Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls with Espresso Glaze

Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls with Espresso Glaze

After taking a looooong break from sharing recipes on my blog, I'm back so that I can share this one. 

Why?

Because it's too good not to share. It would be selfish of me to keep this AMAZING recipe all to myself, especially when we're all stuck at home with extra time on our hands to make something so time consuming... like these cinnamon rolls.

This is my go-to dough recipe for cinnamon rolls. It's adapted from Ambitious Kitchen's dough recipe, but I changed it up a bit. I use oat milk in my recipe, and I've also used normal cow's milk. Both work perfectly, and no, you don't taste any difference in the dough if you use oat milk. I've also used both bread flour and AP flour, and both work great. However, if you want suuuuuper fluffy dough, I HIGHLY recommend using bread flour. Another thing I do is add 2 teaspoons of cinnamon to the dough. I mean, they ARE cinnamon rolls, right?

If you love chocolate and coffee, this recipe is for you.

If you make this recipe, I'd love to know! Tag me on Instagram.

Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls with Espresso Glaze

Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls with Espresso Glaze
Yields: 12 rolls

INGREDIENTS:
DOUGH:
- 3/4 cup of warm oat milk (or any milk!)
- 2 1/4 teaspoons of rapid rise yeast
- 1/4 cup of sugar
- 1 egg at room temperature
- 1 egg yolk at room temperature
- 4 tablespoons of butter, melted
- 3 cups of bread flour (or AP flour)
- 2 teaspoons of cinnamon
- pinch of salt

FILLING:
- 4 tablespoons of butter at room temperature
- 1/2 cup of cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoon of cinnamon
- 1/3 cup of sugar, plus more for sprinkling on top of filling

GLAZE:
- 1 cup of powdered sugar
- 1.5 teaspoons of instant espresso powder
- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- milk or half & half (you need just enough to get a liquid consistency)

TO MAKE:
1. In the bowl of your stand mixer, add the warm milk, the yeast, the sugar, the egg, the egg yolk, and the melted butter. Give everything a nice mix with a hand whisk.
2. Then, add the bread flour, the cinnamon, and the salt. Mix everything with a wooden spoon until a dough starts to come together.
3. Using the dough attachment on your stand mixer, mix everything together on medium speed for about 5 minutes until the dough comes together into a ball and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. If the dough is too wet/sticky, add flour by the tablespoon until it's no longer sticky.
4. Place the dough in a well-oiled bowl and cover with a kitchen towel. Allow to rise in a warm area for 1.5-2 hours, until doubled in size.
5. Meanwhile, make the filling. Simply add the cocoa powder, cinnamon, sugar, and salt to a small bowl and mix together. Make sure the butter is at room temperature so that it's easy to spread.
6. Once the dough has risen, place it on a well-floured surface. Using a rolling pin, roll your dough into a rectangle, roughly 14x9 inches, with the 14 inch side parallel to you.
7. Spread the room temperature butter all over the dough, leaving a border around the edges. Using a butter knife to spread helps with this step.
8. Generously sprinkle the cocoa-cinnamon mixture on top of the butter, making sure the butter is completely and evenly coated. Sprinkle the top with some extra sugar.
9. Start rolling your dough into a tight log, making sure to pack in the filling as you go. Make sure to seal and pinch the edges of the dough once it's all rolled up.
10. Even out the log by rolling it gently back and forth. Cut into 12 even pieces (you will have to cut off both ends as they won't be even or have any filling in them).
11. Place the rolls into a 9 inch baking dish lined with parchment paper. Cover with a kitchen towel and allow to rise for 1 hour.
12. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Bake the rolls for 25 minutes until golden brown. 
13. In the meantime, make the frosting. Add all the glaze ingredients to a bowl and start with about 1-1.5 tablespoons of milk. Mix well, and add more milk if the consistency is too thick. Likewise, add more sugar if the consistency is too thin. 
14. Once the rolls are baked, allow to cool for 10 minutes. Then, drizzle and spread the glaze all over the rolls. Enjoy!