Pumpkin cheesecake brioche buns that are super soft and fluffy, filled with vanilla cheesecake and pumpkin butter, and topped with a pumpkin seed streusel.
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pumpkin cheesecake brioche buns
Hello hello! Today I have for you a super delish brioche danish for fall. It starts out with the same soft and fluffy brioche you can find in all my other bun and donut recipes, and it gets filled with vanilla cheesecake batter (not just cream cheese, but an actual cheesecake filling), pumpkin butter (you can use store-bought pumpkin butter but I make my own here because it was quite expensive online), and it’s all topped off with a dark brown sugar pumpkin seed streusel. They’re a little labor of love but you can make the dough and filling at night and bake it off the next morning to make it easier. They’re also the perfect Thanksgiving breakfast, or the perfect coffee-time treat during the entirety of the fall season. So let’s get into it! ☺︎
expert baking tips
Weigh your ingredients:
My recipes are all written in grams because it is the most accurate way to bake. When you use a kitchen scale, you ensure that your baked goods turn out as close to the written recipe as possible. Plus, the cleanup is way easier when using a scale! I will provide standard cup measurements but please note that I have not tested the recipe using cup measurements and therefore can not guarantee your recipe will come out how mine did. Here is my favorite kitchen scale.
Use room temperature ingredients:
It’s important that your ingredients are at room temperature so that they can easily incorporate with each other. Take out your cold ingredients about an hour before you’ll need them.
the dough will take a while to knead
Kneading this dough will take a longer time than you are probably used to. This dough is enriched with eggs and butter which makes it take longer for the proper amount of gluten to develop. Kneading in the mixer can take me anywhere from 10-20 minutes. The dough is ready to be used when it passes the windowpane test and has pulled away from the sides and bottom of the bowl. If you are weighing your ingredients, just trust the process! If you are using cup measurements and the dough just is not coming together after 15 minutes, try adding in 1 tbsp. of flour at a time.
how to tell your dough is done kneading: the windowpane test
The windowpane test is (in my opinion) the best way to tell that your dough has been properly kneaded. Once the dough starts to pull away from the sides and the bottom of the mixing bowl, it is most likely ready. However, just to be sure that it’s good to go I check if it passes the windowpane test. To do that, take some of the dough in your hands and start to slowly stretch it out. If it can get thin enough to where light passes through it before tearing, then it’s good to go! If not, keep kneading until it does!
A note on oven temperature:
Ovens vary and fluctuate in temperature and might not always actually be at the temperature they claim to be at. If you love to bake like I do, I highly recommend getting an oven thermometer. They are super helpful for letting you know when your oven might be lying to you! I use this one.
ingredients for pumpkin cheesecake brioche buns: what they do & possible substitutions –
Brioche dough:
- Bread flour: for structure and chewiness. I recommend bread flour because it yields a fluffier, taller bun but you can* use all purpose flour. Please be sure that you are using a high-quality flour that has a high protein %, such as King Arthur (11.7%) so that your gluten will develop. If you’re using a low protein flour, the gluten will not develop enough and you will probably need to add in some more flour – which will dry out the dough.
- Active dry yeast: for making the dough rise. You can easily substitute in instant yeast if that is what you have on hand (more notes on that later on.)
- Salt: for balancing and bringing out the sweetness of the dough. Salt also “controls” the yeast to make sure that it does not overly expand.
- Dark brown sugar: sweetens the brioche and helps the yeast with rising — you can use light brown sugar or granulated sugar here.
- Egg: for binding and adding moisture.
- Unsalted butter: for tenderizing the brioche and giving it a buttery, melt-in-your-mouth feel. I would not recommend substituting in salted butter since salt is important to controlling yeast growth and the amount of salt in salted butter is quite variable.
- Whole milk: for tenderizing and hydrating the dough. Whole milk will provide the softest rolls because the extra fat helps tenderize the dough. You can however swap in 1%, 2% or your favorite non dairy milk alternative! Just note that the dough may be a little less soft and fluffy due to the varying fat content.
pumpkin butter:
I made my own because it’s much cheaper and I couldn’t find it in a store near me — but you could definitely use store bought pumpkin butter here to make the process a bit easier!
- Pumpkin puree: for pumpkin flavor of course! Make sure you are using 100% pure pumpkin and not pumpkin pie filling.
- Dark brown sugar: for flavor and sweetness. You can use light brown sugar here as well.
- Pumpkin pie spice: for flavor — I use a pre-made blend but you can use your own or just sub in cinnamon in a pinch.
- Water: to help combine the ingredients.
vanilla cheesecake filling:
- Cream cheese: the base of the cheesecake.
- Dark brown sugar: for sweetness – you can use light brown sugar or granulated sugar here.
- Egg: binds the filling together.
- Salt: for flavor.
- Vanilla: extract or vanilla bean paste, for flavor.
- Heavy whipping cream: to make the cheesecake extra creamy, you could also use sour cream here.
pumpkin seed streusel:
- Unsalted butter: binds the streusel together and makes it buttery and delicious. You can use salted butter here in a pinch.
- Dark brown sugar: for flavor and sweetness. You can use light brown sugar here as well.
- Bread flour: for structure.
