Browned-Butter Pecan Cinnamon Rolls

Fall is finally here!  Hooray!  Even though I am fairly sad to see the warm summer weather go, I am very willing to welcome autumn.  Hoodies and jeans, caramel apples, pumpkins, hearty soups and chilis, hot coffee on chilly mornings, scarves and light jackets, cool hikes through Percy Warner, THANKSGIVING!, cinnamon candles that smell up the house, hay rides and corn mazes!  I'm pumped.  Along with all these wonderful things come some of the best baked goods.  Delicious dishes that include spices such as cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, cloves, fruits like apples and pears, and my most favorite veggie, sweet potatoes.  

The first fall dish that I made were these cinnamon rolls...

These are not your traditional cinnamon rolls.  They are spiced browned-butter pecan cinnamon rolls.

I don't think that I have ever made-from scratch cinnamon rolls.  They're so much better than the canned dough that you have to pop open (those things scare me every time I open them!).

Browned butter.  Have never made this. Have read food blogs that have delicious-looking recipes that used this, but have never tasted. 

Melting butter until it turns golden brown and solidifies just a little-creates a more nutty flavor than regular butter.  Added some ginger, cinnamon, sugar and milk to make a glaze, and pour them over the rolls.

They're fun to make and turn out delicious!

Browned-butter pecan cinnamon rolls

Loosely adapted from SouthernLiving magazine

for the rolls:

1 cup chopped pecans

1 (16-oz) package hot roll mix (I know, I cheated a little for this one)

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar

2 tsp cinnamon

For the Glaze:

3 T unsalted butter

1 cup confectioners sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ginger

pinch salt

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1-3 T milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Bake pecans in a single layer in a shallow pan until toasted, 5-7 mins.

Prepare hot roll dough as directed on package; let dough stand 5 mins.  Roll dough into a 15x10 rectangle; spread with softened butter.  Stir together brown sugar and cinnamon, and sprinkle over dough.  Sprinkle pecans over brown sugar mixture.  Roll up tightly, starting at one long end.  Cut into slices (makes about 12).  Place the rolls in a lightly greased 12 in cast iron skillet or 13x9 in pan.  Cover with plastic wrap and a cloth towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 30 mins.

Preheat oven to 375.  

Uncover rolls and bake for 20-25mins until rolls are golden brown.  Let cool.

To make the glaze:

Melt butter in a small saucepan over low heat.  When melted, continue to heat butter over medium heat until it begins to brown.  Remove it from heat as soon as it turns a golden brown color.  Be careful, because it will burn very quickly!  Let cool.  

In a bowl, mix together the sugar and spices.  gradually mix in cooled butter, vanilla and enough milk to create a glaze consistency.  

Pour over rolls.