You won’t believe how amazingly delicious my pecan caramel rolls are, and your family won’t believe you made them!
Good sticky buns are a thing of beauty, and the best are made using brioche dough.
The problem is most brioche doughs are complicated and can prove to be a little daunting for a novice baker. But using a no-knead brioche dough recipe takes most of the work out of the process.
I was truly amazed the first time I made these perfectly delicious pecan caramel rolls. So much so that I had to make them again just to be sure it wasn’t beginners’ luck.
It’s a simple foolproof recipe, that only needed a little tweaking to get the best results possible.
Of course, the dough is great for just plain Brioche rolls or a nice loaf of bread! The recipe I’m going to give you will make a few batches and the dough holds up for 5 days so you have so time to plan what other types of deliciousness you can bake up.
What ingredients do I need to make Pecan Caramel Cinnamon Rolls?
Let’s start by gathering the ingredients we need to make Caramel Pecan Cinnamon Rolls. In Chef Speak this is called the “Mise en Place” which translates to “Everything in its Place”.
Not only does setting your ingredients up ahead of time speed up the cooking process, it also helps ensure you have everything you need to make the dish.
How do I make no-knead brioche dough?
- Mix the yeast, salt, water in the bowl of your mixer, mix well
- Add in eggs, honey and mix until well blended
- Add the melted butter, and continue to mix until well blended
- Add in flour and using your dough hook, incorporate all the flour, mix just enough so that all the flour is mixed in.
The dough may look loose and wetter than you think it should be, it may also look like it has lumps, that’s ok.
- Transfer dough to another bowl, cover with a towel and allow to sit and rise for two hours.
- Chill dough for at least 2 hours, before making the rolls.
- Using floured hands cut out a 1 ½ lb piece of brioche dough.
- Dust dough with more flour and shape into a ball by stretching the dough around and under in quarter turns until it is fully shaped.
How do I make the caramel topping for the rolls?
- Cream the butter with salt and brown sugar.
- Spread evenly over the bottom of a 9-inch cake pan, and scatter the pecan halves over the topping.
- Set aside until needed.
How do I make the cinnamon smear for the rolls?
While the dough is resting, cream the butter, cinnamon and sugar until smooth and creamy.
How do I assemble the Pecan Caramel Rolls?
- Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough to a ⅛ inch thick rectangle (about 12″x8″). Add flour as needed to keep the dough from sticking to the rolling pin or surface.*
- Spread the mixture evenly over the dough.
- Sprinkle the pecans over the filling.
- Start rolling the dough along the long side of the dough, so you end up with a roll.
*Refrigerate the roll for 20-30 minutes to chill the dough before slicing.
- When the dough is ready, using a serrated knife, cut the log into eight equal pieces and place them in a prepared cake pan.
- Cover with plastic and allow to rise for 1 hour in a cool area of your kitchen.
- Place rolls in a 350-degree preheated oven, and bake for about 40 minutes or until golden brown and set in the center.
- Run a knife around the sides of the pan and turn out the rolls onto a platter immediately.
When I first made these rolls, I had no idea if this type of brioche dough would turn out and I definitely didn’t expect it would be so good!
These are without a doubt the best Pecan rolls I ever had, light and fluffy, and so very flavorful!
Recipe FAQ’s
Also known as Active Dry yeast, it’s a type of dry yeast that’s granular, with a consistency similar to cornmeal. It’s a living organism that’s dormant until proofed or dissolved in a small amount of lukewarm warm water (105- 110°F).
Active dry yeast (granular) is typically sold in individual packets or small glass jars. If using the latter, just make sure to refrigerate it after opening so the yeast stays fresh and active.
When turning the dough out onto the counter to roll out, use plenty of flour. If the dough is sticking to your hands or the work surface, add more flour.
I usually dredge the dough I’m using in flour before starting.
Yes, you can. Increase the dough, smear, and caramel by 50%. That means rolling out the dough to a 12″ x 12″ area to work with.
No. you don’t. If you have nut allergies they can be omitted. You can use raisins instead of nuts if you prefer.
More Brioche Recipes You’ll Love!
No-Knead Brioche Pecan Caramel Rolls
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups lukewarm water
- 1½ tablespoon granulated yeast (2 packets)
- 1½ tablespoon coarse sea salt or kosher salt
- 8 eggs lightly beaten
- ½ cup honey
- 1 ½ Cups unsalted butter melted (3 sticks)
- 7½ cups all purpose flour
Caramel Topping
- 6 tablespoon unsalted butter softened
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup Karo syrup or Honey
- 30 Pecan halves (or as many as needed)
Filling for Rolls
- 8 tablespoon unsalted butter
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ cup toasted and chopped pecans (optional)
- pinch of ground black pepper
Instructions
- Mix the yeast, salt, water in the bowl of your mixer, mix well
- Add in eggs, honey and melted butter, and continue to mix until well blended
- Add in flour and using your dough hook, incorporate all the flour, mix just enough so that all the flour is mixed in.
