The last few days here have been perfect, beautiful spring days. The sun has been shining, the birds have been singing, and the daffodils have been blooming.
To me, one of the greatest feelings in the world is waking up on a lazy weekend morning and hearing the birds chirping outside the window. I don’t know what it is about the sound of those birds but it’s so uplifting. It’s almost impossible to hear them and start the day off grumpy. When I wake up naturally to the sound of those little chick-a-dee-dee-dees outside, I get up with a spring in my step and smile on my face.
It usually gives me the motivation to make something glorious for breakfast. What’s a lazy, happy, Spring weekend without a breakfast you can get excited about?
My last post was also a breakfast treat, but here’s another one to get you ready for the upcoming weekend: fluffy cinnamon buns stuffed with Ferrero Rocher chocolates. These guys are all you could want in a cinnamon bun – light, fluffy, flakey, and filled with the classic cinnamon taste, but with the chocolaty, hazelnutty taste of Ferrero Rocher chocolates.
I’m no stranger to baking with Ferrero Rochers (these cookies are so good!). I’ve always loved the flavour and texture of these chocolates, so naturally, putting them in my baked goods was an easy decision to make. They take something already delicious, like a cinnamon bun, and bring it to the next level.
^ If that photo doesn’t convince you, nothing will.
I’ve never been a huge fan of making cinnamon buns myself, because so many recipes are incredibly fussy, picky, and never quite rise just right. If you remember my Blueberry Cinnamon Roll Muffins post from last year, I ranted about that very fact.
But then I tried a recipe from the Minimalist Baker and they a) were so easy to make, and b) didn’t make me want to throw the pan against the wall in frustration. The resulting rolls were flaky, fluffy, and rose just perfectly. I made a few adjustments to the recipe, simplifying it even further.
So, if you have time this weekend, make some cinnamon buns stuffed with Ferrero Rochers. I promise, they’re not difficult to make, and though they do take a bit of time, the wait is sooo worth it.
Just try not to eat them all in one sitting.
| Ferrero Rocher Cinnamon Buns | | Print |
- Dough:
- 2¼ tsp instant yeast
- 1 cup skim milk, warmed to 110°F.
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 Tbsp sugar
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup (1/2 a stick) butter, melted
- .
- Filling:
- ¼ cup (1/2 a stick) + 2 Tbsp butter, melted & divided
- 3 tsp cinnamon
- ¼ cup sugar
- 10 Ferrero Rocher chocolates, crushed into pieces
- .
- Icing:
- 4 Tbsp butter, softened
- 2 cups icing sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1-5 Tbsp hot water
- Preheat the oven to 200°F.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, mix together yeast and warm milk and let sit for 5-10 minutes until mixture is frothy. Add in salt, sugar, flour, and melted butter, and knead on a low setting until a dough as formed: it should be sticky yet elastic and should pull away from the sides of the bowl. Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl, cover with aluminum foil, and place dough in the oven. TURN OVEN OFF. Let the dough sit in the warm oven for about an hour until it doubles in size.
- Remove dough from oven and preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a round 9-inch cake tray (or similarly sized tray); set aside.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a 15"x10" rectangle. Brush ¼ cup of melted butter, then sprinkle on sugar, cinnamon, and Ferrero Rocher pieces.
- Starting at one end, roll the dough from the long edge up. This could be tricky - the dough will be lumpy from the Ferrero Rochers - but as long as it rolls up in one piece it's fine. Use a piece of string to cut the log into 9-pieces. Transfer each roll to the greased pan. Brush tops with remaining 2 Tbsp melted butter, then bake for 25-30 minutes until tops are slightly golden. Let cool for a few minutes.
- While rolls are cooling, make icing. Whip together butter, icing sugar, and vanilla. Add in water 1 Tbsp at a time until desired consistency is reached. Spread over the slightly cooled rolls and serve immediately.
- Lightly grease a round, 9-inch cake pan; set aside.
When crushing Ferrero Rocher into pieces, how do you take care of the soft part and the hazelnut inside of it? By the way, these look so good I’m planning on making them this weekend!
Hi Judy, thanks for asking! When I crushed the Ferrero Rocher into pieces, they kind of clumped together, soft parts and all. Just spread them all over the dough as evenly as you can – obviously some areas will have more nuts or hazelnut spread than others, but the ‘clumpiness’ makes a great cinnamon bun as every bit is a little bit different 😀
These look so good but unfortunately my poor boyfriend is allergic to tree nuts (hazelnuts) so I’ll have to think of chocolate treat that uses peanuts instead to put in these cinnamon rolls.
I like that idea Sandy! Maybe use some crumbled up some Reese’s peanut butter cups instead! (YUM)
Made these today. Doubled the recipe and put the Ferrero Rocher into the food processor to break them down more. They basically melted and coated the inside of the cinnamon bun with chocolate.. So good! We then broke up extra and placed them on top of the glazed topping. Would love to be able to add a picture.. ?