Orange-pecan Cinnamon Rolls

Unbalanced

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Step 1

Combine milk, eggs, cream, sugar, orange zest, yeast, and salt. Wisk to combine fully until mixture looks homogeneous.

Step 2

Dump in your flour and mix with a spatula until the flour is just starting to absorb the wet ingredients.

Step 3

Microwave your butter until runny. Pour butter into the dough and mix until the butter looks to be incorporated. The dough should be able to come together, but it will be sticky. Let it sit for 30-60 minutes in a warm place, preferably covered.

Step 4

Knead the dough for about 5 minutes to develop the gluten. Add more flour if the mixture is excessively sticking to your hands. The dough should still be a little sticky, but mostly soft at this stage. It should get to the point where if your moving the dough around constantly, it's not sticking to your hands.

Step 5

After kneading, let the dough rest and rise for 2-5 hrs at room temp, or 16-24 hrs in the fridge. Longer time will create a more complex fermented flavor.

Step 6

Once rested, lay the dough out on a floured surface. Roll out the dough into a rough rectangular shape. Let the dough rest a minute or so in between rollings to let the gluten relax. Get the dough to ~1/4 in thickness.

Step 7

Spread the filling mixture (see next section) on the dough rectangle, ensure even coverage. Roll the dough up into a log. Cut the log into 8-10 pieces and place them in a baking dish with a couple inches of depth. I used a 9x9x3 in glass dish with 9 rolls. Mine were fairly chunky in size.

Step 8

Preheat the oven for 375°F. Let the rolls rest and rise while the oven preheats, or ~15 minutes. Bake for 25 minutes, or until brown and bubbly on top.

Step 9

Mix brown sugar, pecans, and cinnamon together.

Step 10

Microwave butter and add to mix. The mixture should resemble wet sand.

Step 11

Combine softened cream cheese, butter, salt, sugar, vanilla, and orange juice. Mix with a spatula if you're superman, or beat with a hand mixer or stand mixer.

Step 12

Wait until the rolls have full cooled to added the icing. I personally add the icing for each roll individually as I serve it. This way. The icing doesn't melt and go everywhere when you reheat them.