Halloween is almost here, and if you’re looking to conjure up the ultimate spooktacular morning treat, put down the artificial food dye! Today, we’re brewing up Spooky Purple Witch Cookies and Cream Cinnamon Rolls—and their vibrant, mystical color comes entirely from a secret flavor powerhouse: ube extract.
Not only does ube give the dough and the rich cream cheese frosting an enchanting, deep violet color without any bitter dye aftertaste, but it pairs insanely well with sweet cinnamon and crushed Oreo cookies. Topped off with candy eyes, an Oreo witch hat brim, and a Hershey’s Kiss crown, these cute little pastry witches are guaranteed to cast a delicious spell over your breakfast table!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Naturally Vibrant: Ube (sweet purple yam) gives both the dough and frosting a jaw-dropping purple color that screams Halloween vibes.
- Oreo-Cinnamon Fusion: Crushed Oreos folded directly into the cinnamon-butter filling take standard rolls to a whole new level of chocolatey indulgence.
- The “Heavy Cream Trick”: Pouring warm heavy cream over the proofed rolls right before baking keeps them ridiculously soft, gooey, and bakery-style pillowy.
- Adorable Spooky Decor: Turning a cinnamon roll into a little witch takes just three simple toppings!
Pro-Tip for Serving
Want that fresh-out-of-the-oven experience? Microwave an individual witch cinnamon roll for about 15–20 seconds. The dough becomes insanely soft, the Oreo-cinnamon center melts into delicious gooeyness, and the ube frosting gets warm and silky!
Happy baking, ghouls and goblins! 🎃🧹✨ Let me know if you give these purple witches a try this Halloween!
Spooky Cookies and Cream Cinnamon Rolls
Created by Sue Mun
Makes 9 cinnamon rolls
Ingredients:
For the Purple Dough:
- 190 whole milk
- 6g active dry yeast
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 tsp ube extract for color
- 75g sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 400g bread flour plus extra for rolling
- 60g butter room temperature
For the Oreo Cinnamon Sugar Filling:
- 100g unsalted butter melted and cooled
- 120g brown sugar
- 120g finely crushed Oreo cookies
- 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
For the Secret Cinnamon Roll Baking Trick:
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
For the Purple Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 1/4 cup (56g) unsalted butter, softened
- 4 oz (113g) cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp ube extract for color
- pinch of salt
- 2 cups (250g) powdered sugar
For the Witchy Decorations:
- Oreo cookies, halved
- Hershey Kisses chocolate, unwrapped
- candy edible eye balls
Instructions:
- In a large mixing bow, pour in the arm milk along with 6g active dry yeast and 1 tsp sugar. Stir briefly and set aside for 5 to 10 minutes until a foamy layer develops across the surface.
- Whisk the egg, 1 tsp ube extract, and the remaining 75g sugar directly into the yeast mixture until completely smooth and vivid purple.
- Add 400g bread flour and 3/4 tsp salt. Using a stand mixer with a dough hook (or a strong spatula), stir on low speed for roughly 2 to 3 minutes until the flour hydrates and forms a cohesive, shaggy mass.
- With the mixer running on medium-low speed, introduce the 60g room-temperature butter bit by bit (about one tablespoon at a time). Let each piece blend into the dough completely before dropping in the next.
- Increase to medium speed and knead for 8 to 10 minutes (or 12 to 15 minutes if working by hand). The dough should transform into a smooth, supple, glossy ball that pulls away cleanly from the sides of the bowl. Check that a small piece stretches thin without ripping.
- Gather the dough into a tight sphere. Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl, roll to coat the top, and seal tightly. Leave in a warm, draft-free spot to proof for about 1 hour or until the dough swells to double its original volume.
- Meanwhile, make the oreo cinnamon sugar filling by crushing the Oreo cookies into fine crumbs in a food processor. Or you can crush the Oreo cookies in a gallon ziplock bag and use a rolling pin to smash the cookies into fine crumbs.
- Pour the crushed cookies into a medium bowl and mix in the brown sugar, cinnamon, and melted butter. Mix everything together until combined. Set this aside.
- Gently press down on the center of the proofed dough to vent trapped gases. Transfer to a lightly floured work surface and roll the dough out to about 12 inches by 16 inches.
- Spread the Oreo cinnamon sugar filling evenly on top of the dough. One the short end of the rectangle, cut 9 even long strips using a knife or a pizza cutter.
- Working with on long strip at a time, roll up the strip into a spiraled cinnamon roll. Place all 9 rolled cinnamon roll in a greased 9×9 inch baking pan. Cover and proof for about 1 hour or until the rolls have doubled in size.
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Once the rolls have finished proofing, pour about 1/3 cup of heavy cream all over the cinnamon rolls and bake them for about 30 minutes or until fully baked.
- Allow the rolls to cool at room temperature until full cooled off before decorating with cream cheese frosting.
- To make the cream cheese frosting, in a large mixing bowl fitted with a whisk attachment, cream together the softened butter and cream cheese together on medium speed until smooth. Add in half of the powdered sugar and then add in the ube extract, vanilla extract, and salt. Mix on low until fully combined and smooth. Add in the remaining powdered sugar and mix on low until fully combined.
- Fill a pastry bag with the purple cream cheese frosting and snip off about 1/2 inch off the tip of the pastry bag. Pipe a large circular mound on top of each cinnamon roll. Add two eyes onto each purple frosting mounds and top each of them with a halved Oreo cookie. Attach a Hershey kisses chocolate on top of each Oreo cookie with a dot of purple cream cheese frosting.
- Now you can enjoy your spooky cinnamon rolls! You may serve the cinnamon rolls warm by microwaving each individual cinnamon roll in the microwave for about 30 seconds until warm.
- Enjoy!
