Sweet Potato Cinnamon Rolls Recipe from Around Our Table
This recipe is excerpted from Sara Forte’s upcoming cookbook Around Our Table. Pre-order your copy here!
In case you read nothing else, these need to be started the day before you want to eat them! With proofing in the fridge, you could even start them two days in advance.
We eat pretty healthily in our house, whatever that means these days, but there is only so much I can do to lighten up a cinnamon roll before it’s just not worth making. This recipe makes just a few alterations to a classic recipe, replacing some of the butter with sweet potato puree and adding some spelt to the all-purpose flour for fiber and whole grain flavor, but otherwise, they are the real deal. That said, using all-purpose flour entirely is absolutely fine.
I love it when my kids request a special dish that we “always have” on a holiday—and this is it for Christmas morning. These are rich and delicious and perfect for a special occasion. The rolls have a couple of windows of rest and rise time. Start the dough at least the afternoon before you are planning to enjoy them. I bake them in a 12-inch / 30 cm cast-iron pan, but you could also get twelve slightly thinner rolls in a 9-by-13-inch / 23-by-33 cm baking dish.
For the filling:
3 tablespoons / 42 g unsalted butter, room temperature
1⁄2 teaspoon sea salt
1⁄2 cup / 110 g light brown sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1⁄2 cup / 60 g toasted pecan pieces, coarsely chopped + more for garnish
For the glaze:
4 tablespoons / 56 g unsalted butter
4 ounces / 113 g cream cheese, room temperature
2⁄3 cup / 75 g powdered sugar
1⁄4 cup / 80 ml maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon orange zest
Pinch of salt
For the dough:
1⁄2 cup / 120 ml whole milk, barely warmed, not hot
1 1⁄4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1⁄4 cup / 85 g honey
1⁄2 cup / 60 g spelt flour (or wholewheat pastry flour)
2 large eggs, room temperature
2 1⁄4 cups / 361 g unbleached all purpose flour + more as needed
1⁄2 teaspoon fine sea salt
6 tablespoons / 84 g unsalted butter, cubed, room temperature
11⁄22 cup / 164 g sweet potato puree (from 1 medium baked potato)
Day before baking
In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, combine the milk, yeast, honey, and spelt flour. Mix on low until well combined and resembling a loose pancake batter. Cover with a dish towel and let it sit for an hour.
Once the dough has rested, using the dough hook, add the eggs, then the all-purpose flour and salt and mix for 5 to 6 minutes. The dough should start to pull away from the sides at this point, but it will be sticky. While the mixer is still going, drop in the butter and potato puree, and mix until well incorporated. Mix for another minute. The dough should hold together like a loose ball. If the dough looks a little wet, add flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it holds together. It should still be pretty sticky and will be easier to work with after it chills.
Scrape the dough into a large, greased bowl, rolling it around a few times to grease the outside. Cover and let it rest in the fridge for 12 to 24 hours.
While it rests, make your filling. Combine the butter, salt, brown sugar, and cinnamon, and mix. Set aside.
Make your glaze (this may also be done days in advance and kept in the fridge). Brown the butter in a small pan by warming it over medium heat, stirring frequently, until it smells nutty and the color begins to turn amber, about 5 minutes. If your pan is dark, use a spoon to check the color. We’re looking for a light amber. Pull from the heat to cool completely.
Get the mixer going with the paddle attachment. Add the cream cheese and whip that for a minute. Add the cooled butter and mix again, scraping down the sides. Slowly add the powdered sugar, maple syrup, vanilla, orange zest, and salt and mix well until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed. Set aside.
Day of baking
Turn out the cold dough onto a clean, lightly floured surface and knead it a few times. Let it sit for 15 minutes. Roll it into a 20-by-12-inch / 50-by-30 cm rectangle. Spread the filling over the dough, leaving a 11⁄22-inch / 1.25 cm border around all sides. Sprinkle the pecans over the filling. Roll the dough into a long tube and slice the roll into 10 rolls. Generously grease a 12-inch / 30 cm round ovenproof dish (cast iron works great) and arrange the rolls. They’ll look small in the pan, but don’t worry, they’ll grow. Let them rest for 1 to 2 hours, covered with a dish cloth, to rise again. We want them to double in size. You can also leave them assembled in the fridge overnight and bring them to room temperature before baking.
Preheat the oven to 350°F / 180°C. Bake the rolls for 20 to 22 minutes until fluffy and browned on top. (If you’re precise, about 190°F / 88°C in the center of the roll.) Remove to cool.
When they are no longer piping hot, spread the glaze over the top and sprinkle with more pecans. Enjoy warm.