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Vegan Pumpkin Pecan Cinnamon Rolls
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4.50 from 2 votes

Vegan Pumpkin Pecan Cinnamon Rolls

These vegan pumpkin pecan cinnamon rolls are fluffy, soft, gooey, and packed with sweet, cinnamon-y goodness. A cinnamon-sugar base + chopped pecans are rolled up in pumpkin-packed dough. The baked cinnamon rolls are then generously drizzled with a simple 2-ingredient glaze.
Prep Time2 hours 20 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time2 hours 20 minutes
Course: Breakfast, Brunch
Cuisine: plant-based, Vegan
Servings: 16 rolls
Author: Ashley

Ingredients

Cinnamon Rolls

  • ¾ cup warm water (105F–115F)
  • 2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast (1 packet)
  • 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
  • 3 ½ cups white spelt flour, plus plenty more for kneading and dusting
  • 1 ½ cups unsweetened pumpkin puree
  • 3 tablespoons melted virgin coconut oil, divided, plus more for greasing
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 cup chopped pecans
  • ¾ cup coconut sugar*
  • 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

Icing**

  • Vegan powdered sugar
  • Filtered water

Instructions

For the Cinnamon Rolls

  • In a small bowl, gently whisk together the warm water, yeast, and maple syrup. Let stand for 5 minutes, or until a foams develops on the surface.
  • Meanwhile, generously flour a clean work surface. Gather two large glass mixing bowls (one for mixing and one for rising). Lightly grease one with coconut oil.
  • Add the spelt flour to the un-greased mixing bowl. Create a well in the center and add the yeast mixture, pumpkin puree, 1 tablespoon of the coconut oil, and the sea salt. Use a large wooden spoon to stir and mix until all of the flour has been incorporated.
  • Turn the dough out onto the floured work surface. Knead for 1 ½ to 3 minutes, until the dough is smooth and springy, adding plenty more spelt flour as needed (I usually add another ½ to ¾ cup). You'll know it's ready when it begins to hold its shape and springs back, slightly but not completely, when pressed. The gluten in spelt is delicate, so be careful not to over-knead or you'll end up with dry, crumbly cinnamon rolls.
  • Shape the dough into a ball and place it in the greased bowl. Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and let the dough rise in a warm place for 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until doubled in size.
  • When the dough has just a few minutes left to rise, lightly grease a 9- by 13-inch casserole dish with coconut oil. Whisk together the pecans, coconut sugar, and cinnamon in a medium bowl.
  • Punch down the dough and turn it out onto a clean, generously floured work surface. Gently knead the dough for about 30 seconds, or until it loses a bit of its tackiness. Then, use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a rectangle that is approximately 12 x 24 inches.
  • Lightly brush the top of the dough with the remaining 2 tablespoons melted coconut oil and sprinkle with the coconut sugar and pecan mixture.
  • Starting at the front of the long edge of the rectangle, carefully roll the dough away from you until you have a tightly wound roll. Use your fingers to pinch the seam closed. Use a sharp serrated knife to slice the roll into 12 to 16 1 ½- to 2-inch-thick rolls.
  • Gently transfer the rolls to the greased baking pan, swirled-side up, leave ½ an inch of space between each. Loosely cover the pan with parchment paper and let the rolls rise in a warm place for 45 minutes, or until doubled in size. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350F.
  • Bake for 16 to 20 minutes, or until the rolls are just barely turning golden and the tops feel firm to the touch.

For the Icing

  • Add two to three cups powered sugar to a medium mixing bowl. Add a couple tablespoons of filtered water at a time and whisk. Continue to add small amounts of water and whisk until the desired, drizzle-able consistency is reached.
  • Drizzle the icing over the warm cinnamon rolls.
  • Serve the cinnamon rolls warm.

Notes

*You can reduce this to ½ cup if you want to cut back on the sugar.
**Alternatively, you can drizzle the cinnamon rolls with pure maple syrup, but I much prefer the icing!
***I have a strong feeling these cinnamon rolls can be prepared ahead of time and baked later, and I'll be testing that in the coming weeks. If you want to take a small risk and try it out yourself: Prepare everything through step 10, cover the rolls with greased plastic wrap, and refrigerate them for up to 24 hours. Then, proceed with baking and icing as directed.