After making a few very simple recipes, I thought it was time for a more challenging recipe. It really is not that challenging if you worked with yeast before. Please read the introduction fully to make sure you get a good result. When activating the yeast, make sure the milk is not hot. It should be warm to the touch but not hot. Hot milk will kill the bacteria in the yeast and the dough will not rise. If you made the milk too hot, just wait a bit for it to cool down and add the yeast then. Making dough is sometimes a challenge especially when following a recipe because different climate and products can absolutely affect the way they turn out. So you will have to play around a little bit to get the mixture right.
Typically you want to have a slightly tacky dough that does not stick to you or the bowl and should be easily formed into a ball and stretch a bit. This version is a bit different because we add protein so it will not be as stretchy as regular yeast dough, especially since we also add whole wheat flour, which tends to make baked goods a bit more firm and dry. So if you have to add a tablespoon more of milk, please do so. When letting the dough rise you want to make sure it is in a warm area, by a sunny window or inside the oven (not turned on!) and avoid areas with drafts.
Also make sure to keep it fully covered as when air gets into it the edges of the dough will start to dry out. You can use egg wash (egg and water) to brush the rolls right before baking if you like but the recipe is vegan friendly which is why I did not include it as a step. If you absolutely dislike whole grain flour, please feel free to use 150g of bread flour instead, which will make more light rolls, but also do not keep you full as long. Good luck and enjoy!
Vegan Cinnamon Rolls
Recipe makes 8 servings
Time: active 10 minutes , passive 3 hours
Ingredients:
100g White Whole Wheat Flour (if you prefer lighter baked goods use all bread flour instead)
50g Bread Flour
1 tbsp Coconut Sugar
1/2 scoop TRU Dulce De Leche Protein
2 tsp Active Dry Yeast
1/2 cup Plant Milk
1 tbsp Coconut Oil
1/8 tsp Salt
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
2 tbsp Maple Syrup
1/3 cup Almond Butter
1 1/2-2 tsp Cinnamon (to taste)
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1) In a bowl add milk and coconut oil and heat until luke warm. Add sugar and yeast and mix. Let it sit and watch the yeast activate. It will form bubbles. If it does not your yeast is not active anymore and you should get new yeast and start from scratch.
2) In a separate bowl add the flour, protein powder and salt and mix well.
3) Once the yeast mixture is foamy (give it about 10 minutes) add vanilla extract and pour mixture into the flour mix. You can use a stand mixer if you like or if you want a workout use a hand mixer with a dough hook attachment.
4) Mix for 7-10 minutes until the dough comes together into a ball and does not stick to the bowl anymore (If mixture is too wet add 1 tbsp flour, if it is too dry add 1 tbsp plant milk.) Put into a slightly greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Store at a warm place without draft for about two hours or doubled in size.
5) For the filling mix natural almond butter, maple syrup and cinnamon together until it is a not so thick paste. It should definitely be spreadable.
6) Once the dough is done rising, knead it by hand briefly and roll out to a rectangle (approx. 10"x12", make sure to use some flour on your surface). Spread filling evenly across the rectangle leaving a small gap on the top where you will close the roll. Roll the dough up and cut the roll in 8 pieces. The easiest way to make them even is to cut it in half, then cut those pieces in half and repeat.
7) Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and put the rolls on with space in between each roll. Cover with a cloth or plastic wrap and let rise for another 20-30 minutes.
8) Preheat the oven to 400 degrees fahrenheit and bake for 15 minutes. The baking time might vary from one oven to another but keep checking on them after 15 and add a minute or two if necessary.
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1 serving:
167.8 calories
5.8 g protein
19.5 g carbs (4.6 g of sugar)
8.5 g fat
