Milk Bread Cinnamon Rolls

Instructions

Tangzhong

Add ½ cup whole milk, ¼ cup water, and ¼ cup bread flour to a small saucepan and whisk over medium heat until smooth. Cook until thick and gelatinous, about 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool for a few minutes.

Dough

In a large bowl or stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment, mix together 4⅓ cups bread flour, ¼ cup powdered milk, ¼ cup granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon instant yeast, and ½ teaspoon salt.
Add in 1¼ cups whole milk, 2 large eggs, and 1 additional large egg yolk and mix for 15 seconds.
Mix in the melted 6 tablespoons salted butter and the tangzhong that was prepped earlier and mix until thoroughly combined and the mixture resembles sticky dough.
Cover the dough and let it rest in the bowl for 20 minutes.
After resting, knead for about 10 minutes at medium-high speed (speed 6 on a stand mixer) until smooth and elastic. Resist the urge to add additional flour.
When the dough is ready, it should feel tacky (but not sticky) and pliable. Add 1 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil to a large clean bowl and turn your dough out into it. Rotate the dough so it’s oiled on all sides, then cover it with cling wrap and let it rise somewhere warm. It should double in size within 1 hour in a warm home or 75 to 90 minutes in air conditioning.
Once the dough has doubled in size, punch it down in the center, then transfer it to a lightly floured surface. Use your hands to shape the dough into a rectangular shape, then roll it out into a 16x18-inch rectangle measuring; it doesn’t have to be exact.
Line a large 12x17-inch rimmed baking pan with parchment paper.

Filling

Partially melt ½ cup salted butter in the microwave for 15 seconds, then use a pastry brush to stir and brush the butter all over the surface of the dough. Yes, we are partially melting already room temperature butter because this allows us to do a quick partial melt and stir the butter into a creamy paste-like consistency for brushing. You don't want to use all melted butter for this step because it's too thin and won't hold the filling in as well.
In a medium bowl, stir together 1 cup dark brown sugar, 2 tablespoons corn starch, and 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon with a fork until mixed.
Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture over the butter, and leave a ½ to 1-inch border at one of the shorter ends. Then use a rolling pin to roll over and press the sugar into the dough.
Use a pizza or pastry cutter to cut the dough into 12 strips about 1⅓-inch wide with, the cuts starting from the shorter (16-inch) side of the dough.
Roll up each strip of dough to create a pinwheel, starting with the fully sugared end, making sure it's fairly tight, then securing with the exposed buttered end without sugar on it. You can brush more butter onto the outside of the roll if needed to secure the end.
Place the rolls on the parchment-lined baking pan with a little space between.
Heavy Cream Variation: If you prefer a more gooey cinnamon roll, pour ¾ cup of heavy cream over the top of the cinnamon rolls right before covering for their second rise. These rolls are very tender and soft without doing this, but this method yields a bit more of a gooey texture. Think holdable vs requiring a fork.
Cover the rolls with plastic wrap and let rise for 30 to 60 minutes. They should now be touching and crowding each other and be fairly puffy.
Overnight Instructions: Transfer the covered rolls to the refrigerator immediately after placing them on the pan for a second slow rise for 8 to 12 hours. Add 2 to 3 minutes to the bake time with this method.
With about 15 minutes left of rise time, preheat the oven to 350ºF.
Bake the rolls on the lowest rack of the oven for 22 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. When done, the center of the rolls should read 190°F on an instant-read thermometer. Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool.

Icing

Prepare the icing by melting 2 tablespoons salted butter in a medium bowl in the microwave and then whisking in 1 cup powdered sugar, ¼ cup heavy cream, and ½ tablespoon vanilla bean paste until smooth. If you want extra gooey cinnamon rolls, you can 1.5x this recipe.
Use a rubber spatula or spoon to spread the icing over the top of the warm rolls.

Ingredients

Tangzhong

Dough

Filling

Icing

Instructions

Tangzhong

Dough

Filling

Icing

Notes

Nutrition

Milk Bread Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients 1x2x3x

Tangzhong

Dough

Filling

Icing

Instructions

Tangzhong

Dough

Filling

Icing

Notes

Nutrition

Ingredients