Pumpkin Dinner Rolls
These pumpkin dinner rolls, shaped like mini pumpkins, are soft, fluffy, and packed with pumpkin flavor. Easy and fun to make with the family, they’re the perfect addition to your Halloween party or Thanksgiving feast!
I’m bringing this beloved pumpkin dinner rolls recipe back just in time for Thanksgiving 2025 — it’s still the softest, most festive rolls you’ll ever bake.
Playing with food can be so much fun, and these Pumpkin Dinner Rolls were a joy to make! The best part? You get to enjoy them fresh from the oven.
Pumpkin makes the perfect addition to dinner rolls for the fall season. These rolls even look like little pumpkins, adding a festive touch to your Thanksgiving table.
The dough is a bit sticky, which helps create soft, fluffy rolls. Using canned pumpkin purée gives them a beautiful golden color and keeps things simple. To shape them like mini pumpkins, you just score the edges and use pecan halves for stems.
It’s easier than you might think, and it’s a fun activity to do with the family—kids will love helping out! Celebrate autumn with these adorable pumpkin dinner rolls, one of the most popular Western recipes on my site. Perfect for your Thanksgiving spread!
If you’ve got a fresh pumpkin and want a Korean twist, try my Korean pumpkin salad or creamy pumpkin porridge. Both make beautiful fall dishes—just like these dinner rolls
How to make Pumpkin Dinner Rolls
Heat milk to scalding hot, add butter and let the butter melt. Add sugars, pumpkin and salt; stir everything well.
Combine yeast, 1 tsp sugar and warm water in another small bowl and let the yeast to proof (about 5 minutes). Add it to the pumpkin mixture with an egg; mix well.
Gradually add the flour and stir with a wooden spoon.
Time to knead! I used my mixer to do the job. Knead until the dough pull itself from the side of the bowl, about 5 minutes.
Dump the dough on the lightly floured surface and knead with your hand for 1 minute.
Form the dough into a ball and place in a greased bowl. Cover and let it rise in a warm place until they get double in volume.
Here is the beautifully risen dough. Love the deep yellow color!
Give it a punch to deflate. The moment I’ve been waiting for…
Divide the dough in half. Roll each half to make a log and cut each log in 15 pieces or more if you prefer smaller rolls.
Shaping into mini pumpkins
Form each piece into a ball by pulling it together…
Press down gently with your hand.
Using a knife, give 8 segments of cut on the edge but leave the center uncut.
Poke deeply on the center of pedal with your pinkie.
Let them rise again. The center indentation somehow disappeared but you can always poke them again. You gotta love poking!
Brush with egg wash to give a golden look.
Bake them in the preheated 350˚F oven for 9-12 minutes. Don’t over-bake.
Brush with melted butter for a little shine. And the final touch? Use a sliced pecan piece as a stem! Cute, aren’t they?
Imagine the turkey in all its glory, surrounded by delicious fall side dishes on the Thanksgiving table. Now picture these adorable mini pumpkin rolls being passed around, bringing smiles to everyone’s faces.
In this season of gratitude, there’s so much to be thankful for—family, friends, laughter, and even the challenges that life brings. I hope these mini pumpkin dinner rolls add a special touch to your next Thanksgiving feast!
Freezing Tip
Put leftover rolls in a zipper bag and freeze up to 3 months. To reheat, bring the rolls to a room temperature first. Then warm up in the preheated 350˚F oven for 4-5 minutes or until hot to touch.
Helpful Tips and Tricks
- Using fresh pumpkin instead of canned purée: I recommend steaming the pumpkin rather than boiling it. Mash the steamed pumpkin and follow the recipe, adjusting the liquid to manage the dough’s moisture.
- Making the dough ahead: Let the dough rise in the fridge overnight. The next day, bring it to room temperature and continue with the recipe.
- Using instant yeast instead of active dry yeast: Instant yeast can be mixed directly with the flour—no proofing needed. Just ensure your liquid is lukewarm to avoid killing the yeast.
- Nut allergy? Use mini pretzel sticks, broken into small pieces, instead of pecan stems for a fun alternative.
