Dirty Chai Cinnamon Rolls

Because who doesn’t love a sweet treat with their coffee…

I’m obsessed with cinnamon rolls. They are my favourite treat to pick up with my Starbucks order, usually, a Friday as an end of the week treat.

I would say I’m fairly good at baking (cooking is a different story). However, bread is something that I am not 100% comfortable doing. Technically, cinnamon rolls are bread (you’re making a dough). However, this was ten times easier to make than when I’ve previously tried. I’m so glad I gave this a go. My friends were swooning over the fact that I managed it.

Of course, I couldn’t just make plain old cinnamon rolls. No, my first go at them and I wanted to test myself. So I decided to go for some dirty chai ones. Dirty chai is a chai latte with a shot of espresso- utterly delicious! To get the espresso, you simply substitute the water for a shot or two of espresso. If your not a big fan of coffee, I would just stick with water to activate the dough, but include the chai powder. It’s got a lovely taste that goes perfectly well with the cinnamon.

These are perfect for a lazy Sunday morning. Make them on Saturday and warm them up the next morning. Eating them in bed is a must…

INGREDIENTS.

DOUGH.
180ml milk
450g plain flouer
50g butter softened
1 packet of yeast
50g caster sugar
1/2 salt
2 shots of espresso
1 egg

FILLING.
130g light brown sugar
50g butter
1 tbsp cinnamon
1tbsp chai powder

FROSTING.
180g packet of cream cheese
1 tsp vanilla extract
250g icing sugar

DIRTY CHAI CINNAMON ROLLS.

For the dough, heat the milk in a saucepan until it starts to bubble. Remove from the heat and add the butter, stirring. Continue until melted. Leave to cool.

Brew your espresso (I used Nespresso pods) and leave to cool.

In a large mixing bowl, combine 2/3 of the flour with the yeast, sugar and salt, giving a whisk. Add a bit of the espresso, egg and milk to the mixture, beating well. Add the remaining flour slowly, stirring well after each addition. Finally, add more of the espresso, depending on the strength. Your dough should be wet and sticky but not unmanageable.

Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth. Round into a ball and cover with a damp cloth. Finally, leave to rest on the counter for 10 minutes.

For the filling, brown your butter by heating it on the hob in a saucepan. Your butter will pop and turn brown. While the butter cools, mix together your brown sugar, cinnamon and chai powder in a small bowl. Add the butter and mix together.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a rectangle. (use your baking dish as a guide). Add the filling onto the dough, spreading it out as evenly as possible, getting as close to the edges as you can. roll up the dough and pinch the seam to seal. Using a serrated knife, cut into 12 equal size rolls and place onto your baking tray/ dish. Cover and leave to prove for 30 minutes in a warm place. Finally, preheat the oven to 200 degrees C.

Bake in the oven for 15- 20 minutes, until golden brown. Leave to cool on the side. Add the frosting…

FOR THE FILLING.

Whip together the cream cheese, vanilla and icing sugar, adding the sugar slowly. Beat until creamy and spreadable.

Add to the freshly baked cinnamon rolls when they are cool but still slightly warm. Serve straight away or heat up if you’re having them later.

Will you be giving this recipe a go?