Hey friends!
I’m so excited to announce that it’s time for another Baking Bootcamp Series with King Arthur Flour!
Baking Bootcamp is a 3-part baking challenge that’s meant to get us in the kitchen and have us emerge with new technique, new baking knowledge, and really lovely sweet treats! Let’s bake together!
Last year we baked four delicious recipes and learned about the difference between baking flours along the way.
We made Triple Berry Cinnamon Swirl Bread + Whole Wheat Oatmeal Honey Bread + Apple Pie Biscuits and Gruyere and Green Olive Rolls. Sharing our treats on Instagram and becoming better bakers along the way!
This Baking Bootcamp, we’re focusing on technique. I want to take some of baking’s most intimidating techniques and make then approachable enough for our home kitchens. Let’s push ourselves!
For our first challenge, we’re making quick puff pastry. Puff pastry is a laminated dough that focuses on incorporating cold butter into flour, creating a very rich, flaky, luscious dough. True puff pastry is a real undertaking of time, temperature, and courage. We’re going to make a quick puff pastry, using a rolling and folding technique, to create buttery and flaky breakfast rolls.
My Supplies! Here’s what you’ll need for the Chocolate Hazelnut Rolls with quick puff pastry.
Three recipes shared on Instagram #bakingbootcamp + Three awesome sets of prizes!
The idea is simple!
• Make these Chocolate Hazelnut Rolls with quick puff pastry (they’re sooooo good!) and take a picture of your creation!
• Follow @joythebaker and @kingarthurflour on Instagram
• Photograph your beautiful rolls and post them to Instagram with the hashtag #bakingbootcamp
• When you submit a photo, you’ll be entered to win a 1-year supply of King Arthur Flour and a Baking Essentials box valued at $250!! Official rules and details can be found here.
Let’s get baking!
Let’s start by making the quick puff pastry.
King Arthur has a post about making true laminated dough. Lots of great tips and information.
We’re making a simple laminated dough starting with 2 cups of King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour.
Salt into the flour to bring flavor.
We aren’t adding sugar to our puff pastry. There will be plenty of sweetness incorporated with the hazelnut filling and sugary glaze.
Plenty of butter. Flour and butter is our foundation.
About the butter. Let it be cold, cubed, salted, and fatty. Use the highest quality butter you can find. A European-style butter (extra creamy and fatty) is the way to go.
The butter to flour ratio is pretty high: 2 cups of flour to 10 ounces (that’s 2 1/2 sticks) butter.
Use a pastry cutter (or even your hands, if you’re speedy) to break the butter down into the flour.
The mixture will be very crumbly with butter, coating all of the flour in fat, and leaving big bits of butter throughout the dough. We want larger chunks of butter to create that marbling and flaky layers that make puff pastry as delicious as it is.
Create a small well in the center of the butter and flour mixture and add water, 2/3 cup of cold water to bring our simple ingredients together.
Work as quickly as you can to keep the butter as cold as you can.
The dough will be on the wet side of sticky. That’s right! No need to stir too much once the dough comes together. We’re going to roll and fold the dough to further incorporate the dough.
A well-floured work surface is key for rolling out the dough.
Commit to making a mess on your kitchen counter. It will all be worth it.
The dough is placed on the floured work surface, sprinkled with flour, and shaped into a 1 1/2-inch thick rectangle.
Lightly roll the dough into a 1/2-inch thick rectangle.
The dough will be fairly soft, so you won’t need a lot of pressure in rolling.
Now a fold!
Starting with the bottom of the rectangle, fold the dough up 1/3.
Press the dough, just lightly.
And fold the top third of dough over the first.
We’re creating a dough envelope.
The dough is turned to the right one-quarter turn.
And this time the folded dough is rolled into a 1/2-inch rectangle, and folded again using the same envelope technique, turned another quarter turn, and the process is repeated six or seven turns.
With four simple ingredients, rolling and folding, rolling and folding, the dough comes together beautifully into a soft but sturdy dough.
Fold into thirds, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerator for 1 hour (or overnight) is necessary.
Chilling the dough is essential to re-chill the butter and distribute the moisture, so when we roll the dough out, we maintain all of the butter layers for beautifully flaky rolls.
The dough is rolled into a 1/4-inch thick rectangle.
If the dough was in the refrigerator overnight, it will be super chilled and may need about 20 minutes to rest at room temperature and may take a bit more pressure in rolling out.
Move the rolled dough around on the floured counter to ensure that it’s not sticking.
Time to fill!
We’re going with chocolate and hazelnut flavors. They feel perfectly cozy for fall.
For the hazelnut layer I used King Arthur Flours Hazelnut Praline Paste. It’s the consistency of almond butter and is absolutely delicious as a sweet and nutty filling. You could also use a chocolate hazelnut spread like Nutella in a pinch.
