Cinnamon Rolls are one of my biggest guilty pleasures. The combination of cinnamon, butter and cream cheese just makes my mouth water. These cinnamon rolls are not my original recipe, its a recipe from Half Baked Harvest Cookbook, one of my all time favourite cookbooks. These rolls have some funkiness to them from letting the dough sit over night. This eggy brioche dough is buttery and has sweetness to them that make them irresistible . Super delish. It’s a bit of work to let the dough rise and wait for certain steps but when you bake these up in the morning its a perfect sweet treat with a cup of coffee for your slow morning.
Recipe
Makes 12 – 15 Rolls
Dough:
1/4 cup warm water
1 tbsp instant yeast
3 tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 cup buttermilk (or whole milk, I used buttermilk because thats what I had)
3 large eggs
3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted, plus butter for greasing
1 1/2 tsp salt
3 1/2 to 4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
Filling:
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 tbsp ground cinnamon
1/2 vanilla bean, split legthwise and seeds scraped out (optional)
Frosting:
6 tbsp unsalted butter
4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/4 cups confectioners sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
milk or water as needed
Instructions:
- MAKE THE DOUGH. In a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the warm water, yeast and sugar and mix until incorporated. Add the warm milk, eggs, melted butter, and salt and mix on medium speed until combined. gradually add flour and mix until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. If dough still feels sticky add a little more flour.
- turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. kneed it into a smooth ball. Grease the mixer bowl lightly with butter and return the dough to the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit in a warm spot for 1 to 2 hours, or until the dough has doubled in size.
- MAKE THE FILLING. In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, vanilla bean seeds and mix well.
- Lightly dust your work surface with flour again. turn out the dough, punch it down, and roll it into a rectangle about 10 x 16 inches. Position the dough with a long side closest to you. Spread the 1/2 cup of softened butter evenly over the dough. Sprinkle evenly with the filling and lightly push it into the butter. Starting with the side closest to you, pull the edge up and over the filling and carefully roll the dough into a log, keeping it fairly tight. Pinch the edge to seal.
- Slide dental floss (make sure its not flavoured) or a thin piece of string under the log and wrap it across and around the roll. Keeping one end in each hand, tighten the floss so it starts to cut through the roll, making 12 – 15 rolls, each 3/4 to 1 inch wide.
- Place the rolls cut-side up in generously greased 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Cover with a damp cloth or plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.
- If time allows, once the rolls have doubled in size, place them in the fridge overnight or for up to 24 hours. When you are ready to bake, let the rolls sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. (This allows the dough to develop more flavour, but if you are short on time, you can skip this step and continue on with the recipe.)
- Preheat the oven to 350F
- Bake the rolls for 25 to 30 minutes, or until golden brown,
- MAKE THE FROSTING. In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Cook for about 5 minutes, until the butter is lightly browned and smells toasted. Immediately remove from heat and let cool.
- in a medium bowl, beat together the cooled browned butter, cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar, and vanilla until smooth. if the frosting is too thick for your liking, add a tablespoon of milk or water to thin it.
- Spread the frosting over the warm rolls. ENJOY!
