Pumpkins are one of the earliest foods that European explorers brought back from the new world. According to history books, they were first cultivated around 5,500 BC in Central America.
Today, it is hard to not find pumpkin rolls at an American Thanksgiving dinner. The main ingredient in pumpkin rolls might be dough, but the addition of pumpkin purée to the dough gives it that unique flavor.
Pumpkin rolls are a unique part of American cuisine that you cannot help but love. But you see, the process of making pumpkin rolls can be quite tedious. It wouldn’t hurt to be able to have some on hand and eat them whenever you feel like it. So you wonder, can they be frozen, how long will they last?
Can you freeze pumpkin rolls? Yes, you can. You can freeze pumpkin rolls, even if they have a cream cheese filling. If you do it well, pumpkin rolls can be kept at their best quality in the freezer for a month. You wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between freshly made and reheated pumpkin rolls, because the taste, flavor, and texture are left unaffected.
Pumpkin rolls are usually made with a sponge cake; sponge cakes have a reputation for being freezer-friendly. Keeping them in the freezer for a month maintains the freshness and best quality of the rolls. Any longer than that, and the quality starts to reduce.
How to Freeze Pumpkin Rolls
Pumpkin rolls are freezer-friendly. This only remains a fact when the freezing process is done right. A shabby freezing process can expose the pumpkin rolls to freezer burn and ruin them. How do you ensure that this does not happen?
Step 1: Cool the Pumpkin Rolls
It is okay to want to preserve the freshness of pumpkin rolls. What isn’t okay is trying to freeze them immediately after you finish making them. Doing this could lead to complications like freezer burn.
Trying to freeze pumpkin rolls without letting them cool down to room temperature, traps moisture, leading to the formation of ice crystals; which makes the rolls soggy. However, it is not ideal to leave pumpkin rolls out for too long because they can get stale. So, as soon as they have cooled to touch, you can freeze them.
Step 2: Pre-freezing
The trick to getting pumpkin rolls frozen right is to get the filling to freeze solid. Pre-freezing the pumpkin rolls also makes handling them easier after they have been frozen. They won’t stick together and tear when you try to separate them after they have been frozen.
Pre-freezing is essential so that the filling in the rolls can freeze solid before you wrap the rolls. If the filling doesn’t freeze solid, ice crystals will form on the rolls and make them soggy; nobody likes soggy rolls.
Get a sheet pan or baking sheet and line it with wax paper. Place each roll on the sheet and keep them from touching one another. Place the sheet in the freezer for some hours, but not for too long; just till the rolls freeze solid.
Step 3: Wrap and Re-wrap the Pumpkin Rolls
Keeping pumpkin rolls away from air and moisture in the freezer is the only way to keep them at the best quality for that one month. The solution to this is to wrap as tightly as you can with plastic wrap and seal the edges so that the plastic wrap doesn’t come undone. Rewrap the rolls in aluminum foil so that you can keep them from freezer burn.
Step 4: Storage
If you are the kind that likes to preserve things, your freezer might be stocked full of a lot of things. In order to keep track of food items that you have in there, labeling and a food calendar work best. The contents and date of storage should be on the label, then an entry should go into your calendar so you know when you need to be done eating them before they go bad or get freezer burn.
Transfer your wrapped pumpkin rolls into Ziploc bags and press them flat, so you can get all the excess air from the bags before you seal them. Don’t forget the labels and place them in the part of your freezer where the rolls will not get squashed by heavier food items.
How to Thaw Frozen Pumpkin Rolls
If you want to cut pumpkin rolls, it would be best to cut them while they are still frozen. Thawing frozen pumpkin rolls is pretty easy. Just take them out of the freezer and leave them to thaw on the kitchen counter. In about an hour or 2, the rolls should be ready to be served. You can also transfer the rolls from the freezer to the refrigerator and let them thaw there overnight.
How Do You Recognize Spoiled Pumpkin Rolls?
When pumpkin rolls go bad, they become dry and stale. If you take a closer look and discover mold, please discard such rolls. Eating stale pumpkin rolls might not get you sick, but there is no telling what it could do to the body.
In general, consuming spoiled food can bring about very serious health concerns. Spoiled food can be the cause of food poisoning, or gradually reduce the overall well-being of the body if consumed consistently.
Can You Freeze a Pumpkin?
Pumpkins have a high water content but have a strong texture that doesn’t turn into mush when you thaw. If the freezing process is done in the right manner, pumpkins are freezer-friendly. If you need a pumpkin for its unique flavor, it might be best to purée it before freezing it into ice cubes.