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Pumpkin Dinner Rolls
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup whole milk, scalded
- 6 tbsp butter, softened
- 1/3 cup light brown sugar
- 1/3 cup white sugar
- 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup lukewarm water
- 2 envelope (about 4 1/2 tsp) active dry yeast
- 1 tsp white sugar
- 1 egg
- 5 cup + a little extra all-purpose flour
- 10 pecan halves, sliced into 3 vertical sections
- 1/4 cup melted butter
Instructions
- Pour hot milk in a large mixing bowl, add butter and stir to melt. Add sugars, pumpkin puree, salt to the milk and butter mixture; mix well.
- In a small bowl, combine lukewarm water, yeast, and 1 tsp sugar. Wait 5- minute for yeast to proof. When it gets foamy, add it to the pumpkin mixture, and add the egg; mix well. Add the flour gradually and mix with a wooden spoon until well combined. The dough will be sticky.
- Using electric mixer with a dough hook attached, beat the mixture on the low-speed setting until the dough itself pulls from the side of the bowl, about 5 minutes. You can add a little more flour if the dough seems too wet.
- Turn the dough out to a wooden board dusted with a little flour. Knead with hand for 1 minute. Form the dough into a ball shape, place in a greased bowl and cover with a cloth. Let it rise in a warm place until it doubles in volume, about 1 hr.
- Punch the dough to deflate. Knead the dough for a few seconds on a wooden board. Divide the dough into half and cut each dough half into 15 pieces, total of 30 pieces.
- Roll each dough piece into a ball shape with your hand. Flatten the piece with palm of your hand a little. Using a knife, give 8 cuts on the edge to mimic flower pedals but leave the center uncut.
- Poke the center with your finger to give a deep indentation. Repeat the same procedure to the remaining pieces.
- Place them, 2-inch apart, on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or baking mat. Let them rise again until they become double in volume, about 45 minutes.
- Preheat oven 350ºF. If the center indentation doesn't look obvious on the rolls, poke them again with your finger. Brush with egg wash and bake for 9-12 minutes, until the top gets slightly golden.
- Brush the hot rolls with melted butter immediately. Insert the pecan slices on the center of the rolls to mimic the stem.
Made these last night and they are wonderful! Thanks for the recipe.
Awesome! Thanks Holly! I’m going to try this tomorrow for Thanksgiving. Hope it’ll turn out as good as yours.
Hi! Love your recipe! Wondering for step #13 above, would that replace #12, or do you do both? Thanks!
I do both. Egg wash will give the golden look on top when baked and the melted butter at the end will give rolls a little lust and the buttery flavor.
Came across your site (it’s great by the way!) a couple of weeks ago and I love it. Your photos are amazing! Thanks for this recipe. The rolls are too cute! I’m making these right now and the dough is currently rising… can’t wait to get them into the oven and see what the end result will look like!
Hi Rebekah! Thanks for your comment. I hope they turns out good for you and you like them.
These look so cute but I’d like to make them a day ahead of time. Are they good or can they be reheated the next day! My oven will be in use for other dishes. Any suggestions?
Yes, they reheat very good.
Will these work with Splenda?
I haven’t tried with Splenda. I can’t guarantee but I think it will work.
Just made. Half the dough is in the fridge. Used 1/2 cup buttermilk and 1/4 cup skim as I didn’t have any whole milk. I’m going to bake a few and see how they turn out. Fingers crossed!!
Holly – These rolls are the perfect touch I was looking for! I’m going to wing it and see if making ahead will work. 🙂 By the way, you’re just the nicest person. The way you responded to the critique of your recipe was so kind. We could all learn from that. Blessed Thanksgiving!
Thank you for your comment and I hope this recipe will turn out great for you. Have a wonderful thanksgiving!
How creative! I loved it 🙂
Is it possible to refridgerate these over night (the formed, raw dough) and cook them in the morning and still turn out well? Or well that mess up with how they are supposed to rise?
It depends on the temp. of your refrigerator. Overnight night might be too long and they might rise too much if your fridge temp. is not as cold. Mine reached to a full rise after 4 hours in my fridge, but I live in the tropical country so that may have been the reason. If you are not sure, I would suggest to keep in the freezer and take out in the morning and let it thaw in a warm place to speed up the rising.
Does it have to be whole milk?
You can use low fat milk. I wouldn’t use skim milk though.
I only had skim and was forced to use it. They turned out fine. I will make sure to have whole milk nest time, they will be even better.
