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Bananas Foster Cinnamon Rolls

Bananas Foster Cinnamon Rolls by Kate Wood of The Wood and Spoon Blog. A take on the classic New Orleans dessert, these bananas foster cinnamon rolls are fluffy yeast rolls inspired by the pioneer woman, filled with butter, cinnamon sugar, pecans, and sliced bananas, and topped with a homemade foster sauce. Caramelized sugar, dark rum, and a bit of butter are a simple way to fancy up your normal homemade breakfast buns. Find the recipe and how to on thewoodandspoon.com

5 from 2 reviews

These bananas foster cinnamon rolls are a breakfast take on the classic boozy dessert. Filled with cinnamon sugar, pecans, and bananas, these rolls are topped with a foster sauce that is to die for!

Ingredients

For the dough:

  • 2 cups (480 mL) milk (whole or 2%)
  • 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick, 85 gm)) unsalted butter
  • 1/2 cup (100 gm) granulated sugar
  • 21/4 teaspoons (1 package) active dry yeast
  • 41/2 cups (540 gm) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon

For the filling:

  • 1/4 cup (1/2 stick, 55 gm) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
  • 1/3 cup (70 gm) brown sugar
  • 11/2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • ½ cup (60 gm) pecans, finely chopped
  • 2 bananas, sliced into very thin coins.

For the bananas foster glaze:

  • ½ cup (1 stick, 113 gm) unsalted butter, diced into tablespoon sized pieces
  • 1 cup (200 gm) brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 large banana, chopped into ½” chunks
  • ¼ (60 mL) cup gold rum
  • Chopped toasted pecans (if desired for sprinkling)

Instructions

To prepare the rolls

  • In a large pot, combine the milk, butter, and sugar over medium heat and allow to warm just before the milk is scalding. Remove from burner and allow to cool until luke warm. Add the yeast and allow to dissolve, about 2 minutes.
  • Add 3-1/2 cups of the flour to the milk mixture and stir to combine. Cover with plastic wrap or a tea towel and allow to rest and rise for 45 minutes to 1 hour. If your dough hasn’t doubled in size within that hour, place the dough in a slightly warmer spot of the kitchen.
  • Combine the remaining flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon and add to the risen dough. Stir to combine. At this point, you can refrigerate the dough overnight or roll out to use immediately. If you decide to save it, punch dough down into bowl if it over-rises.
  • Roll the dough out onto a lightly floured surface to a 10”x30″ rectangle. Spread the melted butter out evenly on the dough, leaving a 1/2 inch border around the sides. Combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, and pecans in a small bowl and sprinkle this out evenly on the dough. Cover the entire sheet of dough evenly with little banana slices.
  • With one of the long ends closest to you, begin to roll the dough away from you, pinching the dough together at the end to seal your roll. Trim off any shaggy ends (no more than 1 inch) Using a sharp knife, cut 1-1/2” slices of buns from your log of dough.
  • Arrange the buns in two 9” round pans or in casserole dishes with about ¾” separation between the buns. Cover the pans with plastic wrap and allow the buns to rise for 25-30 minutes, or until they are puffed and rounded. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Once the rolls are ready for the oven, bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes. Allow to cool on pan for 10-15 minutes and then top with glaze.

To prepare the glaze:

  1. Add the butter and brown sugar to a large cast iron or stainless steel skillet over medium-low heat. Stir in the pan until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved. Add the cinnamon and salt, stirring to combine. Add the diced bananas and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally and flipping the banana pieces as needed. Add the rum, stirring briefly to combine. Remove the pan from heat, tilt it slightly away from you, and using a long handle ignite the rum for the alcohol to burn off. If you’re not comfortable doing this safely, you can omit this step. When the flames have burned out, remove the banana pieces and pour the glaze evenly over the top of the cinnamon buns. Sprinkle with toasted pecans, if desired. Serve warm.

Notes

If desired, strain the banana pieces out of the glaze with a strainer. I prefer to keep them in!