Olive Oil Vegan Cinnamon Rolls

Soft, fluffy vegan cinnamon rolls made with olive oil and a tangzhong starter for an extra-tender crumb, studded with finely chopped candied pecans, warmly spiced with cinnamon and cardamom, and finished with a simple powdered sugar glaze. From cloudykitchen.com. Prep 2 hours, cook 30 minutes, yields 9 servings.

Ingredients

Candied Pecans

• 125g pecans
• 50g light or dark brown sugar
• 15g olive oil or neutral oil
• ¼ tsp kosher salt

Tangzhong

• 20g bread flour
• 95g oat milk

Vegan Cinnamon Roll Dough

• All of the Tangzhong
• 150g oat milk or other plant based milk, cold
• 30g light or dark brown sugar
• 1 ½ tsp (6g) instant yeast
• 270g bread flour
• 1 tsp vanilla bean paste or extract
• ½ tsp (3g) kosher salt
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
• 35g olive oil or neutral oil

Filling

• 100g brown sugar
• 1 tbsp (10g) cinnamon
• 1 tsp (2g) cardamom
• 30g olive oil or neutral oil
• 10g bread flour
• Pinch of salt
• All of the candied pecans, finely chopped

Glaze

• 200g powdered sugar, sifted if lumpy
• ½ tsp vanilla bean paste or extract
• 15-30g plant based milk (adjust based on glaze consistency preference)

Instructions

Candied Pecans

1. Preheat the oven to 350°f / 180°c. Spread the pecan halves out on a baking sheet and toast for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown (you can snap one open to check they are toasted throughout). Leave to cool.
2. Line a small baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or some parchment paper. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the sugar, oil, and salt.
3. Add the toasted pecan halves and cook, stirring frequently and adjusting the heat as necessary, until the sugar has melted and the nuts are evenly coated in the sugar mixture. Tip out onto the prepared baking sheet and spread the nuts out with a spatula so they aren’t clumped together.
4. Once the nuts are cool, chop very finely either with a knife or by blitzing in a food processor until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
5. Store in an airtight container until ready to use. Can be made ahead of time.

Tangzhong

6. Combine the milk and bread flour in a medium saucepan. Place over medium heat and cook, stirring continuously, until the mixture thickens into a paste. Remove from heat and transfer to the bowl of a stand mixer.

Vegan Cinnamon Roll Dough

7. Add the cold milk to the Tangzhong mixture and mix to combine, checking with your finger that it is not hotter than lukewarm (the cold milk should cool the hot tangzhong enough). Add the sugar, yeast, flour, vanilla, salt, cinnamon, and oil. Transfer to the mixer and fit with the dough hook.
8. Mix on medium to high speed for 10-12 minutes, until the dough is soft, smooth, and stretchy, and is clearing the sides of the bowl. It’s a sticky dough — set a timer and walk away if you need to. If it really isn’t clearing the bowl, you can add more flour 1 teaspoon at a time, going by how the dough feels.
9. Lightly oil a medium bowl. Using lightly oiled hands, turn the dough out onto a surface and shape into a ball. You can use flour on the surface instead of oil if you like.
10. Transfer the ball of dough to the prepared bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Leave in a warm spot for 60 to 90 minutes, until the dough has doubled in size and is very puffy.

Assembly

11. Line a 10" round or 9" square pan with parchment paper. Combine all of the filling ingredients except the pecans in a small bowl to form somewhat of a paste.
12. Turn out the risen dough onto a lightly floured surface and pat into a rough square (this helps with keeping it square as you roll it out).
13. Roll out into a 12"x12" (30cmx30cm) square, squaring off the sides as you go with a bench scraper.
14. Evenly spread the combined filling ingredients over the surface of the dough. Pat with your hands to help spread it out.
15. Sprinkle the chopped pecans evenly over the surface of the dough.
16. Starting from one edge, roll up the dough into a tight log. Lay it seam side down.
17. Trim the ends if desired, then, using unflavoured dental floss, cut the dough into 9 even cinnamon rolls (section it into 3 first, then divide each section into 3 more). To cut, place the floss underneath the dough, cross the ends over each other, and pull to cut.
18. Arrange the buns evenly in the prepared pan.
19. Lightly cover the pan with plastic wrap and place in a warm spot until the rolls are puffy and an indentation left by a finger doesn’t spring all the way back. This should take 30 to 45 minutes.
20. While the rolls are rising, preheat the oven to 350°f / 180°c.
21. Bake the cinnamon rolls for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden brown on top. If you like, measure the internal temperature — it should be around 190°f / 90°c (insert the thermometer into the dough, not the filling).
22. Remove from the oven and allow to stand for 15 to 20 minutes before drizzling with the frosting.

Glaze

23. Place the powdered sugar in a medium bowl. Add the vanilla. Start with 15g plant based milk and mix to combine, then continue adding more milk until your desired glaze consistency is reached. Drizzle over the baked cinnamon rolls.
24. Store leftover rolls in an airtight container at room temperature. Refresh briefly in the microwave if desired.