Sticky Toffee Cinnamon Rolls

On the heels of my sticky toffee pudding post I managed to rekindle my love of caramel.  Okay, let's face it, it was never really gone.  I love caramel on EVERYTHING!    In fact, there really are few things that I love more.  I started to think about what else I could do with it and then it hit me ... caramel cinnamon rolls!  Yup, genius.  Okay, I'm probably not the first one to think of this, but since it did feel like one of those 'ah-ha' moments that Oprah kept talking about (I'm almost sure she was talking about baking) I'm taking credit for this idea ... at least for the next few minutes.

I had tried to make regular old non-toffee cinnamon rolls about 2 weeks ago but it didn't go so well.  They were kind of dry and really uninspiring.  The good news, however, is that I figured out all the things I did wrong and now they're AWESOME!  I just ate two of them before writing this to double check their awesomeness ... and yup, still there.  I actually think these are even better the second day warmed up in the microwave .. go figure.

Ingredients:

For the rolls:
4 large egg yolks

1 large egg

1/4 cup white sugar

6 Tbsp butter, melted
6 oz buttermilk
2 tsp dry instant yeast
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp kosher salt
adapted from foodnetwork.com

For the Filling:
1 cup brown sugar

1 Tbsp cinnamon
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted

For the Toffee Sauce:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/3 cup heavy cream
pinch of salt
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

For the icing:
1/4 cup sour cream
1 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup icing sugar
3 Tbsp heavy cream

Directions:

1. Add the yolks, egg, buttermilk, and sugar to the bowl of your stand mixer.  With the whisk attachment, beat for a few seconds.
2. Add the yeast and wait for 10 minutes.  Once the yeast has 'dissolve' give whisk again quickly.
3. Add the flour and salt.  Switch to the dough hook and mix on medium speed until it comes together.  It should be soft but not really sticky.  If it's really sticky, add some more flour.  Mix on medium speed for about 5 minutes.
4. Take the dough ball out onto a clean surface and kneed with your hands for a minute.
5. Lightly oil the empty bowl of your stand mixer and put your dough ball back in.  Then lightly oil the top of the dough.  Cover with plastic wrap so that the plastic wrap is touching the dough.
6. Let sit for 2-3 hours until the dough ball doubles in size

dough after mixing

the risen dough

While the dough is rising, make the toffee and mix the filling:

1. Roast your pecans (put chopped nuts into a dry frying pan on medium heat until roasted)
2. In a medium saucepan, add the 1/2 cup butter with the 1/2 cup brown sugar.  On medium heat, bring the mixture to a boil.
3. Remove from heat and add the 1/3 cup cream, salt, and vanilla.  Then add the nuts.
4. Pour mixture into a 9x13" pan
5. In a small bowl, mix together the cup of brown sugar with the cinnamon.

A bad picture of my toffee sauce :-)

Assemble:

1. Once your dough has doubled in size, roll the dough into a 12x18" rectangle
2. Brush with the 2 Tbsp of melted butter leaving about a 1/2 inch on one long end
3. Sprinkle the sugar and cinnamon mixture onto the butter and press down
4. Roll up the dough tightly starting at the other long end
5. Using a serrated knife, cut the roll into 1" pieces.
6. Place the 1"pieces into the 9x13" pan.  Into the awaiting toffee sauce.
7. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and place in the fridge overnight

Take the rolls out of the fridge about an hour before baking and let them come to room temperature.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Bake for about 30 minutes until the tops are lightly browned.

To make the icing, put the sour cream and butter into a small bowl and mix well with a spoon.  Add the icing sugar and mix well again.  Then add the heavy cream.  Put the icing into an icing bag or a plastic sandwich bag until ready to use.  Keep refrigerated between uses.

Serve the rolls warm (toffee side up), drizzle with icing by cutting a small hole in the icing bag or sandwich bag.  Tastes awesome when warmed in the microwave for 30 seconds and drizzled with icing.  YUM!

Enjoy!