Sage and Orange Pumpkin Rolls

Tis the season for all things pumpkin.  These dinner rolls rely on the humble can of pumpkin puree for softness, and bring out those fall flavors with a little sage, orange zest and a touch of honey.  And a sprinkling of cheese for good measure.  Perfect for upcoming holiday feasts, or to pair with a warm bowl of soup or stew for a satisfying autumn meal.

From AnkarsrumUSA recipe developer, Carmi Adams:

Pumpkin puree boosts the nutritional value, and brings a beautiful color to these rolls.  However, the pumpkin flavor is minimal, so don’t worry if, like me, pumpkin isn’t really your thing.

A lot of the moisture in the dough comes from the pumpkin puree itself, so don’t be concerned if the other liquid amounts seem small.

Wet ingredients first, plus the yeast. Two of the most important ingredients in bread: yeast and salt. I always add the yeast in with the wet ingredients. And then the salt at the end of the dry ingredients. Makes it easier to not forget them!

 

This dough is a little bit sticky once mixed up.  If you have ever worked with higher hydration doughs, or even sourdough, you know that sometimes bread dough is supposed to be sticky once mixed.  This is ok.  Do not be tempted to add more flour.  Once the dough goes through the first rise/proof, it will be easier and less sticky to handle.

Measuring flour by weight instead of cups is the best way to ensure the proper amount is going into the recipe. For handling sticky dough, dip hands in a bowl of cold water, shake off excess, and then quickly form dough into a ball for rising.

 

As you can see from the picture below, once the dough has risen, a lightly floured surface is all that is needed to make the dough easy to work with.  For baking, a cake pan or pie pan can be used.  This makes recipe makes 16 rolls, so two cake or pie pans will be needed.

When portioning dough, cut instead of tear into pieces. Tearing destroys the gluten development. The large white scraper that comes with the mixer works well for this.

 

Once the dough is portioned out, work with one portion at a time and roll into balls.

Don’t overly flour surface or dough will just slide around when trying to shape. Keep dough portions on the work surface and use your hand like a cage to roll the dough around until it forms a ball, moving the dough around with your pinkie and thumb.

 

Cover and let rise again.

Before placing in the oven, brush tops with olive oil and sprinkle with cheese.

 

Bake and let cool about 15 minutes before serving.

Browned cheese, one of the simple pleasures in life. Serve these as is, or slathered with butter and honey. Yum!

 

Please let us know if you have any questions or comments about this recipe.  I hope you enjoy pumpkin season.  Happy baking!

 

Sage and Orange Pumpkin Rolls

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Inactive Time: 2 1/2 hours

 

80 g. (1/3 cup) warm water

1 can (425 g./15 oz.) pumpkin puree (no added salt or sugar)

55 g. (1/4 cup) olive oil

63 g. (3 Tbsp.) honey

9 g. (2 1/4 tsp.) instant dry yeast

1.5 g. (1 1/2 tsp.) dried sage, rubbed not ground

fresh zest of 1 medium size orange

690 g. (5 3/4 cup) all purpose flour

8 g. (1 1/2 tsp.) kosher salt

For topping:

27 g. (2 Tbsp.) olive oil

14 g. (1/4 cup) finely grated parmesan

 

Grease 2 (9 inch) cake or pie pans.  Set aside until ready to use.

Place the water, pumpkin puree, olive oil, honey and yeast in the stainless steel mixing bowl with the roller/scraper.  Mix on medium speed (3 o’clock) to combine.

Reduce speed to low (1 o’clock), add in the sage, orange zest and slowly add in the flour and then the salt.  Lock the arm in place about 1 inch away from the side of the bowl halfway through adding the flour in.

Once flour is mixed in, increase speed slightly (2 o’clock) and let knead for 15 minutes.  This dough will be slightly sticky, do not be tempted to add more flour.  Once kneaded, shape into a ball, cover and let rise until doubled in size, approximately 1 1/2 hours.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface.  Divide into 16 equal portions.  Roll each portion into a ball.  Place 8 balls in each prepared pie pan, slightly spacing apart.  Cover and let rise until doubled, approximately 45-60 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350º.

Brush tops with olive oil and sprinkle with cheese.  Bake for 25-30 minutes.  Let cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.  If serving later, remove rolls from pans after 15 minutes and place on a cooling rack.

 

Yield: 16 rolls

 

WHOLE WHEAT VERSION

100 percent whole grain will always make a denser roll, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t still taste good.

 

-Replace all purpose flour with an equal amount of whole wheat flour.  If milling at home, use a hard wheat.

-Follow instructions above.

 

Published by

Carmi Adams

Carmi Adams has loved cooking from a very early age; requesting fondue pots and cookbooks for birthdays as a child. She further pursued her passion for food at the Art Institute of Atlanta and obtained a degree in Culinary Arts. Carmi landed a job on the show Good Eats, which aired on the Food Network. For seven years she did everything from food research, recipe development and testing, product testing to feeding a hungry film crew. Now living in the central coast of California, Carmi enjoys the bounty of agriculture, vineyards and farmers markets at her culinary disposal. She has been using the Ankarsrum mixer for over 15 years and feels that it is hands-down the best on the market for home cooks.