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Cinnamon Beet Rolls

Cinnamon Beet Rolls

Over the summer our local CSA hosted a “kids on the farm” day and it was one of the highlights of our summer.  It was such a treat to visit a real farm and see how and where all of our summer produce is grown.  The kids went on an edible farm walk through raspberry bushes, fields of kale, rows of tomatoes, and even explored a mushroom forest.  They learned about healing herbs and made little pouches of homemade tea.  They were able to help feed the pigs and visit the cows.  The experience was wonderful and deepened our appreciation for all of those hard-working farmers out there.  Upon arriving at the farm, we were greeted by a large table set up with a heaping bowl of pink dough deeply colored from red beets.  The kids all delighted in being able to take a bit of dough and shape their own rolls for their morning snack.  And now as we approach Valentine’s Day, I thought it would a festive time to make those beautiful pink sweet rolls again and bring back memories of our day at the farm.

Cinnamon Beet Rolls

Cinnamon Beet Rolls

For as pink as these cinnamon rolls are, the beet flavor is surprisingly subtle if even detectable at all.  A bit of orange and ginger is added to bring out the sweetness.  This dough comes together quickest when you already have some beets pureed, so the next time you roast beets make a few extra so this puree will be on hand.   I left them unfrosted so as to not cover up the pink and instead finished them off with a light pinch of turbinado sugar for sparkle.  With Valentine’s Day falling on a weekend this year, a special breakfast is much more manageable and I think a warm batch of these rolls would be an extra happy way to begin the morning.

Cinnamon Beet Rolls

Cinnamon Beet Rolls

Cinnamon Beet Rolls

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Cinnamon Beet Rolls

Cinnamon Beet Rolls
  • Yield: 24 rolls

Ingredients

  • 4 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast (2 1/4-ouce packets)
  • 1/4 cup warm water, about 105 degrees
  • 1 teaspoon natural cane sugar
  • 1 cup pureed beets
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 1/2 cup natural cane sugar
  • 1/4 cup melted butter
  • 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon orange zest
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons fine grain sea salt
  • 3 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour
  • 2 1/2 cups light spelt flour
  • 1-2 tablespoons raw turbinado sugar
  • 1 egg + 2 tsp water, lightly beaten for egg wash, optional

Filling

  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  • 3/4 cup muscovado sugar
  • 1 tablespoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ginger

Instructions

  1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, dissolve the sugar in warm water and sprinkle over the yeast. Let stand until yeast begins to foam, about 5 minutes. Add the beets, egg, buttermilk, sugar, butter, zest, and salt and mix together with paddle attachment.
  2. Add about half of the flour and continue to mix with the paddle attachment. Switch to the dough hook attachment and add the rest of the flour. Knead until dough comes together and forms a ball, about 5 minutes. Transfer dough to a lightly greased bowl and cover. Let rise at room temperature for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or overnight in the refrigerator.
  3. In a small bowl, use a fork to mix together the muscovado sugar, cinnamon, and ginger.
  4. Divide dough into two portions. On a lightly floured surface, roll each portion into a rectangle about 13″ by 20″. Spread half of the softened butter on each rectangle and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture, leaving a 1/2-inch border around the edges. Roll up dough lengthwise into tight logs, pinch the seams shut, and place the logs seam side down. Cut each log into 12 pieces, rotating cuts on the diagonal. (I cut the ends off first to make a clean edge.) Press an index finger firmly on the top and center of each roll to shape.
  5. Preheat oven to 400.
  6. Place rolls at least 2 inches apart on 2 parchment lined baking sheets. Lightly cover and allow rolls to rise again for 30 minutes. Brush with egg wash and sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
  7. Bake for 14-18 minutes, until light golden. Serve warm. Store leftovers in the freezer wrapped in foil and reheat in the oven when ready to serve.

Notes

dough adapted from Melanie Campbell
shaping method from My Blue and White Kitchen

 

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37 Responses to Cinnamon Beet Rolls

    • My kids love going to farms too and picking their own fruit and and veggies. Somehow it’s so much more fun to eat when you pick your own, right? Thanks for always encouraging, Mary Ann!

