African Honeybush Tea - Banana, Vanilla, Pineapple and Cinnamon Sweet Rolls

Gosh - that's a mouthful - the name... and normally I like to do - that less is more when it comes to flavors... but I have been drinking some African Honeybush Tea in this variety and it's really yummy. So, I decided to do something with it in regards to sweet rolls. I was concerned that the flavors would compete each other and cancel each other out but actually they all came together really well and it worked. The "tea" taste was subtle, the pineapple was the most notable but it didn't overpower the other flavors and they all complimented the cinnamon and they were quite yummy.

I was in the sweet rolls mood this afternoon and I was trying to decide which ones to re-make. The Rooibos vanilla was were quite good and so were the Polynesian Pineapple rolls... so I went to the tea cupboard and looked for a new variety to try and that is when I saw that little bag of African Honeybush... and it has pineapple in it and then I just new exactly what to do. It all worked out so wonderfully.

Dough: 
1/2 cup hot "Oat Dream" or water with 1 bag of the above mentioned tea seeped in for 5-10 minutes (longer yields more flavor) [Use about 3/4 cup liquid and then set some aside for the glaze]
1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
3 tablespoons melted butter
1 small ripe banana, pureed smooth (about 100ml)
2 1/4 cups BASIC ROLL MIX

Filling:
+/- 1/2 cup raw sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 - 2 tablespoon butter, softened

Topping:
1/2 cup pineapple tidbits in syrup, pureed till smooth like apple sauce
1 teaspoon cornstarch

Glaze:
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-2 tablespoons "Oat Dream" (tea seeped - see above)

Directions:
1. In a mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in 1/2 cup warm seeped tea (Oat Dream or water). Add in banana puree and melted butter. Mix in 2 cups of the BASIC ROLL MIX and up to 1/4 cup more until dough is smooth and elastic. Butter bowl, put in the dough and turn to cover all sides. Cover bowl with damp cloth or plastic wrap and put in warm place to double in size. For example, the oven on the lowest temperature is a good place. I usually heat it for a few minutes and then turn off the heat and let it sit in the oven with the door closed for at least an hour to let it double in size. Punch down dough. Let rest a few minutes. 

2. Roll out dough on clean surface dusted with flour and shape into rectangle flat form. Spread softened butter over top and sprinkle with generous amount of sugar - up to 1/2 cup and then with a generous sprinkle of cinnamon - about 1 tablespoon. Roll up jelly-roll style and slice into 8 equal slices. Put into pie dish prepared with parchment paper and let rise a second time 30-45 minutes in warm place as above.

3. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine cornstarch and pineapple and whisk until blended, bring to boil over medium heat; cook and stir about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat. Make an indentation with the back of a spoon or with your thumb into the center of each roll and then place a teaspoon or two of the topping in the center of each roll. Bake at 175-C degrees (350-F) for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool.

4. For glaze, combine sugar and extract and enough "milk" seeped Oat Dream to achieve desired consistency. Drizzle over warmed rolls.

Related Posts:
Rooibos Vanilla Sweet Rolls
Polynesian-inspired Pineapple and Bacon Sweet Rolls
Banana Date Mango Sweet Rolls
Coco-Nana-Nut and Dulce de Leche Sweet Rolls
Pineapple Upside Down Cinnamon Rolls

Pecan Cinnamon Rolls

I've been baking a lot lately - again... and baking sweet rolls again. I don't want to just blog about every roll I bake because lets face it - even though they all get eaten, not all of them are so blog worthy as these. Oh yummy. I used a combination of recipes to create this delicious roll. And even though you can throw your nuts into the filling... it's so aesthetically pleasing to see them strewn about over top. Do you agree?

The dough on these is very dense - it's not as airy as other rolls - but that doesn't stop them from being oh so yummy - I tend to repeat myself a bit in the description of these rolls... that's just how I roll ;)

Lately I bake sweet rolls in the amount of 8 total. Most recipes online make 12 - 24 and that is just too much unless you are making  'em for a potluck. Usually I just bake them for dessert just for us so I don't want all the extra rolls. Not that I wouldn't enjoy eating them but my gut can only handle so much sweetness.

Like I said, I use a combination of recipes to make these. One such recipe that I like a lot - is from The Pioneer Woman. She has some of the tastiest frosting ever. I think it's from the combination of coffee and maple extract. I used a bit of both of those here. I was very generous in the amount of sugar used in the filling as well.

