Sticky Toffee Cinnamon Rolls Recipe Excerpted from the Cookbook Breakfast

As promised in our recent review of the cookbook Breakfast: The Most Important Book about the Best Meal of the Day, by the Editors of Extra Crispy (Oxmoor House, October 2018), we’re happy to present an excerpt from the book featuring a recipe for Sticky Toffee Cinnamon Rolls. Enjoy!

Credit: Excerpted from Breakfast by the Editors of Extra Crispy. Copyright © 2018 Oxmoor House. Reprinted with permission from Time Inc. Books, a division of Meredith Corporation. New York, NY. All rights reserved.

MAKE YOUR HOUSE SMELL LIKE A FOOD COURT
By Dawn Perry

Cinnamon rolls were in regular rotation when I was growing up. There was no clearer sign of Sunday morning than the assertive pop of a vacuum-packed canister being split open. They would swell and snuggle in the oven, their giraffe-like pattern of flaky cinnamon topping melting to cover the rolls in a layer of perfectly engineered sweet spice. They were more biscuits than “rolls”—with a questionable ingredient list and wartime-appropriate expiration date—but these were the cinnamon rolls of my youth. And I loved them.

I’ll admit I dabbled with the ’Bons, their irresistible scent luring my tween posse toward a random alcove of the mall. But as I grew older I started to find the icing too sweet and the size intimidating. But that aroma, even after all these years, is still intoxicating.

I wanted to create a sweet treat that would still make the house smell like a food court without sending me into an extended sugar coma. I came up with cinnamon rolls of a more manageable size, swapping some of the sugar for maple syrup and sticky sweet dates to offer complexity. Make no mistake, these cinnamon rolls are indulgent, but they’re homemade so it’s cool, right? These aren’t necessarily good for you, but they’re good for you.

Sticky Toffee Cinnamon Rolls
MAKES 10 TO 12 SERVINGS

FOR HOMEMADE DOUGH
1 1/2 cups warm water (100° to 110°F)
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
2 (1/4-ounce) packets active dry yeast
4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface
2 teaspoons kosher salt

FOR THE TOPPING
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1/2 cup chopped pecans, almonds, or walnuts (or a combination)

FOR THE FILLING
8 tablespoons unsalted butter
8 ounces Medjool dates, pitted and chopped
2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
4 teaspoons cinnamon

1. Prepare the Dough: Combine warm water and sugar in a medium bowl. Sprinkle yeast over top and set aside until foamy, about 5 minutes. Add 4 cups flour and salt, and stir with a wooden spoon until a shaggy dough forms. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until dough comes together, about 10 times. Lightly oil a medium-size bowl. Add dough and turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside until doubled in size, about 90 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, Prepare the Topping: Combine brown sugar, butter, and maple syrup in a 10-inch skillet, preferably cast iron. Cook, stirring often, until sugar dissolves and mixture is evenly bubbling across the surface, 2 to 3 minutes. Let cool slightly, then sprinkle with nuts. Set aside. (If you don’t have a 10-inch skillet, you can do this in whatever skillet you have and then swiftly transfer the toffee mixture to a 10-inch cake pan.)

3. Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare the Filling: Combine butter, dates, brown sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan and place over medium-high. Cook, stirring often, until butter melts. Continue to cook, stirring and mashing to help break up dates, until mixture comes to a boil and dates are broken down, about 4 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.

4. Once the dough has doubled in size, turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide dough in half (this will make it easier to work with). Working with one at a time, roll each piece into a 12- x 16-inch rectangle. Divide date mixture between the two pieces of dough, spreading all the way to the edges. Sprinkle each piece evenly with 2 teaspoons cinnamon. Starting from the long end, roll up dough and place seam-side down. Cut dough crosswise into 2-inch spirals. Transfer rolls, cut sides down, to prepared skillet or cake pan, arranging snugly to fit. Bake until golden and risen, 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes before inverting onto a rack. Let cool slightly before eating.

* This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, we may or may not receive a small commission which helps to support this site. Thank you!

NOTE: You can make your own dough for these, but a couple of balls of prepared pizza dough also work just fine.