Cinnamon Rolls
Special Equipment
Stand mixer with dough hook

Ingredients

Brioche Dough
2 tsp —active dry yeast
¼ cup —very warm water (~105°F)
¼ cup —granulated sugar
4 —egg yolks
½ cup —sour cream
1 tsp —fine salt
½ tsp —vanilla extract
2 cups —bread flour
~1 cup —all-purpose flour
Filling
¾ cup —packed brown sugar
¼ cup —granulated sugar
2 tbsp —ground cinnamon
½ cup —walnuts or pecans (chopped, crushed)
5 tbsp —melted butter
Glaze
3 oz —cream cheese (room temp)
1 —packed cup powdered sugar
¼ tsp —vanilla extract
—almond milk as needed

Method

Make the dough

  • In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the yeast, 1 tsp of the sugar, and warm water and let it sit until foamy (~10 minutes)
  • Add the remaining ingredients (except for the all-purpose flour) into the mixing bowl
  • Mix with dough hook attachment until combined (~2 minutes)
  • Slowly mix in all-purpose flour until dough pulls away from the sides (it can stick to the bottom a bit). It should be very soft and only slightly sticky (~6-7 minutes)
  • Remove dough and shape into a ball
  • Add some oil to the bowl, roll the dough ball in it, and let it sit in a warm place, covered, to double in size (~2 hours)
  • While waiting, in a small bowl, mix the sugar and cinnamon for the filling together and set aside

Make the rolls

  • Butter a 13x9″ baking dish
  • Melt the butter in a small bowl in the microwave and mix with the cinnamon sugar
  • Transfer dough to a floured work surface
  • Pat out into a rectangular shape about 1″ thick
  • Flour over both sides of the dough to work with it; roll out to a 20x12″ rectangle
  • Arrange it in landscape orientation
  • Brush cinnamon sugar butter over the surface, leaving a 2″ strip on the edge away from you
  • Sprinkle the brown sugar mixture over the dough and moisten the unbuttered edge with water
  • Roll dough tightly into a log, pressing firmly along the moistened edge to seal
  • Trim ends from the log
  • Cut log into 16 equally-sized rolls
  • Transfer the rolls into the baking dish (they shouldn't touch at first)
  • Cover with plastic wrap and
    • let rise again until doubled in size (~1 hour)
    • OR refrigerate overnight

Bake and finish

  • Preheat oven to 350°F
  • Bake until golden brown (~30 minutes)
  • In a large mixing bowl, whisk cream cheese, confectioners' sugar, almond milk, and vanilla extract together until smooth
  • Drizzle over warm cinnamon rolls

References