These are best served warm. I shared them with my sister-in-law Linda for her birthday... and my taste buds were very happy to share them.

For the dough, combine 1/2 cup warm milk, 1 teaspoon instant dry yeast, 1/4 cup melted butter and 2 cups BASIC ROLL MIX. Mix until it makes a nice together dough - not sticky at all. It will be dense. Butter or oil bowl and put inside, covered to double in size in warm place - about 60-90 minutes. Punch down dough. Wait 10 minutes. Roll out on lightly floured surface in the shape of a rectangle about 1-2 centimeters thick. Spread 1-2 tablespoons melted butter over top. Spread generous amount of sugar over top - about 1/2 cup fine white sugar and then about 1 tablespoon dusting of ground cinnamon over that. Roll up and press seams together. Cut into 8 equal slices and place cut side up into pie dish lined with baking parchment paper. Let rise a second time in warm place 30-60 minutes. Bake at 175-C (350-F) degrees for 10-15 minutes. Remove from oven and frost while still warm with glaze. Recipe follows: in bowl combine 1 heaping tablespoon melted butter, 1 teaspoon coffee granules dissolved in 1 tablespoon hot water, 1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1/16 teaspoon (1-2 drops) Mapleine extract, and about 1/2 cup powdered sugar till smooth. Add 1-2 teaspoons milk to thin if needed. Spread over rolls and strew 1/4 cup chopped pecans over all.

Related Posts:
Honey-nut Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
The Best Cinnamon Rolls with Shiny Sweet Glaze
Maple Cinnamon Honey Butter

White Chocolate and "Pepernoten" Sweet Rolls

It's fall - it's that time of year again when suddenly I feel like baking a whole lot more - nice to warm the house up with yummy cinnamon-y smells. Can't think of anything better than sweet rolls to make - that's because there is nothing better!


My very good friend requested a special sweet roll for a special occasion. She gave birth to her second daughter and wanted something yummy to eat. She said, please make me some with that good buttercreamy frosting - you know I like it thick!


She also requested white chocolate and a little something extra - so we decided together that pepernoten deserves a chance in these rolls. Pepernoten are little spice cookies that come out this time of year in the Netherlands. They are kind of like gingersnaps - but not that gingery. Originally, they were spiced with black pepper - until more spices came along. We still call them pepernoten - translated literally as pepper nuts - however, they also sell under the name "kruidennoten" - meaning spice nuts. Although there are no nuts contained in - they are just small and snackable like nuts.


So I used a very sticky dough - that rises a lot. They turned out very large - extra large - kind of like a Cinnabon - large roll. Here's what I did:


In a large glass bowl, combined 1 cup warm water with 2 tablespoon sugar, 2 teaspoons yeast, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1 tablespoon oil. Mix around then blend in 2 cups white flour (I used a combination of 1.5 cups white all purpose flour and 1/2 cup fresh ground whole wheat flour). Cover with plastic wrap then let rise 1 hour in warm place. Mix again to get bubbles out and let rest 20 minutes. Then pull out of bowl and knead slightly with 1/2 cup flour - and roll out with rolling pin into good size rectangle.


Filling: melt 2 tablespoons white chocolate together with 1 tablespoon butter and spread over dough. Sprinkle with 2 handfuls crushed pepernoten and about 1/4 cup brown sugar. Sprinkle a generous amount of ground cinnamon over that. Roll up and slice into 8 equal slices - careful - it's sticky. Place cut side up into buttered pie plate or casserole dish. Let rise in warm place 20-30 minutes then bake 15-20 minutes at 190-C degrees.


Prepare frosting: warm a small bowl of about 1 tablespoon whipping cream together with half vanilla pod - slit down the center. Scrape out vanilla speckles into the cream. Melt 25 grams white chocolate, set aside. In a mixer, whip 4 ounces cream cheese and 1/4 cup butter till creamy. Blend in melted white chocolate and vanilla cream. Blend in around 2 cups sifted powdered sugar or a bit more or less to desired consistency. 


When rolls come out of oven, you may pour the frosting over top - and then you will have more of a glazed effect with the frosting. Or you can wait till they cool a little and then put the frosting over - which is how my friend prefers the frosting... she likes it thick! Then sprinkle another handful crushed pepernoten over top.


(Note: in the photo, I did not use a lot of frosting - definitely should have poured quite a bit more on top - it's just that it was so so sweet!)

Pineapple Upside-Down Cinnamon Rolls

Last month I bake my first ever Pineapple Upside-Down Cake... in honor of my Grandma Betty - view post here.


