Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Stuffed Cinnamon Buns

The theme for the Recipe Swap this round was breakfast.  I was excited when I saw that my recipe was Christine's Kitchen Chronicles since I guest posted for her not too long ago.   Her blog is full of a lot of great recipes, so I was excited to try these.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Stuffed Cinnamon Buns
from Christine's Kitchen Chronicles
Ingredients
For the Ready to Eat Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
1/3 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
3 Tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

For the Cinnamon Rolls:
2 cups milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup sugar
1 packet yeast (2-1/4 teaspoons)
4-1/2 cups flour (I used 1-1/2 cups whole wheat and 3 cups all purpose)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 stick (4 Tablespoons) butter
cinnamon
sugar
1 batch ready to eat cookie dough

For the Icing:

2 1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoon butter, melted 

2 teaspoon vanilla
4 Tablespoons heavy cream or milk

 

Directions
1)  Make the Cookie Dough:  In a small bowl, cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in milk and vanilla. Add in flour. Stir in chocolate chips.  Store in an air-tight container in the fridge.
2) Mix the milk, oil, and sugar in a large pot. Scald milk mixture (heat until not quite boiling) and then let it cool to room temperature.  If the liquid is too hot, you will kill your yeast and your rolls will not rise.
3) Sprinkle yeast over milk mixture and let it sit for a couple minutes.  Stir in 4 cups of flour to form a sticky dough. Cover pan and let the dough rise for 1 hour. 
4) After dough has risen, stir in remaining 1/2 cup of flour, baking powder, and baking soda until well combined. 
5) Divide dough in half. On a flour covered workplace, roll the dough out until it's about 1/8" thick and in a rectangular shape about 18 inches long and 12 inches wide.
6) Melt butter in a glass measuring cup or a small bowl. Pour half of the melted butter over the dough and spread using a brush. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon (the amount is up to you). Top with spoonfuls of prepared chocolate chip cookie dough. 
7) Roll dough toward you, keeping the spiral as tight as possible. Cut into 3/4 inch slices. Place in a greased pan.  
8) Repeat this process with the other half of the dough.  
9) Let the cinnamon rolls rise again for 30 minutes. Then bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes. 
10) While rolls are in the oven, mix together ingredients for icing.  You want it to be the consistency of a spreadable frosting.  Add powdered sugar if it is too runny and heavy cream if it is too thick. 
11) Let the rolls cool for about 5 minutes before icing.  

These are definitely more of a weekend recipe than a weekday recipe.  Since I don't have a lot of experience with yeast, I was scared, but everything turned out really good.  I don't know if these needed to be stuffed with cookie dough, but it made them different and they were good.  I doubled the amount of icing because we really like a lot of icing on our cinnamon rolls.  These would definitely be a great special breakfast for a holiday or a momentous occasion.