Sweet Pumpkin Focaccia with Cream Cheese Frosting (Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll Focaccia)

Sweet Cinnamon Roll Pumpkin Focaccia cut into large squares with cream cheese frosting dappled with golden light on a simple light background.

5 from 1 vote

Sweet Pumpkin Focaccia with Cream Cheese Frosting (Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll Focaccia)

This Sweet Pumpkin Focaccia is a delicious take on classic focaccia made with pumpkin puree, a layer of cinnamon sugar swirl in a soft and tender dimpled dough, all smothered in a sweet cream cheese frosting. It's like an indulgent pumpkin cinnamon roll, only lighter.

Prep Time1

Cook Time28

Rise Time1

Total Time2 28

Course: Dessert, Snack

Cuisine: American, Italian

Servings: squares

Calories: 215kcal

Author: Lauren Skardal

Ingredients

Sweet Pumpkin Focaccia

302 g warm water 1 ⅓ cups
7 g honey
7 g instant yeast
30 g extra virgin olive oil
10 g salt
151 g pumpkin puree ⅔ cup
455 g bread flour 3¼ cups flour
butter for greasing the pan

Cinnamon Sugar Filling

53 g brown sugar ¼ cup, plus additional for topping
½ tablespoon cinnamon plus additional for topping

Cream Cheese Frosting

227 g cream cheese, 8oz softened
56 g butter, ¼ cup softened
113 g powdered sugar, 1 cup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

Make the Dough: In a large bowl, add the warm water and honey and stir to combine. Add the yeast, extra virgin olive oil, salt, and pumpkin puree and stir to combine. Add the flour and mix until combined. It will be a wet, shaggy dough. Cover the bowl and let it rest for 20 minutes.
***See the post above for images that show how the dough should be handled at each step in the recipe, particularly the different folding techniques.
To make the focaccia, you will perform one set of stretch and folds and two sets of coil folds (described below), with a resting time of 20 minutes after the set of stretch and folds and the first set of coil folds.
Set of Stretch and Folds: To do the first set of stretch and folds, rinse your dominant hand under water. This helps to prevent the dough from sticking. Reach into the bowl and grab a piece of the dough at the edge of the bowl. Pull it straight up, then fold it over the remaining dough.
Turn the bowl slightly and repeat, picking up the next bit of dough at the edge, pulling it up, and folding it over the remaining dough. Continue picking up and folding the dough until all the dough has been worked this way, about 6-8 times. Cover and let rest for 20 minutes
First Set of Coil Folds: To complete the first set of coil folds, rinse both hands under water. Use both hands to pick up the dough (one hand on either side, starting at opposite edges of the bowl), stretching it upwards until it gently releases from the bowl, and then folding it over itself. Turn the dough 90 degrees and repeat once more. Cover the dough and let it rest for 20 minutes.
Second Set of Coil Folds: Complete a second set of coil folds.
Butter a 9x13 metal baking dish, including up the sides of the dish.
Transfer to the 9x13 Dish: Transfer the dough to the buttered 9x13 baking dish. Stretch the dough slightly into roughly the shape of the baking dish. It does not need to go to the edges.
Sprinkle ¼ cup of the brown sugar and ½ tablespoon of the cinnamon over the surface of the dough.
Perform a Letter Fold: To perform a letter fold, take the top third of the dough and fold it over the middle third of the dough, like you are folding a letter. Take the bottom third of the dough and fold it up over the first fold. Pinch the edges of the dough to seal the dough. Flip the dough upside down so that the seam side is down, and turn it 90 degrees so that the length of the dough matches the length of the 9x13 baking dish. Gently stretch the dough towards the edges of the dish to fit the pan, but don’t worry about stretching it all the way. It will expand as it rises.
Cover the dish and let it rise for roughly 1 hour until it has doubled in size and has roughly filled the baking dish.
Preheat the Oven: About 30 minutes before you plan to bake, reheat the oven to 450°F and place a rack in the bottom third of the oven.
Dimple the Dough: Once the dough has roughly doubled in size, wet your hands again, pressing dimples into the dough. Press all the way to the bottom (the dough should not deflate or tear).
OPTIONAL TOPPING: Top the dough with additional cinnamon and sugar. Use roughly two tablespoons of brown sugar and a teaspoon of cinnamon to sprinkle on the top of the dough. This is optional if you want to add another layer of sweetness. If you prefer a simpler, less sweet focaccia, this step can be skipped.
Bake: Place the dish in the bottom third of the oven and bake for 15 minutes.
After 15 minutes, cover the top with aluminum foil to prevent the top of the dough from burning.
Bake for another 10 minutes.
Remove the aluminum foil and bake for about 3 more minutes to ensure a nice browned top. Watch closely and do not allow the top to burn. Look for the dough to be a medium golden brown on top when done. Remove and allow to cool slightly.
Cream Cheese Frosting: While the pumpkin focaccia is in the oven, make the cream cheese frosting. In a medium bowl, combine the softened cream cheese, softened butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract until smooth and creamy. I find this easiest to do with a hand mixer, but it can be done by hand or with a stand mixer.
Spread the Frosting and Serve: Allow the pumpkin focaccia to cool slightly, about 5-10 minutes, then remove it from the pan. Run a butter knife around the edges of the pan and use a large spatula to help lift the focaccia out of the pan.
You want the focaccia to be cool enough so that it does not immediately melt the frosting, but warm enough that the cream cheese frosting is spreadable and melts ever so slightly for the gooey pumpkin cinnamon roll effect.
Spread the cream cheese frosting over the pumpkin focaccia and slice into squares. Serve warm.

Notes

Measurements: This recipe is best made by measuring the ingredients by weight in grams. Methods for measuring flour in a cup are not universal or standardized, which produces variable results when baking.
Pumpkin Puree:
- Puree: Use pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling.
- Spices: The pumpkin puree gives the bread a beautiful golden color, but pumpkin by itself is not a strong flavor. Additional flavor is added here with the cinnamon sugar, but if you're looking for a super strong fall pumpkin spice flavor, feel free to add in other spices like nutmeg, cloves, ginger, or allspice.
- Dough Hydration: Because pumpkin puree has a high water content, the water in this recipe was reduced as compared to my classic focaccia.
Rinsing Hands with Water: Rinsing your hands with water before handling the dough helps to prevent the dough from sticking to your hands.
Warm Space to Rise: The dough will rise much faster in a warm environment than a cold one. If your house is cold, consider putting the dough in front of a sunlit window, or at the back of the stove with the oven on (not the stove on), or in the microwave with a mug of boiling water beside it (do not microwave the dough).
Oven Temperature: All ovens are different, some run hotter or colder, and some take upwards of 30 minutes to fully preheat (even when the oven indicates it has preheated), and some maintain their heat differently during the baking process. Keep this in mind and adjust accordingly based on your oven and how your focaccia looks.

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