Perfectly pillowy cinnamon rolls 完璧に柔らかなシナモンロール

This recipe  is from King-Arthur flour. The recipe was on a card that was enclosed with the collapsible bread proofing box we recently bought from them. This recipe piqued my wife's interest because it is made with "tangzhong" 湯種 and, of course, because it is a "sweet" bread. So she made this one day. She also added raisins but omitted the icing called for in the original recipe.

Some of the raisons on the surface got a bit dried up and hard but otherwise these were wonderful cinnamon raisin rolls. When they came out of the oven they were really soft but after a few days in the refrigerator, they did get a bit chewy but were still flavorful. My wife slightly reduced the sugar in the filling so they were pleasantly sweet but not too sweet, perfect for breakfast.

Ingredients:
for the Tangzhong
1/2 cup (113 g ) whole milk
3 Tbs. (23 g) bread flour

for the dough:
2/3 cup (151 g) cold whole milk
2 1/2 cups (300 g) bread flour
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbs. (25 g) sugar
2 tsp. yeast
4 Tbs. (57 g) butter softened
1 cup raisins or nuts (optional)

for the filling
1 Tbs. (14 g) butter, melted
1/2 cup (107 g) light brown sugar, packed (amount reduced slightly or increased to taste)
2 Tbs. (15 g) bread flour
4 tsp. (10 g) cinnamon
pinch of salt

For the icing (optional) I did not use it.
3 Tbs. (42 g) butter melted, divided
1/2 tsp. vanilla

pinch salt
1 1/2 cup (170 g) confectioners sugar, sifted
1 to 2 Tbs. (14 g to 28 g) milk

Directions:
For the tangxhong: in a small saucepan, whisk together the milk and flour and cook over medium heat until thickened. Transfer to a large bowl.

For the dough: Immediately add the dough ingredients to the bowl with the tangzhong in the order listed. (The order is important because the cold milk cools the tangzhong to the right temperature for the yeast). Mix and knead to make a smooth, elastic, somewhat tacky dough. Knead for 7 - 10 minutes. Put in a bowl and move to the proofing box set to 81 degrees until the dough rises and is puffy.

To assemble: Transfer the dough to a lightly greased work surface and pat into a 10 X 12 inch rectangle. Stir together the filling ingredients and sprinkle over the dough, leaving a 1/2 inch strip uncovered on one of the long sides. Distribute the raisins or nuts over the filling. Starting with the filling covered long side, roll the dough into a log. Slice into 12 slices. Put the pieces on a parchment lined baking sheet spaced about 2 inches apart. Tuck the tails underneath each roll to keep them from unravelling as they rise. Back into the warmer until they about double.

Bake on a rack in the upper third of a preheated 375 degree oven for 14 to 18 minutes until light golden brown. Remove from the oven and brush with 1 1/2 Tbs. of melted butter.

For the Icing (optional): Mix the remaining 1 1/2 Tbs. (21 g) melted butter with the remaining icing ingredients. Ice the rolls while they are just lukewarm.

These rolls have just the right amount of sweetness and the butter cinnamon mixture is very nice. While they were baking and when they were lightly microwaved before serving the yeasty cinnamon aroma was one of the pleasures of these rolls.