This festive pumpkin shaped rolls are stuffed with bacon and cheddar cheese to make for one of the most delicious fall appetizers – perfect for a fall party, Halloween party, or even a Thanksgiving snack! They’re an impressive addition to any menu while still being simple to make!
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Cheesy Pumpkin Shaped Rolls
Last year I made these bacon cheese bites that were shaped like footballs. People loved them so much that I thought it’d be fun to turn them into more of a fall snack by making pumpkin shaped rolls instead!
They look so pretty but are so easy to make – people will think you made it all from scratch! Serve these up at Friendsgiving, a cute Halloween baby shower, or just as a dinner option for your own family!
They’re pumpkins so you can make them pretty much any time in the fall! And they’re filled with bacon and cheese, so people are going to like them pretty much any time you make them! My kids ate these better than anything I’ve made all month (other than the pizza mummies).
Why you’ll love this
- Classic flavors – cheese and bacon are always a hit, and these are no exception.
- Fun food that tastes good – my kids gobbled these up. It was like going to a pumpkin patch, they each chose their favorites off the tray.
- Simple ingredients – you likely already have everything in your fridge or can easily grab it at the store for just a couple of dollars. Plus, they use store-bought biscuits, making them way easier than making homemade yeast rolls!
Ingredients
Ingredient Notes
- Cheddar cheese cubes – you can buy the already cute cubes to make it easier or cut your own out of your favorite cheese. I like the cheddar and bacon combo but feel free to test out other type of cheese and let me know your favorite below.
- Bacon – switch it out for cooked sausage or pepperoni, make sure to drain any grease before adding it. Also, you’ll need a little piece of bacon for the stems so make sure to keep some of it long!
- Crescent biscuits – the Grand sized ones are the easiest to use, but it would also work with these homemade yeast rolls or a can of regular-sized biscuits.
- Oregano – you can skip this or switch it out for Italian seasoning.
- Butter – you’ll also need a little melted butter to brush on top of the pumpkin rolls after they come out of the oven!
Required Tools
In addition to the ingredients listed above, you’ll also need baking twine to make these pumpkin shaped rolls. It’s what you’ll use to create that perfect pumpkin shape! Baking twine is a great thing to have in your kitchen for all sorts of uses, but it’s a requirement for these cheesy pumpkin shaped snacks!
How to make pumpkin shaped rolls
Making this pumpkin cheese balls recipe is pretty straightforward. The most complicated part is tying off the string, but even that’s easy after you do it once. And then it’s just repeating it again and again!
1 – Prep The Ingredients
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- Cut your cheese into 1/2 inch cubes if it’s not already cut.
- Cook your bacon if it’s not already cooked. Set aside two full pieces to use for stems, then chop the rest of it.
- Take your biscuit dough out of the fridge and allow it to sit at room temperature to make it easier to work with.
Put all of the prepped ingredients close together in one place so they’re easy to reach when you’re ready to start making the pumpkin shaped rolls.
2 – Stuff Your Pumpkin Rolls
Begin by taking one biscuit and gently flattening it into a 1/4-inch thick disk.
Next, take two cheese cubes and place it in the center of the disc, then top it with bacon pieces.
Gently pull the sides of the dough up and around the filling and pinch at the top like a pouch. Seal the edges so that none of the cheese leaks out. Then, gently shape the dough so that it is round.
Repeat this step until all of the biscuits have been filled, sealed, and rolled until round.
3 – Tie The Pumpkin Cheese Balls
Here’s the easiest way I have found to tie the dough to make the pumpkin shape.
- Cut two pieces of baking twine roughly 12 inches each.
- Place one roll in the center of the one piece of twine.
- Cross the ends of the string and rotate 90 degrees so that the string makes a X or +.
- Tie off the string and cut the excess. You will want the string to be a little loose so the dough has room to grow.
Repeat the tying process one more time with the other string to create a pumpkin look, dividing the dough into 8ths.
4 – Bake And Serve
Place the tied dough balls on the parchment lined baking sheets with at least an inch between each. Brush lightly with melted butter and sprinkle with oregano.