These look delicious! Same as the rolls those little boys keep stealing in the movie Brave (that kinda made me laugh when I saw them).
These are amazing. So sweet. your tutorial is fabulous!!
Oh, and the recipe starts with pre-heating the oven, but I see a 1hr and 45min rise. My electric bill, lady! lol
Hi Tina, Thanks for pointing that out. You don’t want to preheat your oven that early. I can’t believe that I wrote to start with preheating oven in that stage in the recipe. What was I thinking?
Found your blog about a week ago and pinned a bunch of stuff. (I haven’t made it all the way through, yet, but you’re on my list!) This is the first recipe of yours I’m making, have it printed out in the kitchen.
I’m not a novice baker so I went ahead and started proofing the yeast before I started on the rest… but even though that’s the first two ingredients, it’s not the first thing you do. Then you talk about melting butter, and I saw the melted butter.. but. I figured it out, but ingredients in order of use would be super helpful.
The other thing is, I don’t see the instructions mention the salt? I’m putting it in before the flour right now. Will let ya know how it turns out!! 🙂 Sending it to the in-laws for Thanksgiving.
Thanks Tina. I guess I left out the salt part in the tutorial. The salt was in the recipe as an ingredient but I forgot to add in the instruction. I shouldn’t have overlooked at the power of salt, shouldn’t I? Glad that you are not a novice baker to point that out. I fixed the instructions. I understand your request for writing the ingredients in order of making. I will keep in mind that. You are right, it is helpful for people to follow the recipes in order. When I try a new recipe, I usually read the ingredients and the instructions before I start working. That helps me visualize how the recipe should proceed. Some recipes do have their ingredients not in order and it gets frustrating if I didn’t read in advance. I am glad that you found my blog, too. 🙂
What if my family doesn’t like pumpkin, can I make without or substitute
If you take out the pumpkin, you need to adjust the amount of flour. I would reduce the flour by 1/2-1 cup, omit the brown sugar and increase the white sugar instead. You might need to adjust more with flour. However if you are not so comfortable getting the right consistency of the dough by adjusting ingredients yourself, there are many plain dinner roll recipes online you can search for. Good luck!
i want to make these, but I don’t want the pumpkin flavor, would I just omit it and have them turn out, or will I need to add in something different?
If you omit the pumpkin, you have to reduce the amount of flour to maintain the right consistency. You can adjust the amount the flour as you wish as you are making, but if you are not comfortable with that, there are plenty of good regular dinner roll recipes online you can search for.
OMG they are too cute Holly!!! I LOVE THEM!!!!
You totally made me smile! 🙂
These are so beautiful and perfect for fall! They look delicious too 🙂
Sara
Do you think these could be partially made on Wednesday for Thursday service? Where would you stop and refrigerate? Thanks for any suggestions!
I am going to make these rolls again for Thanksgiving dinner. I will make them a couple of days ahead only up to the shaping the dough part.
Two ways to prep ahead of time.
1) Shape the dough, then freeze. Then on the T-day, you take them out to thaw and let them rise, and then bake. But that will take a couple of hours to complete.
2) If you only have less than 1 hour to finish off, I would bake up to a little over half way through (about 6-7 minutes of baking time), then freeze, take out to thaw and finish baking until golden brown on top. I would insert the pecan pieces at last.
I personally prefer not to stop in the middle of baking for the better texture. But, in time crunch, you just gotta do what you can. I reheated some of these leftover rolls last night that I stored in the freezer, and they were still soft inside but slightly dry and crunch on the outside.
Hope this helps.
Holly
These look awesome…..was wondering though, can they be made in a bread machine?
Sure, I don’t see why not.
Really nice ! I added them to my Pinterest page “Halloween Sweets/Idées gourmandes pour Halloween”. Thanks.
Anne, Paris, France
Hi Holly! I’ve been meaning to stop by to take a closer look again on the blog but haven’t had the chance till now. I am in love with your pumpkin dinner rolls and one day I want to serve on our Thanksgiving dinner! So pretty and so adorable…. I’m in love with these. I love the picture of dough so round and cute!!! I need to be more comfortable with yeast. I’ve never seen mine like that. Got to learn and practice more!
Hi, Nice recipie. Can i use this for my bread machine?
I think so.
Holly, those little pumpkin rolls are so cute! Amazing work and beautiful photography! 🙂