Honey Vanilla Brioche Rolls (aka. ULTIMATE Cinnamon Rolls)

Consider these Brioche Rolls to be the ULTIMATE sweet roll recipe! It is based on French-style brioche to make the softest, most tender, rich and perfectly sweet buns. Use this recipe to make any kind of roll including Cinnamon Rolls, Custard Rolls, Raspberry Rolls, Chocolate Rolls or Lemon Curd Rolls! You can use any filling, but this dough is the star! The recipe is simple and the dough is so lovely and silky soft.

INGREDIENTS FOR BRIOCHE ROLLS

• Butter - you will need soft unsalted butter to make this dough. Pull it out of the fridge about 2 hours before you plan to bake so that it has the right consistency for incorporating evenly.

• Granulated sugar - there is regular white granulated sugar in the dough which adds the right amount of sweetness and keeps the rolls tender.

• Brown sugar - light brown sugar or dark brown sugar will work for this recipe. I prefer light brown sugar for its milder taste so that it doesn't overpower the honey and vanilla flavors.

• Honey - this is what makes these special. Honey will add wonderful floral flavor but it will also give the rolls a soft moist texture.

• Egg - you'll need 2 whole eggs for this recipe. Make sure they are at room temperature and not cold from the fridge.

• Vanilla bean - vanilla is the main flavor here and I love using a vanilla bean to infuse into the milk. If you don't have vanilla beans, you can easily use vanilla extract. I like this Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla extract.

• Salt - a bit of salt rally elevates the rich buttery flavors in the brioche dough.

• All purpose flour - regular unbleached all-purpose flour works great here, but if you have bread flour, you can use that too!

HOW TO MAKE BRIOCHE ROLLS

Brioche is a French-style yeast-leavened bread dough enriched with butter, eggs and sugar. It is as delightful as it sounds!

This particular version uses a bit of honey that makes the texture extra soft and moist and also enhances the flavour!

To make these rolls, most of the ingredients are blended together and kneaded until a dough forms, then some additional butter is added to the dough to "grease" the dough.

So, some of the butter is melted with the milk and added into the dough during the first mixing.

Then I add the remaining butter after the dough starts to come together. This process essentially helps to build flakiness by incorporating fat after some of the gluten has had a chance to form and strengthen.

The purpose is to build up some gluten structure first during the initial mixing, and then the added soft butter will interrupt the gluten strands to create a sort of "flaky" texture. It is SO GOOD.

Once the dough is silky smooth, cover it and place it in a warm place to give it time to double in size.

This can take up to 2 hours. OR, you can let it rise at room temperature for 1 hour, then place it in the fridge and let it finish working overnight.

This process will be a slow fermentation and is actually what artisanal bakers do to make the best baguettes! Slow fermentation allows time for the yeast to make incredible flavours.

RECIPE FAQ

Can I use vanilla extract instead of vanilla bean?
Since I use vanilla bean in this recipe, I heat the milk with the scraped pod to infuse it with the vanilla essence. If you prefer to use vanilla extract, then you can simply add vanilla extract to the mixing bowl with the remaining ingredients and there is no need to steep or infuse the mixture.

It is still important to heat the milk, however, because the heat will help activate the yeast. Yeast are happy when they are warm and cozy!

Can I use dry active yeast instead of instant yeast?
Yes, you can use dry active yeast - use the same amount by weight.

It will require an extra step since dry active yeast has a thick later of dead yeast cells around it to protect it. So, it needs to be "proofed" or dissolved in warm water before you can use it. Instant yeast dissolves readily and can be blended directly into the dry ingredients.

WHAT ABOUT THE GLAZE?

I chose to dress these rolls with a dark chocolate glaze, but you can use a simple icing sugar glaze if you prefer something neutral... or maybe you need nothing at all because they are so flavourful on their own!

Sometime I also sprinkle grated chocolate over the sugar filling before rolling up the dough so there are flecks of melty dark chocolate inside. The options are endless!

HOW TO MAKE THE BEST BRIOCHE CINNAMON ROLLS

To use this wonderful recipe to make cinnamon rolls, just mix 2 teaspoons of cinnamon into the brown sugar for the filling and proceed to make them as usual!

To finish them like a traditional cinnamon roll, make the cream cheese frosting recipe found HERE from my Ultimate Carrot Cake recipe and slather it onto the warm rolls!

