After making and tasting dozens over the course of my baking career, I had pretty much accepted that cinnamon rolls, like scones and madeleines, are good only when eaten fresh from the oven. A roll that is tender, moist and delicious when warm turns brittle, dry and lifeless just hours later at room temperature.
But with all of the techniques to produce soft, supple dough textures, I was convinced that a cinnamon roll with a longer shelf life was possible.
I set out to develop one that not only maintained much of its moisture and softness after cooling, but one that also has a distinctive, classic-looking swirl and traditional cream cheese icing that wasn’t too sweet.
To achieve the pillowy texture I was going for, I turned to an old-fashioned technique that helps enriched doughs (like the kind used to make cinnamon rolls) develop lots of gluten: scalding milk. “Scalding” refers to heating milk to just under a boil and maintaining this temperature until specific proteins denature. Without scalding, these same proteins inhibit the development of gluten, the stretchy strands that give bread its bounce and chew, so the dough is likely to lack structure and elasticity. While it may seem counterintuitive, developing lots of gluten is actually critical here, since gluten traps the gas produced by the yeast, producing a light, airy texture in the finished baked good.
Then, to extend shelf life and increase moisture and softness in the dough, I added a cooked rouxlike mixture of flour and milk, called a tangzhong. Used in many Asian breads, such as Japanese milk bread, to create a pillowy texture, tangzhong increases the dough’s ability to hold moisture, making the baked rolls fluffier, springier and less likely to dry out. It also gives them a satisfying pull-apart texture, so they shed thin, silky threads of dough when separated.
You’ll need a stand mixer to make the dough, since the high proportion of liquid makes it a bit too sticky to work by hand. But resist the urge to turn up the speed, since a slow mix helps to develop a stronger gluten network. The dough then takes a long, cold rest in the refrigerator, which improves flavor and allows the flour to further absorb the liquid ingredients, making it less sticky and easier to handle during rolling and filling.
While I wanted a substantial cinnamon swirl, I didn’t want to achieve it just by adding lots and lots of cinnamon-sugar, which would undoubtedly make the buns too sweet. The answer was to add finely crushed speculoos cookies, as they contribute bulk as well as a lightly spiced, molasses-y flavor without too much added sugar. If you can’t find speculoos cookies, crispy, wafer-style gingersnaps or graham crackers also work well.
To prevent moisture loss in the oven, I cover the rolls with aluminum foil for the first half of baking, which traps steam, keeping the buns supple and helping them achieve maximum expansion during baking. If you can, try to bake in a light-colored metal pan, since you’ll get more even results than baking in glass. The finishing touch, a vanilla-flavored cream cheese icing, further seals in moisture.
While the rolls will dry out eventually, they can sit uncovered for an entire day and suffer only minimally, thanks to a few important techniques and ingredients. Make them in advance if you like, but I would still encourage you to serve them as soon after baking as possible — if they’re still exceptionally good after sitting, just think how good they are warm.