This month I decided to make some cinnamon rolls upside down with pineapples and some fresh Cherry Rhubarb Jam - which I had just whipped up.


So, next time you plan on baking up your favorite cinnamon rolls - consider doing this:

Melt butter and put into cake pan or glass casserole dish. Arrange pineapple slices, cherries (which is traditional in Pineapple-upside down cake) or in my case, I used the Cherry Rhubarb Jam. Add some chopped nuts to fill in the gaps. I used a combination of pecan and hazelnut. When you make cake you also put in brown sugar, but I left that out since it is rolled into the cinnamon rolls.

Use your favorite dough recipe - enough for about 8 large rolls - (I'll include below the awesome recipe I used), roll out dough, fill with melted butter, brown sugar and cinnamon and cut into 8 equal slices.

Place these 8 slices right side up evenly over pineapple layer. Place into warm oven (not hot) just warm enough to get the dough to rise a second time. Should take about 30 minutes or less.

Here they are just risen and ready to bake, adjust oven temperature... (but beware - see I used this pan, and if you use one just like it - put some foil or another baking sheet below it to catch the drippings - other wise you are gonna end up with smoke and the loud annoying beeping of the smoke detector!)

Remove from oven and cool about 10 to 15 minutes. Then remove sides of cake pan (spring form) and put a large platter or pizza plate over the top (inverted) then flip it over or turn it over or whatever - you know what I mean. Then you may or may not need a spatula to slide everything back onto the rolls. I needed a spatula because it was a bit sticky... and I just rearranged the slices into place.

Ta-Da!

Now, grab a plate and fork and enjoy!

The Awesome Recipe:

Using this recipe adapted from uTry.It Philly Friendship Braided Bread

TangZhong Ingredients:
1/2 Cup Boiling Water
1/4 Cup Bread Flour


Bread Dough Ingredients:
1/2 Cup Warm Milk
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
3 Tablespoon Sugar
3 Tablespoon Melted Butter
1 1/2 Cup Bread Flour
1 1/3 Teaspoon Active Dry Yeast 

Filling Ingredients:

1 tablespoon melted butter

1/3 cup brown sugar

Generous sprinkling of cinnamon

Pineapple-Upside Down ingredients:

1 can pineapple slices

Cherries or Cherry Jam

Chopped Nuts

2 tablespoons melted butter

To Make The TangZhong:
Place bread flour in a small bowl, pour boiling water over the bread flour and stir quickly with a fork to combine until no lumps.
Wrap mixture (it'll be a very wet dough) with plastic wrap, form dough in ball/round shape and leave in refrigerator overnight.


To Make The Rolls:
1. Take out the TangZhong from the fridge at least an hour before use (I usually leave it on countertop until it's room temperature).
2. In a bread machine, pour in ingredient in this order, warm milk, TangZhong 湯種, salt, sugar, butter, bread flour and yeast. Set bread machine to dough setting according to its user menu.

In the meantime, prepare cake pan or glass casserole dish: melt 1 tbsp butter and coat the bottom of the pan. Place one pineapple slice in the center. Then place the other slices around. If the other 7 slices don't fit evenly in the pan, as it was with me, then slice them in half and arrange as pictures. Put a little cherry or jam in the hole of each pineapple. Chop some nuts and fill in the gaps. I used a combination of pecan and hazelnut but pecan is just fine.

3. When dough is ready, take it out from bread machine and punch it a few times to deflate it. Roll out into large rectangle. Spread with melted butter. Then spread brown sugar and sprinkle with cinnamon.

4. Roll it up into a log and cut equally into 8 slices. Place these slices over and evenly into the prepared pan. Place in warm oven for about 30 minutes to rise a second time.

5. After it has risen, bake at 175-C degrees for about 15-20 minutes. Then take out and cool till pan is easy to handle. Put a large plate over the pan and invert the pan over, flip it - turn it. The cinnamon rolls and pineapples should come out easily but if they don't, just arrange everything back as it should look. 

Makes 8 - serve warm!

Lovely Cake Batter Sweet Rolls

Anyone ever heard of How Sweet it Is? 


It's a very well known blog - from a girl, Jessica who bakes all kind of glorious treats... she's really creative with food because she loves it... a lot, like A lot - A LOT! Seriously, there isn't anything she hasn't thought of. 