  2. Such an excellent idea Emily! I love how you crimped them down the center. We do that with Chinese steamed rolls too to create pretty designs 🙂 I’m so inspired by the gorgeous pink of these rolls <3

  4. I am in AWE right now Emily. Gorgeous, gorgeous, and more gorgeous.
    I love how beets can be used for so many applications, and how the kids got to see it’s versatility and make their own breakfast at the farm! xo

    • I appreciate your sweet words, Amanda! Agree that beets are so versatile and it’s such a bonus that they add such fun pops of color to so many things, right? Hope you are well. xoxo

  5. Emily, I am whole-heartedly agreeing with Amanda here – I am in complete awe with these rolls. I am continuously amazed at the versatility, and this is such a beautiful and honest application. I adore that the CSA had a kids day – I am super passionate about kids being able to learn all things of food and farm. It sounds like the most wonderful experience! I hope you have a lovely weekend sweet lady. ♥

    • The CSA has been such a blessing to us in so many ways and my kids always look forward to picking up our share at the market each week during the summer. They still aren’t in love with all things veggie yet, but I have high hopes that someday they will. 🙂 Thank you, Danielle!

    • Thank you Tessa! I am such a bread baking mode right now- it’s so calming and comforting on this chilly days. Hope you are well friend! xo

    • It seems that I am always cold during this season (and I imagine it’s even colder for you!) and all I want to do is turn on the oven to keep warm. 🙂 Bread baking is so good for that, right? Thanks, sweet friend. xo

  9. These are the most gorgeous little swirls I have ever seen, friend. And what a neat time to spend on the farm learning with your kids, that program sounds so wonderful – wouldn’t it be neat if that was incorporated into our schools?! The flavor combo of ginger and orange with the beet here is singing to my heart. I hope you enjoyed snacking on these this past week, and have a gorgeous weekend Emily! xo

    • Yes, it’s so important for kids to learn about how food is grown! Thankfully our school has a fairly large learning garden for the students. (Although MI is so cold for the majority of the school year and they aren’t able to do much with it in the winter.) For the first time this year, our school started a program on healthy eating and kids are supposed to bring in fruit/veggie snacks for their birthdays (instead of cupcakes, cookies, etc.). That’s been so refreshing. 🙂 So thankful for the CSA though and all that we’ve learned through them! Thank you, Jessie! xo

  10. There’s nothing like fresh veggies from a CSA and having access to a farm that hosts these types of events. That’s part of the fun of a CSA! No doubt your kids are learning important things about how our food is grown the value of family farms. What fun! I love these beet rolls! They are gorgeous and there’s nothing like using natural food coloring to make food more fun! I’ve used purred beets before for baking cake, but never in a yeasted dough! What fun! I love how you shaped these… just beautiful! Thank you for this Emily!

    • I just tried pureed beets in that chocolate cake/bread and I’m officially obsessed with putting beets in everything now. 🙂 And yes, we are so thankful to be members of our CSA and it has taught us so much. Got my matcha tea on this morning thanks to you and matcha chia pudding is up next, thanks to you! xo

  11. Oh my! Emily!! These look so SO amazing. Your creativity in cooking and baking shines through these rolls. Not to mention they are perfect for the Valentine’s Day.
    I also think that this is such a beautiful way of using those CSA veggies we all get in boxes.
    Well done, my friend.
    XOXO

  15. Wow! These are soooo cute! I want to make them but where I live (Argentina) I can’t find teff flour. Can I substitute with rye flour? or make it all whole wheat? Will any measurements change? Thanks and happy valentines 🙂

    • Thank you, Adriana! Do you mean finding a substitute for the spelt flour? You could certainly use all white whole wheat, but the rolls will be slightly more dense and not quite as light. (which is fine as long as you are accustomed to whole grain breads) Rye flour will change the flavor, but it might be a nice change. If you go that route, I would perhaps use 4 cups white whole wheat and 2 cups rye flour. If you prefer the rolls to be lighter and have a bit more bounce, I would substitute all-purpose flour. Hope this helps! Happy Valentines Day to you too. 🙂

  17. I would like to thank you for this awesome recipe ,I tried it but filed them with fresh dates,and turned out to be awesome, every body liked it, thanks.

    • Thanks so much, Azza! Makes me so glad to hear that you enjoyed it. I love cinnamon date rolls too! I bet your date filling was so wonderful with these!