- Pepitas: or de-shelled pumpkin seeds, for crunch and flavor. You can also replace these with pecans, walnuts, almonds, etc.
how to make pumpkin cheesecake brioche buns
Here are some pictures showing the process of putting together the pumpkin butter brioche buns. The full recipe is at the end of the blog post!
pumpkin cheesecake brioche buns recipe q&a
how to store Pumpkin buns
Like any fresh bread recipe, these will definitely taste the best and the most fresh on the day that they are baked, aaand since they’re made with cream cheese and heavy cream, they can only be out at room temperature for ~2 hours before needing to be refrigerated.
can I double this recipe?
Definitely – simply double the ingredients and split the dough into 12 balls. I even more strongly recommend using a kitchen scale if you are scaling up the recipe, for the best results.
can I use instant yeast instead of active dry yeast?
Definitely – just pop all of the dough ingredients into your mixing bowl to start kneading. I recommend refrigerating the dough overnight to make it easier to work with and more flavorful. However, if you are making the recipe all in one day, and using instant yeast, just note that your dough will double in size faster.
can I make the dough ahead of time?
Yes, and I highly recommend it! Brioche dough is a very enriched dough that can be hard to work with when warm. Knead the dough together, cover it, and leave it to rise in the fridge overnight. When you’re ready, take the dough out of the fridge and proceed with the recipe.
tools and ingredients:
You can find all my favorite tools and ingredients that I use on my Amazon Storefront page, here!
other recipes you might enjoy:
did you make this recipe?
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Pumpkin Cheesecake Brioche Buns
Ingredients
Brioche Dough
- 80 g whole milk (2 ⅔ oz.)
- 1 tbsp. dark brown sugar
- 1 tsp. active dry yeast
- 1 egg room temperature
- 180 g bread flour* (1 ½ c.)
- ½ tsp. salt
- 56 g unsalted butter room temperature (4 tbsp.)
Pumpkin Butter
- 85 g pumpkin puree (¼ c. + 2 tbsp.)
- 25 g dark brown sugar (2 tbsp.)
- ¼ tsp. pumpkin pie spice
- 30 g water (1 oz.)
Cheesecake Filling
- 110 g cream cheese room temperature (½ c.)
- 1 tbsp. dark brown sugar
- 30 g heavy whipping cream (1 oz.)
- ½ tsp. vanilla
- 2 tbsp. egg whisked
Pepita Streusel
- 42 g unsalted butter (3 tbsp.)
- 60 g dark brown sugar (¼ c. + 1 scant tablespoon)
- 60 g bread flour (½ c.)
- 42 g pepitas (3 tbsp.)
Egg Wash
- 2 tbsp. egg
- 1 tbsp. whole milk
Instructions
Brioche Dough
- In a microwave safe measuring cup, heat the milk to 100°F / 38°C. Whisk in the yeast and the sugar. Set aside until the mixture begins to foam. (~5 minutes)
- While waiting, add the flour, salt, egg, and butter to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment. When the yeast mixture begins to foam, add it in to the rest of the ingredients.
- Knead the dough on low speed for 1 minute to allow the ingredients to come together. Increase the speed to medium-high and knead for an additional 10-20 minutes, or until the dough passes the windowpane test.**
- Once the dough is done kneading, butter the inside of the bowl, form the dough into a ball and place it back in the bowl. Then cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap. At this point, you could set the dough in the fridge to rise overnight, or continue with completing the recipe in one day. If doing in one day, set the dough in a warm area and wait for it to double in size (~1 hour.)***
Pumpkin Butter
- In the meantime, make the pumpkin butter. Add the pumpkin puree, sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and water into a small saucepan. Set the mixture over medium heat, stirring occasionally until it starts to bubble on top.
- Cover the mixture and allow it to simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent burning on the bottom.
- Remove the pumpkin butter from the heat and transfer it into a heat-safe container. Store the pumpkin butter in the fridge until you're ready to assemble the buns.
- Once the dough has finished rising, lightly punch it down to remove any excess air in it.
- Transfer the dough to a clean, lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into 6 equal pieces, and roll each piece into a ball.
- Use a rolling pin to roll each piece out into a ~4" circle. If the dough keeps springing back, let it rest for 5 minutes, then try rolling again.
- Transfer the buns to a parchment lined baking sheet, spacing them apart to allow room for spreading. Leave the buns in a warm environment until they puff up a little, ~30 minutes. In the meantime, make the cheesecake filling and streusel.
Cheesecake Filling
- In a small bowl, whisk up an egg.
- Add the cream cheese and sugar to a small mixing bowl. Beat the cream cheese and sugar until the mixture is light, fluffy, and smooth.
- Add in the heavy whipping cream, vanilla, and 2 tbsp. of the whisked egg. Beat until well combined.
Pepita Streusel
- Melt the butter in a small microwave safe mixing bowl. Then, add in the sugar, flour, and pepitas and mix until well combined. Transfer the streusel to the fridge to firm up until you're ready to assemble the pastries.
- Once the buns have puffed up, preheat the oven to 375°F / 190°C. Lightly flour the bottom of a cup or bowl that is ~3” in diameter. Press the cup down onto each of the pastries to form a divot for the filling.
- Pour ~1 ½ tbsp. of the cheese filling into the center of each bun. Then, dollop a tablespoon of the pumpkin butter into the center of each pastry.
Egg Wash
- With the remaining egg, make an egg wash by whisking in 1 tbsp. of milk into the egg.
- Brush the edges of each bun with the egg wash. Then, sprinkle on the pepita streusel and press it into the sides of the buns.
- Bake for 18-22 minutes, or until the edges of the buns turn golden brown. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Please note that the nutrition facts are only an estimate and may vary based on different brands of ingredients and any substitutions made.