Cinnamon Swirl Rolls
By America's Test KitchenPublished on June 7, 2011
Time
1¾ hours, plus 3 to 3½ hours rising and 20 minutes cooling
Yield
Makes 1 dozen
Ingredients
Enriched Bread Dough
½ cup milk 4 tablespoons unsalted butter (½ stick), cut into ½ inch pieces1 package dry active yeast (2 ¼ teaspoons)½ cup warm water (110 degrees)⅓ cup sugar 2 large eggs 1 ½ teaspoons table salt 3 ½—3 ¾ cups unbleached all-purpose flourFilling
⅓ cup sugar 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon 1 tablespoon milk ½ cup raisins, golden or dark (optional)½ cup chopped nuts of choice (optional)Cinnamon Roll Icing
1 ¼ cups confectioners' sugar, sifted2 tablespoons milk ½ teaspoon vanilla extractInstructions
- Heat milk and butter in small saucepan over medium heat until butter melts. Cool to lukewarm (about 110 degrees).
- Meanwhile, sprinkle yeast over warm water in bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle. Beat in sugar and eggs and mix at low speed to blend. Add salt, lukewarm milk mixture, 2 cups of flour; mix at medium speed until thoroughly blended, about 1 minute. Switch to dough hook attachment. Add 1 1/4 cups flour, and knead at medium-low speed, adding additional flour sparingly if dough sticks to sides of bowl, until dough is smooth and comes away from sides of bowl, about 10 minutes.
- Turn dough onto work surface. Squeeze dough with a clean dry hand. If dough is sticky, knead in up to 1/2 additional cup flour to form a smooth, soft, elastic dough. Transfer dough to a very lightly oiled large plastic container or bowl. Cover top of container with plastic wrap and let rise until double in size, 2 to 2 1/2 hours. (Ideal rising temperature is 75 degrees.) After rise, punch down center of dough once (can be refrigerated, covered, up to 18 hours). Making sure not to fold or misshape dough, turn it onto unfloured work surface; let dough rest, to relax, about 10 minutes.
- Grease a 13-by-9-inch baking pan. Mix sugar and cinnamon in small bowl.
- Roll dough with rolling pin into an evenly shaped 12-by-16-inch rectangle. Brush dough liberally with milk and sprinkle an even layer of cinnamon-sugar mixture, leaving a 1/2 -inch border along one of the long sides. Sprinkle 1/2 cup raisins and/or 1/2 cup chopped nuts over cinnamon mixture. Roll, beginning with the long side of the rectangle. Use both hands to pinch dough with fingertips as you go, sealing edges firmly to form a seam. (Do not seal ends.)
- Following illustrations 1 and 2 below, cut into 12 even pieces using dental floss (or serrated knife with cutting board) and arrange in prepared pan.
- Cover loosely with plastic and allow to rise until double in size (rolls will touch), about one hour. When rolls are almost fully risen, adjust oven rack to center position and heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Bake until golden brown and thermometer inserted in center roll registers 185 to 190 degrees, 25 to 30 minutes. Invert rolls onto wire rack. Cool to room temperature, 20 to 30 minutes.
- Whisk sugar, milk, and vanilla in small bowl until smooth. Reinvert rolls and place rack over piece of parchment or wax paper. Following illustration 3 at left, drizzle icing over rolls with spoon. Cut or pull apart to separate, and serve.
