I have been anticipating making fondue for some time. I've had a fondue pot for probably a decade. I got it still in the original box at Goodwill when I was in college. I make it for a special occasion every couple of years. And I have absolutely been craving it now! I've wanted to make bread for it, but I want all of it to be festive. So, I've decided on Pumpkin Fondue with pumpkin-shaped dinner rolls.
These rolls don't actually have any pumpkin in them. Which is quite difficult to do because because pumpkin is so dense that it breads and sweets don't always rise very well. Rolls are supposed to be light and fluffy. So being weighted down kind of defeats the purpose!
Hence, pumpkin-shaped dinner rolls with actual pumpkin fondue.
I tend to wing it when I make a lot of recipes. I'll look at enough of them that I get an idea of what will work out and then just do my own thing, anyway!
Bread is not like that, though. Baking in general is very precise. It's about ratios of liquids, fats, and gluten. These are no exception! And I used Its Always Autumn's Pumpkin Shaped Dinner Rolls recipe.
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I did a test batch of these before Thanksgiving, just to see if I could both make rolls and tie them up to look like pumpkins! Both were a success and I ate rolls for weeks!
What to Make Along with Pumpkin-Shaped Dinner Rolls?
For the rest of the recipes that I made during Thanksgiving this year, along with a breakdown of how to get them all in and out of the oven in time for dinner! Check out my blog on the pandemic holiday season. I also have a couple other Thanksgiving burritos to make with all of the leftovers!
What could be more fun during the holidays than pumpkin-shaped dinner rolls? I saw these on Pinterest and they didn't look too difficult to make! They were actually surprisingly easy (and I'm not entirely great at baking bread!). And worked perfectly alongside Homemade Fondue.
Combine warm water, sugar, and yeast in a large bowl. Let proof for 5 minutes.This should give the yeast enough time to begin to activate, but isn't a traditional 15 minute proof where the yeast should bubble and rise. This is more like those bread machine recipe where you add everything together all at once!
Add softened butter, egg, salt, and all-purpose flour. Form into a ball and knead until soft and elastic.You can do this with a stand mixer and a dough hook or paddle attachment. I prefer to make dough by hand, though. Just roll out onto an incredibly lightly floured surface and press one palm and then the other palm firmly into the ball of dough. This will knead it back and forth, much like a cat would (without the claws!).It's done when the dough is light and springy. When you knead the dough and let it sit for a second, it should slightly bounce back. This will take about 5-10 minutes to achieve.
Lightly grease or flour a large bowl and add the dough. Cover and let rise until doubled in size. Depending on the ambient temperature, this should take about 60-90 minutes.
After the proof, turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and punch down.
Divide into 13 equal-sized portions and roll into a ball. Reserve the extra piece, which doesn't have to be quite as large as the other 12 (it's for making the stems later on).
Place each of the balls 2 inches apart on a baking sheet, cover, and let rise for another 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare your baking twine. Cut into 32 inch long pieces and coat in oil.
After the 15 minute proof, wrap the baking twine around the rolls to create the pumpkin shape.This is done by wrapping the twine around the roll, pivoting 90 degrees and wrapping it again (like you would for a present). Then turn 45 degrees and repeat. This will will create 8 equal-sized sections. Tie off the twine and place face down on the baking sheet again. This should be just firm enough to stay in place, but not tight.
Using the extra ball of dough that you reserved, roll out into a long piece (like a snake). Cut into 12 equal-sized portions and roll into roughly pumpkin stem shape. Place on the baking sheet and cover.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit while the dough rises for another 15 minutes, or until the dough is pushing slightly through the strings.
Bake for 22-24 minutes, or until golden brown.
Let cool completely and unwrap the twine. If you coated it in enough oil and didn't overproof it after wrapping, this should come off with relative ease. Other, just carefully hold the roll together and shimmy the string out of the grooves.
Attach the stems to the top to create the pumpkin look.I have not found a great way to do this! I used toothpicks to keep it in place, but that presents a choking hazard, so I just used it for show and then removed them before actually eating. My second thought was using icing as a kind of glue.
Tips, Tricks, & Notes
I didn't specify an oil for the twine because it really doesn't matter that much. The recipe that I followed used vegetable oil; I used olive oil.
If you're like me and it's cold and your heat doesn't really function all that well! Place the dough near a heater to proof. Alternatively, next to a warm, sunny window will do. Or preheat the oven to 100 degrees Fahrenheit, turn off, and then open the oven door. Proof the dough on the stove over the open oven. This will heat the kitchen without overheating and prematurely baking the bread.
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