Honey Vanilla Brioche Rolls

Christina Marsigliese

SUPER soft & buttery sweet rolls with honey and vanilla! These are perfect to use as a base for cinnamon rolls too - just add 2 teaspoons of cinnamon to the brown sugar filling!

5 from 3 votes

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Servings 12 rolls

Ingredients

  

For the dough:

• ¾ cup 180ml whole milk
• 5 tablespoon 70g soft unsalted butter, divided
• 3 tablespoon 60g honey
• 1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped (or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract)
• 2 large eggs at room temperature
• ¼ cup 50g granulated sugar
• 2 ¾ cups 390g all-purpose flour, plus extra as needed
• 3 teaspoon 10g instant dry yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt

For the filling:

• 4 tablespoon 56g unsalted butter, at room temperature
• ¾ cup 165g packed light brown sugar

For the glaze (optional):

• 3 tablespoon 30ml 2% milk
• 1 tablespoon 14g unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon 20g honey
• 2 oz 56g semisweet chocolate (50% cocoa), very finely chopped

Instructions

 

• In a small saucepan over low heat, combine milk, 3 tablespoons (42g) butter, honey, vanilla bean seeds and scraped vanilla bean pod. Heat the mixture until it just barely scalds and you can see steam coming up from the surface. Remove from heat, cover the pan and let steep until the mixture cools down to 105-110°F. It will take around 20 to 30 minutes – this allows the vanilla flavour to further infuse the milk. Make sure you measure the temperature because if it is too hot, it will kill the yeast. Remove and discard vanilla pods. If you are using traditional active dry yeast, stir it into the cooled (105-110°F) milk mixture to activate it and wait about 10 minutes until it appears frothy.
• In a measuring jug with a pouring spout, whisk together eggs and sugar. Discard the vanilla pods that were steeping in the milk and then whisk the warm milk mixture to the egg mixture. Making sure to scrape the bottom of the saucepan with a spatula to get all of those gorgeous vanilla bean seeds.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine 2 ¾ cups (390g) flour and instant yeast. Attach the bowl to the mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment. Turn it on low and mix on speed 2 while gradually adding the milk mixture. Add salt. Mix for 4 minutes.
• Check the consistency of the dough and add up to 50g (⅓ cup) more flour as necessary so that it forms a mass and does not rest as a sticky pool at the bottom of the bowl. Add remaining 2 tablespoons (28g) of soft butter bit by bit and continue to mix on speed 2 for 8-10 minutes longer, stopping to scrape down the bowl occasionally. It might look like the butter won’t incorporate at first but trust that it will. The dough should pull away from the sides of the bowl and form webs by the end of the kneading time. It will be very soft, supple and tacky, but it should not be wet and sticky. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead by hand for a minute.
• Lightly grease a large bowl with about 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil. Form the dough into a ball, place it in the bowl and turn to coat evenly with the oil. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place until it doubles in size, about 1 ½ to 2 hours. This dough will take longer than normal bread dough to rise because of the high concentration of sugar which is hygroscopic (absorbs water) and leaves less water available for the yeast to work and reproduce.
• When the dough has doubled, press it down very gently with your fists to release any over-sized air bubbles (you may refrigerate the dough at this point for 15 minutes if you think it is too soft to work with), and then turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface. Do not knead the dough or it will become too elastic and difficult to roll. It will feel very soft, silky and spongy. Pat it out into a rectangle. If it retracts too much, then cover it on your bench and let it rest for 5 minutes. Use a rolling pin to roll it into a 20x12-inch rectangle.
• Gently spread very soft butter in an even layer over the dough – if your butter is not soft enough, warm it a bit because melted butter is better than hard butter that can tear the dough. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over top, spread it out with your hand and pat it down gently. Starting from the long end farthest from you, roll the dough toward yourself into a spiral cylinder. Roll the log over so that it is seam-side-down and slice it into 12 equal portions using a sharp knife, about 1¾ inches thick. Arrange slices, cut-side-up, in a buttered 13x9-inch baking pan or dish. Each roll will have a bit of space on all sides. Cover with plastic wrap and a dry kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place for 45 minutes to 1 hour until the rolls are puffy and just about touching each other. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F when you are ready to bake.
• Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden and the center roll is cooked through.
• For the glaze, combine all ingredients in a small saucepan and whisk until smooth and glossy. Drizzle it over the rolls and enjoy!

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