Orangish Chocolatish Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon rolls were in my baking list from a long time but don't know why I never made them though I really really love them, in my opinion they are one of the perfect treats to enjoy with coffee and they fit in so well in the breakfast, brunch and tea time menu, they are soft, fluffy, buttery and full of cinnamon.

Cinnamon rolls are one of the ideal beginner's bread, if you are an enthusiastic baker and want to learn how to work with yeast - then start with cinnamon rolls. If you are making these cinnamon rolls in winter then dough will definitely take longer time to rise and get double in volume while during summer it needs lesser time. During winters I do this little trick - place a glass of water in microwave and heat it for 5 minutes, switch off the microwave, bring out the glass of water and immediately put the dough inside and shut the door. Open the door only after one hour this way humidity and hot temperature inside the microwave helps dough to rise faster. 

I have substituted 1 cup of all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour just to experiment how the texture of the rolls will turn out and it was simply gorgeous but if you are not willing to experiment much with your cinnamon rolls than you can use 2 3/4 cups of all purpose flour. 

It seems I did quite an experimentation while baking these cinnamon rolls, once with the dough then to play around with the flavor also I added a dash of orange peel, last week I baked an Orange Cake and reserved the peel of oranges, sun - dried them for 2 - 3 days and then simply powdered it in grinder. This powdered peel makes an excellent face pack. 

While baking cinnamon rolls I used a pie dish but it got full after 6 - 8 pieces so I was about to prepare another deep dish then I saw muffin pan lying in the corner so I greased it nicely and placed remaining rolls to bake in it and I call it Rolls + Muffin = Roffins.

Recipe: Cinnamon Rolls Recipe Adapted from Sally’s Baking Addiction Yield: 12 rolls Ingredients For the rolls: 1 ¾ Cup all-purpose flour 1 Cup whole wheat flour 3 tbsp granulated sugar 1 tsp salt 2 ¼ tsp active dry yeast ½ Cup lukewarm water ¼ Cup milk, at room temperature 2 ½ tbsp (40g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled 1 tsp powdered orange peel or orange zest 1 large egg For the filling: 3 tbsp (45g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled 1 ½ tbsp ground cinnamon 1/4 Cup light brown sugar ¼ Cup semisweet dark chocolate, grated or powdered 1 tsp powdered orange peel or orange zest For the glaze: 2 tbsp powdered (confectioners') sugar 1 tsp vanilla extract ¼ Cup light cream Method: To make the dough, set aside 1/2 cup of all purpose flour. In a large bowl, sift the remaining flour. In lukewarm water add sugar along with yeast mix nicely and set aside until yeast turns frothy. Beat the milk, egg and butter together for 1 minute until combined well. Make well in the center of the flour mixture and add activated yeast to the dough. Stir the butter mixture into the flour mixture. Now using the reserved flour form a soft dough. I only needed 1/3 cup, but you may need the full 1/2 cup. Dough will be ready it is not sticky and has an elastic consistency. On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough for about 3 - 4 minutes. Place in a lightly greased deep bowl, cover with a cling film  and let it rest in warm and draught free place for about 1 hour or until the dough is double in volume. Once the dough is double in volume transfer it to lightly floured surface and knock out the air. Roll out the dough in a 14x8 inch rectangle with a thickness of ¼ inch. Brush the rectangle top with melted butter and sprinkle evenly chocolate, sugar, powdered orange peel and cinnamon over the rectangle. Roll up the dough tightly like a swiss roll. With a sharp knife cut into 12 even pieces and place in a lightly greased 9-inch round pan. Leave some gap between each roll for rolls to expand later. Loosely cover the rolls with cling foil and allow to rise in a warm, draft-free place for 60-90 minutes. After the rolls have doubled in size, preheat the oven to 375 degree F. Bake for 30 - 35 minutes until lightly browned. I covered the rolls with aluminum foil after 15 minutes to avoid heavy browning. To make the glaze, mix the powdered sugar, vanilla and cream together until smooth and drizzle over rolls. Right before serving, top your cinnamon rolls with glaze.

Thanks for stopping by

Hina