Sourdough Pumpkin Rolls
Sourdough dinner rolls shaped like mini pumpkins are the cutest addition to your fall dinner. These soft rolls are great for Thanksgiving, beside chili, or any other way you want to serve them.
These cute little rolls are the perfect dinner time companion for a meal. Note that they are pumpkin shaped, not pumpkin flavored. So they pair perfectly with whatever you are serving!
If you are looking for a pumpkin flavored sourdough recipe, try my sourdough pumpkin bread.
This is a great sourdough bread recipe for beginners because it’s a simple and easy recipe to follow. The pumpkin shape adds a cute fall touch, but you can make this recipe without turning them into pumpkins, too.
Top these with a good butter, apple butter, peanut butter, jam, or honey!
Other great sourdough recipes to serve with a meal:
New to sourdough? Read my Ultimate Guide to Sourdough for Beginners to answer all the questions you have!
Equipment Needed:
- Large mixing bowl
- Food scale (affiliate link)
- Fork for mixing
- Plastic shower cap or plastic wrap for covering bowl
- Tea towel
- Food safe twine or cotton string
- Rice flour to prevent sticking
- Baking sheet
- Cooling rack
Baker’s Schedule
Knowing how to fit these rolls into your schedule is the best way to make sure you can easily prepare them and have them done right when you want! I like to work backwards from when I want them to be done to see what time I need to start:
- Cooling time: 15- 20 minutes
- Baking time: 25 minutes
- Final Proof: 3 hours in fridge
- Bulk Proof with stretch and fold: 16 hours (or 4 hours and then until doubled)
- Mixing: 10 minutes
- Activating starter: 3-4 hours (or until doubled)
How to make these pumpkin shaped dinner rolls
These dinner rolls are fun to make, but not really any harder than making other bread and rolls. For the full set of directions, make sure you scroll down to the recipe card below.
Mix the dough
- In a large, glass mixing bowl, add 50 grams of your sourdough starter, water, and sea salt (affiliate link). With a fork, mix until combined.
- Once combined, add in all of the bread flour, mix until combined, but not over mixed. It will be very loose here and quite rough.
- Cover the bowl with a plastic shower cap for about 1 hour.
Stretch and fold
- Remove the cover. Grab the edge of the dough farthest away from you and stretch it up and then place it back down closest to you. Turn the bowl 90 degrees and repeat the stretch and fold. Repeat again until you have done this a total of four times.
- Recover the dough and let it sit for another hour.
- Remove the cover, and lift and fold the dough all around the edges.
- Recover the dough and let it sit for another hour.
- Remove the cover, and lift and fold the dough all around the edges.
- Recover the dough and let it sit for another hour.
- Remove the cover, and lift and fold the dough all around the edges.
- Recover the dough and let it sit for another hour.
Bulk Proof
- Once you have completed 4-5 sets of stretch and fold, place the dough on a floured counter and shape into a ball.
- Dust the ball with rice flour and place in a glass bowl line with a flour sack tea towel that has been sprinkled with rice flour to prevent sticking.
- Allow it to bulk ferment on the counter for 8-12 hours, or in the fridge for 10-14 hours.
- The dough should be doubled when done.
Recipe Note: the timing here will depend on the temperature of your house. If your house is cooler, it could take longer for your dough to double. If your house is warmer, it could take less time. Watch the dough, not the clock!
Shaping
- Preheat the oven to 450 F. Go ahead and let it preheat the entire time you shape so that the oven gets nice and hot!
- Remove the dough from the fridge, remove the shower cap, and carefully lift the dough out of the bowl and set it on a lightly floured counter.
- Cut the dough into 8-10 even pieces, carefully, not to disturb it too much.
- Round each piece into a ball by folding each edge underneath the dough and placing seam side down onto the counter. Cover with a towel, and allow to rest for 20 minutes.
- Cut your twine to the desired length to wrap around the dough and tie on the top, you will need 3 pieces for each dough ball.
- Place a piece of string underneath the dough and tie it at the top. Not too tight, and not too slack. You want it to be just gently resting on the surface of the dough.
- Tie the other two strings so that the bread is divided into 6ths and all the knots are at the top.