A while back she was baking all kinds of yummy things with cake batter - apparently that was very popular in baking-blogdom for a while, I never really joined the band wagon because we don't have yellow cake batter here in the Netherlands... at least, it's not the same as the yellow cake batter that you can get in the U.S.A.


I vaguely remember contacting her and asking her to make cinnamon rolls with cake batter... seriously I did. Cuz, like I said, I can't bake 'em I don't have the supplies... and finally one day right there in my Google reader I see she did it! She made cinnamon rolls with cake batter - oh my!


Then, finally, after waiting months and months, I and my family made a trip to the old country as I like to call it and I bought myself a box of Funfetti cake mix. Can you believe it only cost $1.00 at good old Wal*mart? Cake mix is cheaper than a loaf of bread!


Crazy, I know. I also got some of that Funfetti frosting to go along with the cake mix... and of course, I never intended on baking cake with it... I always wanted to make these inspirational Cake Batter Cinnamon Rolls from Jessica.


She makes her's using the Pioneer Woman's cinnamon roll dough recipe... but I used my BASIC ROLL recipe and I used the store bought Funfetti frosting... very easy!

Before baking - overflowing in melted butter...

After! So colorful - playful - yummyful?!

They were really very good - and an easy way to do up plain cinnamon rolls... Just sprinkle some cake batter in with your cinnamon filling and top off with the Funfetti frosting... I think it's from Betty Crocker?


I'd much rather have this than regular birthday cake... anyday!


(Also, shared in April's Sweet Roll Linky Party, Blogger of Melissa's Cuisine linked her version of these Funfetti Cinnamon Rolls)

Cinnamon Roll Doughnuts with Warm Vanilla Glaze and Sprinkles

Two things I love combined into one delicious threat treat. Okay, okay - it is threat to my diet and my hips. But they are so yummy!


C'mon, who doens't love a crispy and creamy donut dipped in warm vanilla glaze? And who doesn't love cinnamon rolls?


I haven't met a person, yet!


They are real easy to make. Just put together your most favorite cinnamon roll recipe and when it's time to bake - you simply fry them. I have a tip here though - do not include butter in the filling. It's gonna have enough of that fat when it's fried. 


I actually used a donut recipe for the dough found here. It turned out beautifully. I tried these out twice - once making them with a cinnamon roll recipe dough and once with the doughnut recipe dough - and I liked them better with the recipe at said link. They were just a lot more fluffy like a doughnut should be.


I used a slightly different glaze - using only powdered sugar, milk and vanilla extract.


And for my filling using just dark brown sugar and cinnamon.


So, if you want yours to turn out like mine, then make your dough according to these directions. After the dough has risen, roll out into a large rectangle. Sprinkle with a mixture of sugar and cinnamon.

I used 1/2 cup dark brown sugar and 1 heaping tablespoon cinnamon. Roll up and cut into 24 equal slices. Place on prepared baking sheets (parchment paper works like a charm - or a buttered and flour dusted pizza pan) and let rise a second time in warm place (like a warm oven - on the lowest setting).


Meanwhile, heat up your deep fryer. I realize some people don't own deep fryers. That's a pity. You may do it like this awesome blogger did it then. Which is where I originally found this most delicious doughnut and which inspired me to do cinnamon rolls in the deep fryer. She also has a nice step-by-step tutorial. And she also made chocolate cake doughnuts. I also made chocolate cake -cinnamon roll doughnuts. And I'll post that chocolate lovers delight another day ;)


On a side note: did you know that most Dutch households own a deep fryer? They do not, however, own a slow cooker like most American households.

Okay, when you fry the cinnamon roll, let it slip into the oil off the spatula. Then flip it over. Let it fry about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes before flipping it again. For a total of about 4 minutes. It can go longer, but I like them lightly fried - just like store bought donuts. Remove and allow excess oil to soak into paper towels.


When they are cool enough to handle, dip into prepared warm vanilla glaze. I used about 1 cup sifted powdered sugar and 2 to 3 tablespoons milk. Heated in small saucepan over low flame. After it started to gently boil, I turned the heat off and left the pan on the burner. Now, stir in about 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract - and if you have any 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon extract. 


After dipping cinnamon roll in glaze, let the extra glaze drip back into pan and then place back on wire rack to cool completely. If using sprinkles - use those first before the glaze sets.


And that's it!

I discovered that I like my doughnuts at room temperature and my cinnamon rolls fresh from the oven. That's kind of a funny quirk about me.


Do you like to eat your doughnuts warm or cool?