You know those mornings when you were a kid, you would wake up to the scent of fresh baked Pillsbury cinnamon rolls wafting through the pink mesh canopy you had coveted for weeks from Claire’s? Anyone? Just me?? Well, minus the canopy, I think we can all relate to the absolutely heavenly scent of anything freshly baked in the morning.
This pumpkin bread reminds me of those pillowy spiced cinnamon rolls, but just 100 times better. “100 times better??” you ask skeptically…Yes, the combination of the maple tinged pumpkin butter, pillowy fresh bread, and buttery cinnamon sugar crust is utterly irresistible.
After writing this, I’m slightly regretting not draping the loaf in cream cheese frosting, but I can promise even without it, it’s insanely good and the perfect snack/dessert/breakfast to celebrate the changing leaves.
Look at those sexy layers brushed with browned butter and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar!!!! Right, so first get your ingredients into place:
Combine yeast with warm water and sugar, beat eggs, and mix up dry ingredients. Melt butter into the milk.
Mix the milk mixture into the flour, and stir in the eggs until incorporated.
Add in 3/4 cup of flour and stir for two minutes until everything comes together.
Place the dough in a greased bowl and let rise for about an hour. Time to start the pumpkin butter!
The recipe couldn’t be easier: combine pureed pumpkin, maple syrup, lemon, pumpkin pie spice, and salt in a saucepan. Over medium heat let cook for about 20 minutes until thick and reduced like so:
This spread is delish on toast, waffles, apple slices, oatmeal… pretty much anything now that I think about it! The acidity of the lemon balances the sweetness of the maple so well, and the pumpkin pie spices provide the perfect warmth.
By now the dough should have risen, so deflate using your hands and knead about two tablespoons of flour into it. Let it rest for about 5 minutes while you brown some butter.
Roll out your dough to about a half inch thickness, and brush with the nutty caramelized butter.
Spread with pumpkin butter and sprinkle (generously) with cinnamon and sugar.
Cut dough into long strips using a pizza cutter, and then cut those strips into squares. Place the squares into a greased loaf pan like you would a deck of cards, and let rise again for 30 minutes.
After the dough has risen, brush it with more of the browned butter and sprinkle more cinnamon sugar on top. Pop in the oven for 30-45 minutes and prepare to be amazed at what comes out.
A beautiful loaf, buttery and golden brown, sparkling with cinnamon sugar, that makes your entire kitchen smell like pumpkin pie. When you peel off one of the heavenly layers, the texture of the dough is just like a cinnamon roll. I drizzled mine with a little more maple syrup for good measure and had it for breakfast!
Serve it warm with a scoop of ice cream for dessert, with a cup of coffee or tea for the perfect snack, or just eat it greedily straight out of the pan with your hands (not that I would know anyone that did this)….
Pumpkin Maple Pull Apart Bread (makes one 9×5 loaf) recipe adapted from here
- 3 cups flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 envelope yeast (2 and 1/4 teaspoons)
- 1 t sugar
- 1/2 t salt
- 1/4 cup warm water (105-110 degrees)
- 4 T butter
- 1/3 cup whole milk
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1 t vanilla
- 1 recipe Pumpkin Butter
- 1/4 cup butter, browned
- 1/4 cup sugar mixed with 1 t cinnamon
- Combine yeast, water, and the 1 t of sugar and let sit for 5 minutes until foamy.
- Mix together 2 cups of flour, 1/4 cup sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl.
- In a saucepan over medium heat, heat milk and butter until melted.
- Pour the milk into the dry ingredients and mix with a spatula or wooden spoon. Stir in the eggs and vanilla until combined.
- Add in 3/4 cup of flour and stir for about 2 minutes until combined. Place the dough in a large greased bowl and let rise for an hour.
- Once the dough has risen, deflate it (just give it a little poke) and then knead 2 T of flour into it.
- Let rest for 5 minutes covered with a tea towel, and then roll out into a 20×12 rectangle (20 inches long and 12 inches tall).
- Using a pastry brush, brush dough with melted butter and then spread with about a cup of pumpkin butter.
- Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, and then cut dough lengthwise into 3 long strips. You want to make sure that the width of the strips are about 3″.
- Now stack the strips and cut them into 5 pieces so you have 15 little squares. Place those squares upright in a greased loaf pan, and cover with plastic wrap. let rise for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350.
- Remove plastic wrap, brush loaf with remaining butter, and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.
- Place loaf in preheated oven for 30-45 minutes or until cooked all the way through. Devour!
Pumpkin Butter (makes 2 cups) recipe adapted from here
- 1 can pureed pumpkin (I used Libby’s)
- 1 T lemon juice
- 1 t pumpkin pie spice
- 3/4 cup maple syrup
- pinch of salt
- Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and cook over medium heat for about 20 minutes until thick.