for the dough
for the icing
Time
1¾ hours, plus 3 to 3½ hours rising and 20 minutes coolingYield
Makes 1 dozenIngredients
Enriched Bread Dough
½ cup milk
4 tablespoons unsalted butter (½ stick), cut into ½ inch pieces
1 package dry active yeast (2 ¼ teaspoons)
½ cup warm water (110 degrees)
⅓ cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 ½ teaspoons table salt
3 ½—3 ¾ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
Filling
⅓ cup sugar
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon milk
½ cup raisins, golden or dark (optional)
½ cup chopped nuts of choice (optional)
Cinnamon Roll Icing
1 ¼ cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
2 tablespoons milk
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Enriched Bread Dough
½ cup milk
4 tablespoons unsalted butter (½ stick), cut into ½ inch pieces
1 package dry active yeast (2 ¼ teaspoons)
½ cup warm water (110 degrees)
⅓ cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 ½ teaspoons table salt
3 ½—3 ¾ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
Filling
⅓ cup sugar
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon milk
½ cup raisins, golden or dark (optional)
½ cup chopped nuts of choice (optional)
Cinnamon Roll Icing
1 ¼ cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
2 tablespoons milk
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Enriched Bread Dough
½ cup milk
4 tablespoons unsalted butter (½ stick), cut into ½ inch pieces
1 package dry active yeast (2 ¼ teaspoons)
½ cup warm water (110 degrees)
⅓ cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 ½ teaspoons table salt
3 ½—3 ¾ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
Filling
⅓ cup sugar
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon milk
½ cup raisins, golden or dark (optional)
½ cup chopped nuts of choice (optional)
Cinnamon Roll Icing
1 ¼ cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
2 tablespoons milk
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
To achieve the best texture and crust for our cinnamon swirl rolls, we knew we needed to nail down the baking time and temperature as well as fine-tune the ingredients. For the dough, we compromised between rich brioche and lean sandwich breads. For the filling, we used white sugar (brown sugar tended to melt more readily and leak through the dough) and cinnamon.
Instructions
- Heat milk and butter in small saucepan over medium heat until butter melts. Cool to lukewarm (about 110 degrees).
- Meanwhile, sprinkle yeast over warm water in bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle. Beat in sugar and eggs and mix at low speed to blend. Add salt, lukewarm milk mixture, 2 cups of flour; mix at medium speed until thoroughly blended, about 1 minute. Switch to dough hook attachment. Add 1 1/4 cups flour, and knead at medium-low speed, adding additional flour sparingly if dough sticks to sides of bowl, until dough is smooth and comes away from sides of bowl, about 10 minutes.
- Turn dough onto work surface. Squeeze dough with a clean dry hand. If dough is sticky, knead in up to 1/2 additional cup flour to form a smooth, soft, elastic dough. Transfer dough to a very lightly oiled large plastic container or bowl. Cover top of container with plastic wrap and let rise until double in size, 2 to 2 1/2 hours. (Ideal rising temperature is 75 degrees.) After rise, punch down center of dough once (can be refrigerated, covered, up to 18 hours). Making sure not to fold or misshape dough, turn it onto unfloured work surface; let dough rest, to relax, about 10 minutes.
- Grease a 13-by-9-inch baking pan. Mix sugar and cinnamon in small bowl.
- Roll dough with rolling pin into an evenly shaped 12-by-16-inch rectangle. Brush dough liberally with milk and sprinkle an even layer of cinnamon-sugar mixture, leaving a 1/2 -inch border along one of the long sides. Sprinkle 1/2 cup raisins and/or 1/2 cup chopped nuts over cinnamon mixture. Roll, beginning with the long side of the rectangle. Use both hands to pinch dough with fingertips as you go, sealing edges firmly to form a seam. (Do not seal ends.)
- Following illustrations 1 and 2 below, cut into 12 even pieces using dental floss (or serrated knife with cutting board) and arrange in prepared pan.
- Cover loosely with plastic and allow to rise until double in size (rolls will touch), about one hour. When rolls are almost fully risen, adjust oven rack to center position and heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Bake until golden brown and thermometer inserted in center roll registers 185 to 190 degrees, 25 to 30 minutes. Invert rolls onto wire rack. Cool to room temperature, 20 to 30 minutes.
- Whisk sugar, milk, and vanilla in small bowl until smooth. Reinvert rolls and place rack over piece of parchment or wax paper. Following illustration 3 at left, drizzle icing over rolls with spoon. Cut or pull apart to separate, and serve.
for the dough
for the icing
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