Chocolate Pistachio Cinnamon Rolls
The last time I shared this recipe was in December of 2022 which is crazy to me as I remember recording that video in my old house with my iPhone. She was so yummy, memorable and highly requested that I figured she deserved to come out of retirement - behold the chocolate pistachio cinnamon roll which I think is a perfect Segway from fall to winter baking.
Now just like your traditional cinnamon roll the filling is made of softened butter and cinnamon however for this recipe I like to add cardamom and cocoa powder to the mix along with using a blend of half brown and white sugar that is spread all over just before sprinkling in the extra surprise that makes these so special -
The pistachios and dark chocolate chips is what makes eating and unraveling these that much better because I think it's kinda like 2 desserts in one. We get all the nostalgia from a classic cinnamon roll but then that lil extra bit that makes this a special seasonal treat. Sooo if you are looking to impress this holiday season and don't know what to bring - now you have got just the thing that everyone will seriously love !
Chocolate Pistachio Cinnamon Rolls
*Makes 15 cinnamon rolls *Ingredients - Dough
4 1/2 cups - all purpose flour ( 540 g )
1 packet - activated yeast ( 8 g )
1/2 cup - white sugar ( 100 g )
1 1/4 cup - warm oat milk ( 270 ml )
1/3 cup - apple sauce ( 87 g )
1/4 cup - melted vegan butter ( 57 g )
1/2 tbsp - cinnamon
1/2 tbsp - cardamom
1 tbsp - vanilla extract
Ingredients - Filling
1/2 cup - softened vegan butter ( 113 g )
2 tbsp - cocoa powder
1 tbsp - cinnamon '
1/3 cup - white sugar
1/3 cup - brown sugar
To Sprinkle In
1 cup - toasted and chopped pistachios
1 cup - dark chocolate chips
To Pour In Just Before Baking
1 cup - full fat canned coconut milk ( to pour in between the rolls before baking )
Ingredients - Cream Cheese Frosting
1/2 cup - vegan cream cheese ( I used Violife brand )
1/4 cup - vegan butter
1 tbsp - maple syrup
1 tsp - vanilla extract
2 cups - powdered sugar
Tools you will need
stand up mixer
bench scraper
rolling pin
off set spatula or something similar
casserole dish ( 9 x 12 in. )
Instructions
Step 1 - Gather all ingredients & bloom the yeast
There is nothing worse than going to make something and realizing you don’t have the stuff ! Grab a bowl, preferably glass and warm up the milk in the microwave. You want the milk and bowl to be warm. The milk should be around 110 degrees Fahrenheit. If the milk is too warm or too cool, it won’t activate the yeast.
To bloom the yeast, whisk in the 1 tablespoon of sugar along with 1 tablespoon flour into the warm milk. Once that has been whisked in, sprinkle over the activated yeast and over the bowl and allow this to bloom and activate for about 10/12 minutes. If it has grown in size and looks foamy/bubbly your have successfully bloomed your yeast.
Step 2 - Start the dough & first proof
Once the yeast is activated, pour the mixture into the bowl of a stand up mixer with the dough attachment set up. Add in the remaining sugar, apple sauce, melted vegan butter, spices and vanilla extract. Mix on low to medium speed to allow this to combine. In small increments, add in the flour. I like to do this roughly in thirds. So once the wet ingredients are mixed I roughly put about 1/3 of the flour into the mixer. Let that incorporate a bit and then a little more flour. Let that do its thing for another minute and then the last bit of flour until its all combined.
Once the dough is combined, it should look a little shaggy so don’t feel like you have to over mix it here.
Clean a workspace to kneed out the dough and sprinkle over some flour before plopping the dough on the table or counter. Sprinkle some more flour over the dough and kneed it for about 3 minutes till its firm and not sticky. I like to round out my dough and let it rest in a greased bowl, covered with a tea towel for an hour for the first proof. Its good to let it rest in a warm area. Maybe outside if its warm, or by a window and also the oven is a great place - just make sure its off !
Step 3 - Make the filling + prepare casserole dish
While the dough is rising during its first proof session is a great time to work on the filling. First grease a casserole dish and line it with a parchment paper, then set to the side for later.
To make the filling I simply do this with a bowl and a fork - nothin too fancy for this step. In the bowl add in the room temp vegan butter, spices, cocoa powder, and a touch of salt. Mash this with a fork until smooth and set to the side.
Step 4 - Make the cinnamon rolls !
The dough should appear to have doubled in size, so now its time to lightly bunch down the dough and flour a clean work area again to roll this out. Get your hands nicely coated in flour along with a bench scraper and a rolling pin. Roll out the dough to be a rectangular shape somewhere around 12 x 18 in. You don’t want the dough slab to be too thin or too thick.
Once the dough is nicely rolled out, make sure there is a decent amount of flour under it otherwise it will make it harder to roll later. I like to check this by kind of fluffing it with my hands and making sure it isn’t stuck the the table or counter underneath.
Add all of the filling to the center of the stretched out dough and using the off set spatula spread it around evenly.
I like to go a little heavier spreading the filling on the area of dough that is closest to me because that is where I start rolling the cinnamon roll and so that will be the gooey center.
Once the filling is spread out, its time to sprinkle all over the crushed pistachios and dark chocolate chips.
To start rolling the dough into the roll, start pinching and rolling the dough from the area that is closest to you and start pinching and rolling away from you and try to roll tight rolls, scrunching the dough as you go.
As you go, give the dough log some scrunches to keep it tight. This allows for your rolls to have nice pretty spirals and also not have any weird gaps.
It may be helpful to check out the video as a visual for this step. Once its all been rolled, its time to pinch the seal shut. To do this all you need is a little ramekin with water to dip your fingers into.
Where the seam of the dough is, go with a pinching motion and pinch the seam with wet fingers to make it more seamless. This will help your cinnamon roll to not unravel when its baking and expanding. Do that from one end all the way down to the other.
With the bench scraper, cut off the top and bottom little misfit pieces. I always still bake these separately as they don’t come out as pretty but are obviously just as tasty.
Now you should have a cinnamon roll log. Cut it in half to make two pieces, then cut those 2 into 4. I basically cut the rolls in half until we have 15 cut cinnamon rolls.
Now place each one into the lined baking dish and cover with the tea towel for the second proof for 30 minutes. This is when I pre heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and while the oven is pre-heating I place the rolls on top as its now a perfect place for proofing.
Step 5 - Bake !
Just before baking, go ahead and pour in the canned coconut milk in between each roll. This sort of acts as a heavy cream and makes for the most divine cinnamon rolls ever as they come out so plushy and most. Once the coconut cream is poured in, pop them in the oven for 20 minutes.
When they are done, carefully take them out and let them carry over cook and cool down for about 10 minutes. This is when I like to prepare the glaze.
Step 6 - Frosting
You could do this in a bowl with a hand mixer or stand mixer. Simply whisk or cream together the vegan cream cheese and butter together really well and then follow that up by adding in the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, maple syrup and a pinch of salt.
To frost each one I like to use a large spoon and spoon on the frosting to cover the entire cinnamon roll before sprinkling over the top some crushed pistachios and chocolate chips.
Eat right away and enjoy. If you have any left over you can reserve them in a air tight container in the fridge for up to 3/4 days. To warm them simply pop them in an air fryer or convection oven.
