Peaches and cream sweet rolls

AAAAAGGGH. School has begun. But that’s okay. I can deal with that. You know what I can’t deal with? The news. Holy fuck the news is a complete and utter shitshow these days. Yeah, it’s the same someone got killed, some country is at war, some country is about to go to war, some country is trying to prevent other countries from going to war, etc. etc...but with the added agony of TRUMP this and TRUMP that.

Dear media. source

If you’re ‘Murican like me, you will feel my pain. For non-‘Muricans who haven’t heard much about this national tragedy in the making, don’t feel the need to Google it because it will only make your Monday worse.

I swear to god, there is no reading the newspaper these days without seeing in excess of two, three articles about some bullshit Mr. Donald “I have a massive, super prickly stick up my ass” Trump said. And yes, I’m including opinion columns and editorials because if there’s anything in the newspaper that gives readers an indication of what people care about, it’s the opinion section.

It’s really bad. So bad that I have taken to reading books with my cereal, which is totally out of my cereal-coffee-newspaper routine and should give you an idea of how extreme this situation is.

See, I’m a Bernie fan (#feelthebern). He’s kinda my favorite candidate at the moment, given how closely aligned my current ideological leanings are with his. But I’d hate to be the typical liberal and look down on the silly conservatives, oh how precious that they think the wealth will trickle down (really though). I don’t want to condescendingly dismiss beliefs that vast swaths of Americans genuinely hold. And most importantly, I don’t want to talk about politics on a food blog, thus scaring away any members of my audience who don’t agree with literally everything I have to say (which is, like, everyone).

BUT SERIOUSLY. People. There is something completely non-partisan about the love of your fellow man and woman. To say that a revulsion for everyone from Mexican immigrants to menstruating women to black activists to [insert your demographic of choice here] is a legitimate political belief... god dammit I can’t take this madness.

So for the time being, I am attempting to ignore the news. That is all.

And I reckon it will be a healthy exercise, anyway, since there’s not much to be gained from learning about international conflicts you can’t solve and natural disasters you can’t stop and presidential elections you can’t change.

That’s probably, like, some Zen philosophy or something. Just...let things be. Don’t worry about the things you can’t change.

Turns out it's the title of a book. source

Now let’s talk about the things we can change. Namely, the contents of our weekend breakfast menu.

That sounds great right now.

Like so many other recipes on this goddamn blog, these rolls are taken straight from the cookbook Vegan Desserts. I was hunting for some more peach recipes after making that galettte and was delighted to stumble upon this recipe. Like most cinnamon roll recipes, it’s kind of a long one, but you can make it more convenient for a lazy morning by preparing the rolls the night before and letting them sit in the fridge overnight. In that case, you would just let them come to room temperature for about half an hour and bake normally, since the dough continues to rise a little even at the cooler temperature.

Or eat them for dinner, like me.

And I will tell you this: my family claimed these were the softest cinnamon rolls they’d ever had. Well, that’s what my mother said, but I assume everyone else agreed. Because why wouldn’t they? These are straight-up pillowy. I could feast on the dough alone, but with the sweet, cream cheese-studded filling and cinnamon glaze? Utter perfection.

I will warn you that the gloppy filling is a little difficult to roll up. If you don’t use all the filling, don’t feel bad—it tastes good on its own, as I can testify. The cookbook used jumbo muffin tins to bake the rolls into perfect circles, which might also be a good idea. Imagine the cute little rolls you could make with a regular-sized muffin tin! 

You might say that. Or you might say that I think about food too much. source

I’m done talking for today. Here’s the recipe.

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Peaches and cream sweet rolls

Adapted from Vegan Desserts by Hannah Kaminsky

Makes 8 to 10 rolls

Ingredients

Dough

122 grams • nondairy milk, 110 degrees F • ½ cup

4 grams • active dry yeast • 1 teaspoon

42 grams • coconut oil, melted • 3 tablespoons

50 grams • granulated sugar • ¼ cup

85 grams • nondairy yogurt • 3 ounces

3 grams • salt • ½ teaspoon

1 gram • almond extract • ¼ teaspoon

1 gram • baking powder • ¼ teaspoon

306 to 340 grams • all-purpose flour • 2 ¼ to 2 ½ cups

Peaches and cream filling

385 grams • peaches, chopped • 2 ½ cups

50 grams • granulated sugar • ¼ cup

8 grams • cornstarch • 1 tablespoon

60 grams • fresh lemon juice • ¼ cup

2 grams • vanilla extract • ½ teaspoon

80 grams • vegan cream cheese, softened • 1/3 cup

Cinnamon icing

180 grams • powdered sugar • 1 ½ cups

0.5 grams • cinnamon • ¼ teaspoon

Pinch salt

2 grams • vanilla extract • ½ teaspoon

15 to 45 grams • nondairy milk • 1 to 3 tablespoons

Directions

Sprinkle yeast in milk and let proof until it becomes activated and bubbly, about 5 minutes. Pour yeast mixture into the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the dough hook and add coconut oil, sugar, yogurt, salt, and almond extract. Mix thoroughly to combine. Add 272 grams • 2 cups all-purpose flour and baking powder and combine on low speed. Add 34 grams • ¼ cup more flour once initial addition has been incorporated, or up to 68 grams • ½ cup depending on how sticky the dough feels.

Knead dough with hook attachment on medium speed for 10 minutes. Once dough is smooth and elastic, place in a greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise at room temperature for 1 ½ hours, until doubled in size.

In the meantime, make the filling. Toss together peaches, sugar, and cornstarch in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in lemon juice. Stirring occasionally, cook until the fruit has softened a bit and the excess liquid has thickened. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Let cool completely before using.

Lightly grease a 9-inch round baking pan. Gently punch down risen dough and turn out onto a well-floured surface. Roll out dough into a rectangle about 15 inches long and 12 inches wide. Spread cream cheese over dough, leaving an inch on one of the long sides for a seal. Spread peach mixture over cream cheese in an even layer. Starting with the other long side, roll up the dough into a tight log and let sit seal-side down. Cut into slices with a clean, dry knife or a piece of dental floss. Arrange buns in prepared pan. Let rise for another hour.

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake for 26 to 34 minutes, until golden brown all over. Let cool in pan.

To make the icing, simply whisk together all ingredients in a bowl, adding milk a tablespoon at a time. Apply liberally to each roll. Serve warm.

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Pure golden-brown perfection.

For more delicious breakfast-y recipes, click the following links (you know you want to).

Cinnamon swirl bread. It’s like a cinnamon roll in a loaf!

Easy cinnamon roll pancakes with cream cheese glaze. For lazy mornings.

Strawberry coconut sweet rolls with Grand Marnier glaze. I don’t know what I was thinking when I made these. They were an awesome idea, though.