- Place the ready dough balls/pumpkins on parchment paper on a cookie sheet.
- Cover the tray with a tea towel and allow to rest for 30 minutes.
Baking
- Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until lightly brown and risen.
- Remove from the baking sheet onto a cooling rack and let cool completely before eating.
- When the rolls are cool, use kitchen scissors to gently snip the string away.
- If you would like, you can add a ‘stem’ to your pumpkin at this time. Gently press an almond, a pumpkin seed, or a pretzel stick into the center of each roll. Enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
What kind of starter do I need for this?
This recipe uses a 100% hydration sourdough starter that has been fed and is active – meaning it has bubbles and has doubled. It does not matter what kind of flour you use to feed your starter with.
Don’t have a sourdough starter? Learn how to make a sourdough starter easily.
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Sourdough Pumpkin Rolls Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 50 grams of 100% hydration sourdough starter fed and active
- 350 grams water cool or room temperature
- 500 grams strong white bread flour
- 4 grams sea salt
- Rice four for sprinkling
Instructions
- Mix the dough
- In a large, glass mixing bowl, add 50 grams of your sourdough starter, water, and sea salt. With a fork, mix until combined.
- Once combined, add in all of the bread flour, mix until combined, but not over mixed. It will be very loose here and quite rough.
- Cover the bowl with a plastic shower cap for about 1 hour.
- Stretch and fold
- Remove the cover. Grab the edge of the dough farthest away from you and stretch it up and then place it back down closest to you. Turn the bowl 90 degrees and repeat the stretch and fold. Repeat again until you have done this a total of four times.
- Recover the dough and let it sit for another hour.
- Remove the cover, and lift and fold the dough all around the edges.
- Recover the dough and let it sit for another hour.
- Remove the cover, and lift and fold the dough all around the edges.
- Recover the dough and let it sit for another hour.
- Remove the cover, and lift and fold the dough all around the edges.
- Recover the dough and let it sit for another hour.
- Bulk Proof
- Once you have completed 4-5 foldings, keep the shower cap on and leave it on the counter for 8-12 hours. During this process the dough should double. If you want to proof it in the fridge, allow it to sit on the counter for 2-3 hours, and then place it in the fridge overnight.
- Recipe Note: the timing here will depend on the temperature of your house. If your house is cooler, it could take longer for your dough to double. If your house is warmer, it could take less time. Watch the dough, not the clock!
- Shaping
- Preheat the oven to 450 F. Go ahead and let it preheat the entire time you shape so that the oven gets nice and hot!
- Remove the dough from the fridge, remove the shower cap, and carefully lift the dough out of the bowl and set it on a lightly floured counter.
- Cut the dough into 8-10 even pieces, carefully, not to disturb it too much.
- Round each piece into a ball by folding each edge underneath the dough and placing seam side down onto the counter. Cover with a towel, and allow to rest for 20 minutes.
- Cut your twine to the desired length to wrap around the dough and tie on the top, you will need 4 pieces for each dough ball.
- Place a piece of string underneath the dough and tie it at the top. Not too tight, and not too slack. You want it to be just gently resting on the surface of the dough.
- Tie the other two strings so that the bread is divided into 6ths and all the knots are at the top.
- Place the ready dough balls/pumpkins on parchment paper on a cookie sheet.
- Cover the tray with a tea towel and allow to rest for 30 minutes.
- Baking
- Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until lightly brown and risen.
- Remove from the baking sheet onto a cooling rack and let cool completely before eating.
- When the rolls are cool, use kitchen scissors to gently snip the string away.
- If you would like, you can add a ‘stem’ to your pumpkin at this time. Gently press an almond, a pumpkin seed, or a pretzel stick into the center of each roll. Enjoy!
I am thinking to make these but wondered how long the dough can stay in the fridge? I want to make in advance
You could allow the dough to stay in the fridge for a day or two, but you won’t want to make it too long in advance because the dough will continue to proof, even though that is slowed down due to the cold temperature. I would also stick it in the fridge as soon as you can finished your last stretch and fold, don’t leave it to rest on the counter at all. And then you can let the dough warm back up to room temperature before you shape and bake.