Put in the oven to bake for 12 – 15 minutes or until the outside turns golden brown.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes. Once cool enough touch, cut off the strings and top with melted butter.
Take your set aside pieces of bacon, and break off a piece that looks like a stem. Place it in the center of your pumpkin, pressing it in firm enough that it sticks into the roll but still gentle enough not to break the bacon stem.
Just look at that ooey gooey inside – it’s better warm when it’s still melty inside but also delicious at room temp, which makes them perfect for serving at a party or as a side to your favorite dinner!
Expert Tips & Storage Information
Make sure the dough is sealed properly otherwise, all that delicious cheese will melt out.
For the best-looking pumpkins you will want the dough to be round when you tie it off.
Serve the pumpkins with a dip such as ranch or marinara sauce.
For smaller pumpkins use regular-sized biscuits instead of grand.
If your bacon stems break when placing them in, cut a small slit at the top of the pumpkins to put them into without having to push hard.
Store any leftover pumpkin rolls in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.
Reheat in the oven until warm, taking care not to cook the dough more. I typically place the cold cheese rolls on a baking sheet, put them in the cold oven, set it to 350 degrees, and warm up the rolls with the oven as it preheats.
Recipe FAQs
Can I use a cheese other than cheddar?
This is a preference thing and can vary based on your taste buds. However, you can never go wrong with cheddar, Swiss, or pepper jack with the bacon!
Do I have to use baking twine?
Yes, baking twine is oven and food-safe, using regular twine or string is not recommended for baking.
How do you make these without canned biscuits?
You can make these pumpkin shaped rolls using your favorite homemade roll dough cut into small rounds. I’ve made them with my yeast rolls and my crescent rolls, both are tasty. Biscuits just make these much faster!
More Easy Fall Snacks
If you want more delicious fall snacks to enjoy with these pumpkin shaped rolls, try one of these!
- Homemade pepperoni rolls – simple snacks that start with a little homemade pizza dough and end with something absolutely delicious!
- Pumpkin balls – these cute pumpkin balls are a fun fall dessert that are simple to make!
- Halloween buffalo dip – a ghostly version of our classic buffalo chicken dip, you could also switch out the ghosts for leaves for a fall variation!
- Pumpkin pasties – a fun pumpkin flavored treat that would go great with these pumpkin rolls for a party!
- Acorn oreos – the cutest Oreo balls, shaped like little acorns for fall!
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Cheese Stuffed Pumpkin Shaped Rolls
Ingredients
- 8 pieces bacon cooked divided – 6 pieces chopped, 2 pieces whole
- 2 cans Grand biscuits
- 8 oz cheese cubes
- 1 TBS salted butter melted
- 1 tsp oregano
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Chop 6 pieces of bacon into bite size pieces. Set aside the other two pieces to be stems for the pumpkins.8 pieces bacon cooked
- Open the can of biscuits so that you have 16 total biscuits. Lightly stretch each piece to make them larger.2 cans Grand biscuits
- Place several cubes of cheese and a sprinkle of bacon pieces in the center of the biscuit.8 oz cheese cubes, 8 pieces bacon cooked
- Then carefully wrap the biscuit around the bacon and cheese, making sure to seal any holes on the outside. Roll this into a ball so that it is round.
- Cut two pieces of baking twine roughly 12 inches each. Place one roll in the center of the one piece of twine. Cross the ends of the string and rotate 90 degrees so that the string makes a X or +. Tie off the string and cut the excess. You will want the string to be a little loose so the dough has room to grow.
- Repeat the tying process in step 5 one more time with the other string to create a pumpkin look, dividing the dough into 8ths.
- Repeat steps 5 and 6 until all your pumpkins are done.
- Brush each of the balls with melted butter then sprinkle the butter lightly with oregano.1 TBS salted butter, 1 tsp oregano
- Place pumpkins on prepared baking sheet about 1 inch apart.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes or until the outside of the ball turns a light golden brown.
- Let them cool for a few minutes then cut strings off of pumpkins.
- Top with a chunk of bacon as the stem. Enjoy warm or at room temperature.
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