Caramel & Pistachio Cinnamon Rolls
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Sourdough cinnamon rolls with caramel and pistachio. Buttery, fluffy, and soft dough swirled with cinnamon sugar and topped with a heavenly salted caramel glaze that melts into the rolls. The lightly toasted pistachios on top add a pleasant nuttiness and crunch. In other words: the ultimate autumn pastry.
Table of contents
Not your average Cinnamon Rolls
This Step-By-Step recipe is based on one of my most popular recipes on the blog, The Best Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls. I love all things salted caramel, so working on this recipe, where I could combine two of my favorite things, was a win-win for me. I hope you love them as much as I do.
As with all my sourdough recipes, there is some waiting and planning involved in making these. But I promise you, it is worth it. The sourdough creates unbeatable flavor and texture in the rolls, which wonderfully complements the sweetness of the cinnamon-sugar filling and caramel glaze, as well as the nuttiness of the toasted pistachios.
To help plan your bake, I have included a baker’s schedule at the end of this post. Please also make sure you read through the whole recipe before you start baking.
Recipe run through
Day one
Day TWO
How to make Salted Caramel Glaze
While your cinnamon rolls are in the oven, you can start making the salted caramel glaze topping. Please measure out all the ingredients before you begin, and keep an eye on the caramel during the boiling process.
This recipe is for a small batch of caramel glaze, so you should not have much left over. However, if you do, you can store leftover caramel in the fridge for up to a week.
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- Boil sugar and water until golden brown, without stirring.
- Add butter.
- Stir.
- Add cream.
- Stir.
- Boil for one minute.
- Add sea salt and combine.
- Cool at room temperature until thickened.
Shop the Tools
Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls with Caramel and Pistachio
Equipment
- Stand mixer
- Brød & Taylor Proofer Box
- 13×10 inch baking pan
Ingredients
Sweet Levain
- 45 g active sourdough starter
- 45 g whole milk cold from the fridge
- 45 g bread flour
- 10 g granulated sugar
Main Dough
- 550 g bread flour
- 90 g granulated sugar
- 10 g salt
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
- 250 g whole milk cold from the fridge
- 100 g eggs two medium eggs
- 145 g sweet levain
- 110 g unsalted butter softened, cubed
Cinnamon Filling
- 100 g unsalted butter softened
- 50 g granulated sugar
- 50 g dark brown sugar
- 8 g ground cinnamon
Egg Wash
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp water
Caramel Glaze
- 100 g granulated sugar
- 35 g water
- 50 g unsalted butter softened, cubed
- 100 g whipping cream
- ½ tsp sea salt
Other
- 50 g pistachios
Instructions
Sweet levain
- Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine. Cover and rest in a warm spot for 4 hours or until at least doubled in size.45 g active sourdough starter, 45 g whole milk, 45 g bread flour, 10 g granulated sugar
Main Dough
- Start by gathering all your ingredients. Add them all, except the butter, to the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Mix on medium speed until the dough comes together. Cover, and autolyse/rest for 30 minutes.550 g bread flour, 90 g granulated sugar, 10 g salt, 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground cardamom, 250 g whole milk, 100 g eggs, 145 g sweet levain
- Start your mixer again and knead on medium speed for about 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes, slowly add cubed, softened butter, one cube at a time.110 g unsalted butter
- Once all the butter has been added, continue kneading at medium speed for 15-20 minutes until your dough passes the window-pane test.
- Place the dough in a clean bowl and proof in a warm spot, ideally at around 78°F/26°C, for two hours.
- After two hours, transfer the dough to the fridge to cold-proof for 6-12 hours.
Shape
- Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface. You might want to leave it at room temperature for 10-15 minutes if it's cold and hard to roll out.
- Roll the dough into a 19x12in/50x30cm rectangle with a rolling pin.
- Evenly spread out softened butter over the surface of the dough.100 g unsalted butter
- Combine the sugars and cinnamon in a bowl and sprinkle over the dough, leaving a small gap around the edges.50 g granulated sugar, 50 g dark brown sugar, 8 g ground cinnamon
- Roll the dough up as tight as possible, starting from the longest side of the rectangle.
- Cut half an inch off the edges of the roll. Use a sharp knife or floss to cut the dough into 1,5-inch/4 cm pieces. You should end up with 12 cinnamon rolls.
- Place the cinnamon rolls in a 10×13-inch/25x34cm baking pan lined with parchment paper. Cover and proof at around 78°F/26°C for about 10-12 hours or until they've doubled in size. Please don't focus too much on time but on how they look and feel.
Bake
- Preheat the oven to 355°F/180°C.
- Prepare the egg wash by whisking together an egg and water.1 egg, 1 tbsp water
- Lightly brush the proofed cinnamon rolls with egg wash and bake for 18-25 minutes until golden brown—internal temp when finished: 205°F/96°C minimum.
- Transfer your cinnamon rolls onto a cooling rack and allow them to cool for at least 20 minutes.
Caramel Glaze
- To make the caramel glaze, add sugar and water to a stainless steel pot. Bring it to a boil over medium heat. Avoid stirring at this step, or the sugar may crystallize, turning the caramel a little grainy.100 g granulated sugar, 35 g water
- Let the sugar and water mixture boil over medium heat, without stirring, until the mixture turns light golden. If you want to, gently swirl the pan and use a wet heatproof pastry brush to wash down the sides of the pot to prevent the sugar crystals from burning on the sides. For me, this step took 6 minutes. Please keep an eye on the caramel at all times.
- When the mixture is lightly golden, reduce the heat to a minimum and add the cubed butter. Now you can stir, so grab a silicone spatula or whisk and combine.50 g unsalted butter
- Add whipping cream a little at a time, and stir between additions. When you have added all the cream, allow the caramel to boil for approximately 1 minute.100 g whipping cream
- Next, take the pot off the heat and stir in salt. Transfer to a large bowl and set aside. Cool to room temperature. The caramel glaze will thicken as it cools.½ tsp sea salt
Assemble
- Drizzle a generous amount of caramel glaze over the cinnamon rolls with a spoon.
- Lightly toast pistachios for 2-3 minutes in a dry pan over medium heat while constantly stirring/moving the pan.50 g pistachios
- Finely chop the pistachios and sprinkle them over the caramel-glazed cinnamon rolls. Serve and enjoy!
