By changing a few ingredients in traditional cinnamon roll, this recipe creates the perfect pastry that can be enjoyed any time of the day. The floral and sweet cardamom blends well with the brown sugar for a gooey, sweet and delicious filling. The pistachios add a crunch and nutty flavor to the pastries and help balance out the sweetness from the filling. The rosewater icing drizzled on top of the warm pastries also has a subtle floral taste that compliments the cardamom and brings all the flavors together.
The dough for this recipe is very versatile and can be used in both savory and sweet rolls. I recommend using a stand mixer to knead the dough, however you can always make it by hand. The dough can be prepared ahead of time and rested in the fridge overnight if needed, but do not rest the dough for longer than 12 hours. The pastries can be enjoyed warm out of the oven or at room temperature and left-overs (if any) can be stored in an airtight container for 5-7 days.
Cardamom Pistachio Rolls With Rosewater Icing
Course: DessertsDifficulty: Medium22
Rolls45
minutes20
MinutesA delicious mash-up between cinnamon rolls and baklava.
Ingredients
- Dough
2¼ tsp active dry yeast
4 tbsp sugar
1 cup of warm milk (~110º F)
4 cups of flour
1½ tsp baking powder
1¼ tsp kosher salt
1 egg beaten
6 tbsp butter melted
- Filling
2 tbsp ground cardamom
1 cup light brown sugar
1/4 tsp kosher salt
2/3 cup raw unsalted pistachios roughly chopped
1 stick of butter melted + more for the baking dish
- Icing
3 cups of powdered sugar
3 tbsp rosewater
2 tbsp milk
Directions
- Dough
- Sprinkle the yeast and 2 tablespoons of sugar over the warm milk and let rest for 10 minutes until the mixture is bubbly and foamy.
- In a bowl of a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment combine the flour, baking powder, salt and the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar.
- With mixer on medium-low speed, add the milk and the egg to the flour and mix to combine.
- Add the melted butter and continue to knead the dough in the mixer until it’s smooth and does not stick to the side of the bowl (with the stand mixer it takes 6-8 minutes).
- Cover and rest in a warm area for 1.5- 2 hours until the dough has doubled in volume.
- Punch down the dough, cover again and refrigerate for at least one hour or as long as overnight.
- Filling
- Brush two 9″ non-stick round baking dishes with a little butter.
- Mix the sugar and cardamom in a small bowl.
- Remove the dough from the fridge and cut in half.
- Working with each half separately, roll half of the dough into a ~9×13″ rectangle.
- Brush with about 1/4 of the melted butter (reserving the rest for later).
- Sprinkle half of the sugar and cardamom mixture evenly over the dough and press it down so it sticks to the dough.
- Sprinkle half of the pistachio over the dough and press down.
- Pour another 1/4 of the melted butter evenly over the dough.
- Starting with the side closest to you, tightly roll the dough lengthwise. You want to get a tight roll without squeezing out the fillings. You may have to tuck the stray pistachios inside.
- Cut into one inch pieces and place into one of the prepared baking dishes leaving about 1/2-1 inch of space between the rolls.
- Repeat with the second half of the dough.
- Cover and rest at room temperature for one hour until the rolls have doubled in size.
- While the rolls are resting, pre-heat the oven to 325º F.
- Bake rolls for 20-25 minutes until the dough is lightly brown and the sugar has caramelized on the sides.
- Icing
- While the rolls are baking, in a large bowl combine the sugar, rose water and milk and mix well. If the icing is too thick, add more milk, 1 tsp at a time until you get the desired consistency. You want the icing to be on the thick side since it will be applied to the rolls while they are hot.
- When the rolls are out of the oven and still warm, pour the icing evenly over them.
