In other words, chai latte pastries. Anyone can clearly see/read that I love cinnamon rolls. So much so, that I can't help myself in creating many, many iterations of the beautiful pastry. These little roses are full of warm chai spices and caramelized brown sugar. Made in a muffin tin, they are foolproof and gorgeous and perfectly portioned. The creamy honey drizzle is perfectly matched to balance the toasted nuts and buttery chai. I made these lovelies for breakfast, packed some to take to a friend's house (ate them again), came home and grabbed one for dessert, and THEN, one more in the morning.
Bowl of a standing mixer:
1 1/4 cup (285 grams) warmish water
4 cups (472 grams) all-purpose flour
4 tablespoons (25 grams) dry milk powder, slightly optional
4 tablespoons (60 grams) granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
3 teaspoons dry active yeast
1 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons (55 grams) butter, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Small bowl:
1 cup (225 grams) dark brown sugar
3-4 tablespoons chai powder- I like King Arthur's Flour version
7-8 tablespoons butter, room temperature
On the sidelines:
Toasted walnuts, for sprinkling
Milk & Honey Drizzle, recipe as follows
1
In the bowl of your standing mixer, combine all the ingredients. With the dough hook attached, knead for about five minutes until it becomes smooth and cohesive. This is a pretty soft dough so it will stick to the bottom of the bowl, regardless of how long you knead it.
2
Take off the dough hook and throw a clean kitchen towel over your bowl and let rise for about an hour. At the end of the rise time, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
3
After the dough has risen, lightly flour a work surface and turn out your dough. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough to about 12x12 or 15x15 inches. This isn't rocket science so don't get hung up on measuring. Just make a nice, big rectangle.
4
On top of your rectangle of dough, spread the soft butter all over. Then, sprinkle the dark brown sugar and chai powder on top of the bottom.
5
Starting with the longer side of the dough, tightly roll the dough into a log. Take your time at this step- your final product will thank you later.
6
Once rolled into a log, cut into one or two inch pieces. Again, perfection isn't the goal. Just try to make them all the same size.
7
Lightly grease a standard muffin tin with nonstick spray. Place the cut dough into each muffin tin, cut side up.
8
Bake until the roses are risen and golden and baked through- roughly 28 minutes or so. Your house will smell amazing. Remove and let cool.
9
Once cooled, sprinkle with walnuts and drizzle with drizzle.
Milk & Honey Drizzle
Bowl
1 cup (250 grams) powdered sugar
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons milk
Pinch of salt
1
Whisk all ingredients together and drizzle your heart out.
