitchen twine and run it between two fingers to remove excess oil.
Find the center point of the twine and lay it on top of the dough ball.
Flip the dough around and bring each end of the string up.
Cross the string over, like wrapping a present.
Turn the dough over again, careful not to tighten the string around the dough too much, and repeat wrapping until the dough has eight sections.
Lastly, tie a double knot (not too tight.)
Cut off any excess twine.
Repeat on all the dough balls.

Final proof – Arrange the shaped pumpkin bread rolls on lined baking trays. Cover loosely with plastic wrap. Proof at around 72°F/22°C for 4-6 hours or until nice and fluffy looking.
Bake – Brush the bread rolls with egg wash and bake in a preheated oven at 390°F/200°C for 12-15 minutes, until golden brown.
Remove twine – Leave the rolls to cool for 5-10 minutes until cool enough to handle. Then, use a pair of scissors to carefully remove the string.
Finishing touches – Brush melted butter over the warm bread rolls, and press an almond into the top of each roll to resemble the pumpkin stalk. Serve with soup or your favorite casserole, or enjoy on its own with butter, honey, and a sprinkle of flaky salt.

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