Orange-White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cinnamon Rolls

I hope you'll forgive me for being just a little slow in posting this recipe. It's not that it's not a good one...in fact this is probably the yummiest cinnamon roll I've made. For sure, it's my favorite so far. So, why the hesitation? Frankly, it's because I'm on a diet going through a lifestyle change. Not to worry--I haven't completely abandoned the "good stuff". After all, my motto is "everything in moderation". It's just that I'm still in the beginning stages and, while most of this batch is resting in the freezer, it's a little painful looking at the picture. Please bear with me as I learn the moderation process.

I think orange zest may be one of my favorite flavor additions...this roll is full of it!

Orange-White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cinnamon Rolls

Printable Recipe

Dough:

1 cup milk

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon grated orange zest

2 ¼ teaspoons yeast
1 egg, slightly beaten

3-3 ½ cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

Filling:

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 tablespoon grated orange peel

1/4 cup cold butter, cut into 4-5 pieces
1 (3.5-4 oz) bar premium white chocolate
1/2 cup diced macadamia nuts

Frosting:

2 tablespoons butter, softened

2 tablespoons cream cheese, softened

½ teaspoon vanilla

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon grated orange peel

2-3 tablespoons orange juice

Preheat oven to 375 ° F.

 Heat the milk, 1/4 cup butter, 1/4 cup sugar, and orange peel in a small saucepan until butter is melted and sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat. Let cool until temperature is about 110 degrees F (like bathwater warm).

I started early on with the orange flavor by putting some in the warmed milk.

In a medium bowl, whisk together 3 cups of the flour and the salt.

In a large mixing bowl, combine milk mixture with yeast, egg, and 2 cups of the flour mixture; beat well. Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the dough has just pulled together, turn it onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, about 5 minutes. (Alternately, just use the dough hook on your mixer and let the mixer knead the dough for about five minutes).

Place the dough in a greased bowl and cover with a clean damp towel. Allow dough to rise until double, about 1 hour.  In the mean time, process the brown sugar, cinnamon, orange peel, and white chocolate in a food processor. Add the cold butter and pulse until incorporated.

Roll out the dough into a 12 X 9 inch rectangle (I like to do this on my Silpat). Sprinkle the brown sugar mixture evenly over the dough, leaving a 1/2 inch edge. Sprinkle the diced macadamia nuts evenly over the the filling. Roll up the dough from the long side and pinch seam to seal. Cut into 12 equal sized pieces and place into a greased 9 X 13 inch pan. Cover and let rise until doubled (or refrigerate overnight).

Bake at 375 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until browned. Remove from oven and frost while warm.

For frosting, beat the cream cheese and the butter in a medium bowl. Add the orange peel and vanilla. Slowly add the powdered sugar and orange juice, beating to desired consistency.

I've said it before--the frosting is the best part.

Hint: to avoid over-consumption, wrap each cinnamon roll in plastic wrap and freeze. To serve, simply nuke the frozen roll for 30 seconds.

Cherry-White Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Welcome to Christmas Week, a multi-blogger event co-hosted by Kim of Cravings of a Lunatic and Jen of Juanita’s Cocina. Each day we will be celebrating a new holiday baking theme where each blogger makes a dish they love. We hope you enjoy this fabulous event. Tune in each day starting Monday December 3nd and ending Friday December 7th.

Wow--this is the very first time I have committed to writing five (count 'em--five!) blog posts on consecutive days, but isn't holiday food worth it? Not only will you see five days worth of Christmas goodies coming from me, but the sweets will be flowing from eleven other bloggers. Isn't this fun? Now, let's talk about the cookies.....

A few years ago, my friend DeeDee posted one of the prettiest cookies I had ever seen. Full of maraschino cherries, white chocolate, and macadamia nuts, it really stood out as a stellar Christmas cookie. As luck would have it, DeeDee has allowed me to post her recipe to kick off Christmas Week. So, without further ado, let me share with you this spectacular cookie....

Cherry-White Chocolate Chunk Cookies (adapted from DeeDee Pierce)

Ingredients:

3 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

2 cups granulated sugar

2 large eggs

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon almond extract

½ cup chopped macadamia nuts

6 oz good quality white chocolate, coarsely chopped

1 (10 oz) jar maraschino cherries, well drained and chopped

I found a package of macadamia nuts all nicely chopped up for me. If you prefer larger pieces, feel free to chop your own.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F; line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment*, cream the butter and the sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla and the almond extracts.

Add the flour, half at a time, to the creamed mixture, stirring just until well-incorporated. The dough will be stiff. Stir in the nuts and the white chocolate, then gently stir in the cherries. 

Since my jar of cherries was larger than I needed, I measured out one cup.

Drop the cookie dough by rounded tablespoons on to the lined cookie sheets. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until they are firmly set, but not browned. Remove from the oven and allow the cookies to cool completely, before removing from the sheets (if you need to reuse the pan, simply slide off the parchment paper with the cookies, and reline).

*Using a stand mixer is recommended, as the cookie dough is rather stiff.

It's important to cool the cookies on the parchment paper...if you try removing them while they are still warm, they may fall apart. Trust me on this....

There you have it---beautiful cherry cookies! While you can certainly make these year-round (wouldn't that cherry-red color be great for Valentine's day?), I hear that this particular recipe is Santa's favorite. Please leave a few out for the jolly old guy.

Today’s theme for Christmas Week is “Cookies and Bars”. Make sure you visit all the participating bloggers today to see what special dish they whipped up for you.

• Mice Cookies from Kim of Cravings of a Lunatic
• Biscoff Blossoms from Jen of Juanita’s Cocina
• Double Chocolate Thumbprints from Liz of That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Cookie Sticks from Anuradha of Baker Street
• Snickerdoodles Snowballs from Kristen of Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker
• Cranberry Pistachio Christmas Biscotti from Isabelle of Crumb
• Mint Chocolate Pudding Cookies from Erin of Dinners, Dishes and Desserts
• Hot Cocoa Blossoms from Erin of Spiffy Cookie
• Jam Thumbprints from Ramona of Curry and Comfort
• Fudgy Cathedral Cookies from Heather of Girlichef
• Cherry White Chocolate Chunk Cookies from Cathy of The Dutch Baker’s Daughter
• Cranberry Sauce Brownies from Chung-Ah of Damn Delicious