- The dough may look loose and wetter than you think it should be, it may also look like it has lumps, that’s ok.
- Transfer dough to another bowl, cover with a towel and allow to sit and rise for two hours.
- Chill dough for at least 2 hours, before making the rolls*
- For topping cream butter, salt and brown sugar spread evenly over the bottom of a 9-inch cake pan, then scatter pecan halves over the topping and set aside.
- Using floured hands cut out a 1 ½ lb piece of brioche dough.
- Dust dough with more flour and shape into a ball by stretching the dough around and under in quarter turns until it is fully shaped.
- Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough int a ⅛ inch thick rectangle (about 12"x8") add flour as needed to keep the dough from sticking to the rolling pin or surface.*
- While the dough is resting cream butter, cinnamon and sugar, then spread the mixture evenly over the dough and if you're using pecans in the filling add them now by sprinkling them over the filling.
- Start rolling the dough along the long side of the dough, so you end up with a roll.
- If the dough feels too soft to cut, allow it to chill for about 20 minutes.
- When the dough is ready, with a serrated knife, cut the log into 8 equal pieces and place in prepared cake pan.
- Cover with plastic and allow to rise for 1 hour*
- Place rolls in a 350 degree preheated oven, and bake for about 40 minutes or until golden brown and set in the center.
- Run a knife around the sides of the pan and turn out the rolls onto a platter immediately*
- Serve the rolls and get ready for rave reviews
Diane {Created by Diane}
mouth watering!
Kathy - Panini Happy
These look amazing! I love this book – I can’t believe I hadn’t seen this recipe before. Can’t wait to try them. 🙂
Liren
Wow. This is absolutely a must try for me – the last time I made rolls, I swore I would wait a year before making another decadent batch. But these are begging to be baked!
Hester aka The Chef Doc
These looks super awesome, Chef! However, I’ve got a question: 7 1/2 cups of flour???? You said to cut out a 1 1/2 lb chunk of dough. Would that be what yields the 8 rolls you mention above? So, the 1 1/2 lb chunk fits into the 9″ pan? And so I guess a big question is: how much more dough is there left?!?!?! Lol, I’ve just never used that much flour at once before 🙂 Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful recipe! My mother bought me two large packages of yeast at Sam’s Club since constantly buying packets was getting to be expensive. I’m going to definitely order this book!
Chef D
Most of the recipes that come in the book all have the same basic amount of flour 7 1/2 cups, this will give you enough dough for 2 batches with a little left over for just plain rolls or a small loaf of bread. It also freezes very well, just remembering to give it 24 hours to thaw properly.
The bread dough recipes last up to two weeks once made, and I think the idea is to have the dough ready so your more ready to bake.
Once the 1 1/2 pound piece is rolled out and filled with the mixture you roll it into a log, and cut it into roll size pieces that fit into your cake pan, you can see from my pic how they baked together so nicely.
Please let me know if you do try the recipe!
Hester aka The Chef Doc
Oh great! Thanks for responding to my inquiries, Chef! And yes, I’m going to be making these soon 🙂 Thanks again!
Alyssa
I’ve already ordered my copy of this book, I can’t wait for it to arrive!!!!
Ann
Wowza! These look amazing! I hate that I’m allergic to cinnamon….I miss out a lot this time of year. What a beautiful bread and the filling and topping is incredible!
Chef D
you can leave out the cinnamon and just make a very nice sticky bun!
Mari @ Mari's Cakes
If I could…I would eat the photo! Looks delicious, and it already saved on my favorites! Thanks 🙂
Boulder Locavore
This recipe looks great. The full photo should really be illegal. In looking at the ingredients I wonder if I couldn’t substitute gluten free flour and get a similar result. I’m going to try. It looks too good to pass up! Interested to know more about the cookbook too; thank you!
Kim Bee
Oh my! These look so good Chef Dennis. Bet your girls were quite happy to learn this one. Think I shall try this on our next cool day. My daughter would go nuts for this one. Have a great week.
jann
I can’t wait to try these! They look so delicious~hope mine are as good as yours look!
Kristin
I love making brioche dough into sweet delicacies. These sound delish!
JulieD
Dennis, your photographs are amazing and you’re giving me some confidence…maybe I can do this! 🙂
Chef D
Julie
its easier than you think, I was amazed!
Nicole @ Bake Me Blush
I’m a real lover of pecans and those rolls look unbelievably good. I’ve bookmarked this recipe for future baking ventures, thanks for sharing 🙂
Curt
Wow, they were so sweet, sticky and delicious
Apron Appeal
My first taste of Artisan bread were pecan cinamon rolls a friend made for me. Ohhhh I love to remember good things. Thanks.