Description
Brown butter brioche cinnamon rolls make the best holiday breakfast! Topped with swirls of brown butter cream cheese frosting, the whole family will love this delicious twist on classic cinnamon rolls.
Ingredients
Dough
- 3/4 cup (180 g) milk
- 1 1/2 tsp (4.5 g) instant yeast
- 1 1/2 tsp (9 g) salt
- 1/4 cup (84 g) honey
- 4 large eggs (200 g), lightly beaten, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup (168 g) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- 3 3/4 cups (525 g) all-purpose flour
Brown Butter
- 3/4 cup (168 g) unsalted butter
Filling
- 3/4 cup (150 g) sugar
- 1/4 cup (44 g) light brown sugar
- 2 tsp (5 g) cinnamon
- 1 Tbsp (6 g) arrowroot starch
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 100 g brown butter, softened (from above)
- 3 Tbsp (36 g) heavy cream
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 25 g brown butter, softened (from above)
- 1/4 cup (56 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 6 oz (168 g) full fat cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 1/2 tsp (6 g) vanilla extract
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 2 cups (240 g) powdered sugar, sifted
Instructions
- Brioche dough: Heat milk in a microwave-safe measuring cup for 45 seconds to 1 minute, until very warm (120-130°F). Combine warm milk, yeast, salt and honey in a large mixer bowl; mix on low speed until incorporated. Add eggs and melted butter; mix until combined. Gradually mix in flour, just until combined. Cover mixer bowl loosely with plastic and let rest in a warm place for 1 hour.
- After 1 hour, the dough will be puffy and doubled in size. Transfer dough to the refrigerator and chill for 3 hours (or overnight).
- Brown butter: Cook butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly until it foams, turns clear, and then turns a deep brown. Pour brown butter into a bowl to solidify for the filling, reserving 25 grams of brown butter to use in the frosting (pour reserved brown butter into a small bowl). Chill brown butter in the refrigerator for 40 minutes, stirring partway through, until solidified. Remove from the refrigerator and let stand at room temperature until soft and spreadable.
- Filling: Whisk together sugar, light brown sugar, cinnamon, arrowroot starch, and salt. Add 100 grams softened brown butter and heavy cream, mixing until filling is creamy and spreadable.
- Remove chilled dough from the refrigerator. Gently press down dough; cover and let rest for 5 minutes. Spray a 13 x 9-inch baking pan with nonstick spray.
- Turn dough out on a lightly floured board, dust dough lightly with flour, and roll into an 18 x 12-inch rectangle. Spread dough with filling, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Carefully roll dough up into a tight log and pinch edges to seal (if dough starts to stick, use a bench scraper to lift dough from the board).
- Trim off uneven ends and score dough into 12 equal slices. Use unflavored dental floss to slice dough crosswise (slip a long slice of floss under log of dough and cross on top to cut slices cleanly). Place rolls cut side up into prepared baking pan and cover tightly with plastic. Let rest in the refrigerator overnight (up to 16 hours).
- On baking day, remove the chilled rolls from the refrigerator and place in a warm spot to rise until puffy (about 45 to 60 minutes) before baking. While the rolls rise, preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Frosting: Beat 25 grams softened brown butter, unsalted butter, and cream cheese in a large mixer bowl on medium speed until combined. Mix in vanilla and salt. Gradually beat in powdered sugar on low speed until incorporated, then on medium speed until soft and creamy.
- Bake: Bake rolls for 30 to 32 minutes, or until golden and the internal temperature reaches 200°F. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool for 30 minutes. Spread the frosting over the warm rolls before serving.
Notes
Bake the rolls right away: If you’re planning to bake the rolls right away, work up to Step 7. In Step 7, place rolls into prepared baking dish and cover loosely with plastic. Let rise in a warm place until puffy, about 30 to 40 minutes. While the rolls rise, preheat the oven to 350°F. Continue with Step 9 and Step 10.
Brown butter: Check out my full step-by-step recipe tutorial.