Apple Stuffed Cinnamon Rolls With a Special Icing Twist!

Name: Apple Stuffed Cinnamon Rolls With a Special Icing Twist!
Prep time: 1 h 30 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 2 h
Ingredients: 3 1/4 cups flour; 1/2 cup sugar; 1 1/4 tbsp instant dry yeast; 1/4 cup softened butter (4 tbsp); 2 eggs + 1 yolk (room temperature, slightly beaten); 1 cup evaporated milk (there is 1 1/2 cups per can, save the remaining 1/2 cup for baking); 1 tsp salt; 2/3 cup golden raisins (I do not recommend using red raisins, as they tend to burn and get hard while baking); 1 large or two small apple (such as a Gala or Pink Lady), diced small; 1 stick butter, softened; 1 cup sugar (If you prefer extra gooey rolls, use 1 cup packed brown sugar instead); 1-2 tbsp cinnamon; 1/4 cup butter, melted; 1 cup sour cream; 1.5 cups powdered sugar; 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

25 steps

Prep:1h 30minCook:30min

I came up with the idea of Apple Stuffed Cinnamon Rolls after years of disappointment trying recipe after recipe that claimed it made the World's best, or Softest ever, cinnamon rolls. From my experience most cinnamon roll recipes have pretty much the same dough, and are topped with extra sweet cream cheese frosting, which I am not a big fan of. In my opinion, a cinnamon roll should be melt-in-your-mouth soft, flakey, and have the perfect level of sweetness.

Updated at: Thu, 17 Aug 2023 08:04:38 GMT

Nutrition balance score

Unbalanced

Glycemic Index

Moderate

Glycemic Load

High

Nutrition per serving

Calories451 kcal (23%)

Total Fat18.1 g (26%)

Carbs68 g (26%)

Sugars41.7 g (46%)

Protein5.9 g (12%)

Sodium203.7 mg (10%)

Fiber1.7 g (6%)

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Ingredients

14 servings

Instructions

Step 1

Gather all your for the dough. Warm 1 cup of evaporated milk in the microwave for 40 seconds, or until it reaches 110 degrees F.

Step 2

In the bowl of your stand mixer combine the warmed milk, 1/4 cup sugar, and 1 1/4 tbsp instant dry yeast. Let it sit until foamy, about 5 minutes. If your yeast does not foam, throw everything out and start again with new yeast.

Step 3

Pour in your 2 eggs + 1 yolk, 1 tsp salt, remaining 1/4 cup sugar, and 3 1/4 cups flour. Mix using a dough hook attachment until the mixture starts to form a dough. The dough will be wet.

Step 4

Slice 1/4 cup butter into 4 pieces, and, while the machine is on, add the butter slices. The dough will be quite sticky and stick to the sides of the bowl while holding most of its shape toward the dough hook.

Step 5

Add a tablespoon or two of flour to the dough if needed. The dough should be sticky but sturdy. Turn the mixer on to medium high.

Step 6

Mix for 5-7 minutes. The dough will firm up a little bit during the kneading process. Add 2/3 cup golden raisins and mix on medium high for one more minute. Grease a bowl with olive oil while the dough kneads.

Step 7

When the dough is finished kneading, wet your hands and scrape the dough from the sides of the bowl, then plop it into your greased bowl. I've inserted some photos so you can see the texture of the dough. You'll see that it has firmed up quite a bit, but it will still be sticky. Give it a few turns to grease it all around and cover it with a clean, dry tea towel. Rise for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.

Step 8

After it has doubled in size, punch down your dough and quickly form it into a ball while still in the bowl. Generously flour a clean work surface and plop your dough on top. Let it sit for five minutes. While it is resting, peel and dice your apple. This is also a good time to grease your 9x13 baking pan. For easy clean up, you can also line your pan with parchment paper, just make sure to butter it well.

Step 9

Sprinkle some flour on top of the dough, and with a floured rolling pin roll out the dough to 1/8 - 1/4 inch thickness, and 10 inches long by 20 inches wide. It does not have to be perfect, just make sure it is rectangular.

Step 10

Spread 1 stick of softened butter over your dough using your hands.

Step 11

Sprinkle 3/4 to 1 cup of sugar over the butter layer. This will be a thick coat of sugar. ( If you like extra gooey rolls, swap the white sugar with 1 cup packed brown sugar. Mix the 1 stick of softened butter with 1 cup of packed brown sugar in a bowl before spreading it on the dough.)

Step 12

Sprinkle cinnamon on top. You do not have to measure the cinnamon, just sprinkle enough to coat the sugar. Add as much cinnamon as you want.

Step 13

Sprinkle your diced apple on top of the sugar layer.

Step 14

Beginning at the long end closest to you, tightly roll your log away from you. You do not need to stretch the dough, just make sure there are no air pockets between the layers of the roll.

Step 15

Once it is rolled, wet your hands and use them to wet one side of the dough where the seam is. Then pinch the log closed.

Step 16

Using floss or a thin string, wrap the floss around the underside of the dough. Take a strand in each hand and bring the strands to meet at the top of the log. Cross them, and then pull the strings away from each other. This will slice the log into a neat pinwheel.

Step 17

Repeat this process every 1-1.5 inches until you have 12 cinnamon rolls. (You will technically have 14 rolls total, including the sliced off ends) Note I ended up with two bonus rolls because I did not measure where to cut my rolls. I like to live dangerously.

Step 18

Place cinnamon rolls in the buttered baking dish, cover it with a clean, dry tea towel, and let them rise for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.

Step 19

When your rolls are done rising, pour the remaining 1/2 cup evaporated milk over the cinnamon rolls. This will keep them soft as they bake in the oven and help make the edges sugar-crispy rather than dry-crusty.

Step 20

Insert a thermometer into the middle of one of the cinnamon rolls in the center. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the thermometer reads 180 degrees F. This is 10 degrees less than the temperature of fully cooked bread, but we can safely assume the bread will rise at least another five degrees while cooling. As for the other five degrees, well, we want these rolls soft and when you want soft, slightly underbaking really helps in that department.

Step 21

If your rolls begin to brown more than slightly, cover them with a piece of aluminum foil. I cover my rolls at around the 23-minute mark. They took 28 minutes to reach 180 degrees F for me.

Step 22

While your rolls bake, make the icing.

Step 23

Mix together 4 tbsp melted butter, 1 cup sour cream, and 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar in a bowl until creamy. Start with 1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar, and if you want the icing less tangy add another half cup of sugar. Add 1/2 tsp vanilla, mix, and set aside. ( You can play around with extracts here. Maple extract or orange extract pair perfectly with cinnamon rolls!)

Step 24

When your cinnamon rolls are done, remove any foil you may have placed on the rolls and allow them to cool for 10 minutes before you pour on the icing.

Step 25