The Best Caramel Pecan Cinnamon Rolls or Monkey Bread
I’ve tried to find a cinnamon roll recipe that stays soft and doesn’t dry out and after many attempts, I think I’ve finally found it!
The Best Caramel Pecan Cinnamon Rolls or Monkey Bread
Makes: 12 cinnamon rolls
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Ingredients
- 1 cup whole milk (warmed *whole milk is by far the best)
- ⅔ cup white sugar
- 1 ½ Tbsp active dry yeast
- ½ cup butter (softened to room temperature)
- 2 large eggs (room temperature)
- ½ tsp salt
- 4 ½ cups all-purpose flour
Filling:
- ½ cup butter (softened to room temperature)
- ¾ cup brown sugar (may not need quite all of it)
- 1 ½ Tbsp cinnamon
Instructions:
Dough:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the warm milk, 2 Tbsp of the white sugar, and the yeast together then let rest until foamy. *You don't have to use a mixer, but it makes it a lot easier to knead the dough the right amount.
- Add the rest of the sugar (which should be 1/2 cup) and the softened butter until it's slightly broken up.
- Add the eggs and salt and beat on medium speed until combined. (Don't be alarmed if the butter doesn't mix in completely.)
- With the mixer on low, add the flour one cup at a time, making sure it's completely incorporated before adding the next cup. When all the flour's been added, continue to beat until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl – about 3 minutes. The dough will be soft.
- Beat on low for another 3 minutes.
- Lightly grease a large bowl and place the ball of dough in it. Cover and set in a warm place until doubled – 1 1/2-2 hours.
Rolling the Dough:
- While the dough is rising the first time, make the caramel sauce if you are making caramel pecan rolls. Grease a 9×13 pan then pour the sauce into it and sprinkle the pecans on top. Set aside.
- When the dough has risen, punch it down to release the air then place it on a lightly greased surface and roll into a 12×18-inch rectangle. *If the dough keeps shrinking as you roll it out, stop, cover it tightly, and let it rest for 10 minutes to relax the gluten.*
- Spread the softened butter over the dough, all the way to the edges. Evenly cover the dough with the brown sugar then sprinkle cinnamon over that.
- Tightly roll the dough up to make a 12" log and cut into 12 1-inch rolls. *It works well to use a length of dental floss for this – slide it under the dough to the spot you want to cut, then begin to tie the floss around the dough and it will cut cleanly through.*
- Arrange in the prepared pan, cover tightly, and allow to rise again until doubled – about 1 hour.
Baking the Rolls:
- Preheat the oven to 350. *Make sure to remove the rolls if you put them in the oven to rise.*
- Bake for about 25-28 minutes or until they are lightly browned on top. *After 15 minutes, tent a piece of foil over the top of the pan to prevent the tops from browning too quickly and baking unevenly.
- Remove pan from the oven, center a 9×13 platter (or a baking sheet with sides works too) upside down over the pan. Then, holding the sheet and pan tightly together, quickly flip the pan over so the cinnamon rolls drop onto the platter and the sauce drips down over the rolls. Remove the pan and allow the rolls to cool slightly before serving.
For Monkey Bread:
- When the dough has risen the first time, combine 1/2 cup sugar and 1 1/2 Tbsp cinnamon in a bowl.
- Once the dough has doubled in size, roll into 1" balls (you can roll the dough out and cut into 1" squares, then roll them into balls if you want).
- Roll the balls in the cinnamon/sugar mixture and arrange the balls and 1 cup of pecans in a greased bundt pan.
- Allow to rise until doubled again.
- While the dough is rising in the pan, make the caramel sauce and allow it to cool.
- Preheat the oven to 350.
- When the dough is risen, pour the cooled caramel sauce over the dough balls and bake.*Place on a cookie sheet to catch drips if it bubbles over.**If it starts to get too brown before it's completely baked, cover loosely with foil.
- Normal rolls bake for 30-35 minutes, but this could take up to 50 minutes because it is so thick.
Notes:
Make Ahead: You can refrigerate these – just make the recipe up to the point of rising in the pan, then cover them and keep them in the fridge until ready to bake. Pull them out of the fridge about an hour before baking to give them time to rise.
You can also par-bake them – bake them at 350 for 10 minutes (or until they’re almost totally baked but not brown at all – if you don’t get them done enough, they will shrivel up somewhat) then remove them from the oven, allow them to completely cool, cover tightly, and freeze. The night before you want to serve them, remove them from the freezer and place them in the fridge to thaw overnight. In the morning, remove the pan from the fridge when you turn the oven on so the pan can warm up a bit. Then bake for 15-20 more minutes.
This is the best recipe ever. I’ve compared it against 3 other recipes and this always wins.
These are subpar. Definitely not as good as Karen’s.
Try it again – you may have accidentally used Karen’s instead of this one.