Spread in an even layer.
Sprinkle generously with chopped roasted hazelnuts.
And chopped dark chocolate too.
If you’re using a chocolate hazelnut spread, you may want to skip the dark chocolate sprinkles.
The long and tall end of the dough is rolled tight.
And lightly pressed together to create an even roll.
Use a bench knife to create 1 1/2-inch thick rolls.
And place in a lightly greased muffin tin for baking!
The rolls emerge from the oven bubbling and golden. They rise slightly during baking, creating really delicious, flaky golden pillows of chocolate and hazelnut.
While they cool just slightly, whisk up a simple powdered sugar glaze.
And generously spread!
These rolls are best served warm and glazed the day they’re baked.
I’m so happy to be back with another Baking Bootcamp challenge! I can’t wait to see what comes out of your oven!
Some recipe notes:
• Rolled and folded puff pastry can last int he fridge up to 4 days, and well-wrapped in the freezer for a month. If frozen, thaw in the refrigerator before rolling.
• Rolls can be filled, sliced and frozen. To bake, thaw in the refrigerator overnight before baking.
Print
Chocolate Hazelnut Rolls with Quick Puff Pastry
- Prep Time: 90
- Cook Time: 30
- Total Time: 2 hours
- Yield: 12 1x
Ingredients
For the Quick Puff Pastry
- 2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- ¼ teaspoon fine salt
- 20 tablespoons high-quality salted butter (10 ounces), cold and cut into cubes
- 2/3 cup ice cold water
For the Filling
- 1 (11-ounce) can Hazelnut Praline Paste (or 1 1/4 cups chocolate hazelnut spread)
- 3 tablespoons salted butter, melted (omit if using chocolate hazelnut spread)
- 1/2 cup coarsely chopped roasted hazelnuts
- 1/2 cup coarsely chopped dark chocolate
For the Glaze
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 2–4 tablespoons water or heavy cream (depending on how thick you’d like your glaze)
Instructions
- To make the puff pastry, in a medium bowl combine the flour and salt.
- Add the cold, cubed butter and toss to coat.
- Use a pastry cutter or your hands to quickly work the butter into the dough. It will be very crumbly with large bits of butter throughout the dough. That’s right.
- Make a well in the center of the mixture and pour in all of the water. Using a wooden spoon or spatula, quickly stir to incorporate the dough. The dough will be slightly wet and sticky with occasional patches of dryness. That’s right. Try not to overmix the dough.
- Flour a work surface well and add the dough. Pat it into a rough, about 1 1/2-inch thick rectangle. You will still see chunks of butter and if there seems to be bits of dryness, that’s ok. The dough will come together with each roll.
- Flour the rolling pin, and roll the dough out in front of you into a rectangle about 10 to 12-inches long and about 8-inches wide.
- Fold the bottom third of the dough over the middle of the dough. Fold the upper third of the dough on top of the middle fold. Rotate the dough one-quarter turn, and repeat. Pick the dough up and use additional flour on the counter to prevent the dough from sticking.
- Roll out, fold, and turn the dough at least 6 or 7 times.
- When done, wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for at least 1-hour or overnight. If you refrigerate the dough overnight, let it sit at room temperature for 20 minutes before rolling.
- When ready to make the rolls, place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a muffin tin with butter or nonstick spray and set aside.
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator and, on a well-floured work surface, roll the dough into a 1/4-inch thick rectangle.
- If using the hazelnut praline spread, in a small bowl stir together the spread and melted butter.
- Spread generously with hazelnut praline spread, or chocolate hazelnut spread.
- Sprinkle with chopped hazelnuts and chopped chocolate.
- Begin rolling from the long or tall end, finishing seam side down.
- Slice into 12 even rolls, about 1 1/4-inch thick.
- Place in the prepared baking tin and bake until golden brown and bubbling with butter, about 24-28 minutes. The rolls may take longer to bake depending on your oven, but keep an eye to make sure they don’t brown too much.
- Remove from the oven, allow to cool for 10 minutes in the pan before removing to a wire rack to cool until just barely warm before glazing.
- Whisk together the powdered sugar and water or cream to create a thick and smooth glaze. Frost the rolls and enjoy!
40 Responses
Forgot to rate this! ?
I just made these rolls yesterday, and they are absolutely fantastic. The easy puff pastry alone is genius; roughly the same puff and layers as a traditional puff pastry, but without the added effort of chilling sheets of butter. Although, I did alter the recipe; I omitted the glaze, and because I didn’t have hazelnut paste, I used a combination of tahini (roughly 3/4 cups) and almond butter (maybe 1/2 a cup) instead. The addition of tahini might sound unusual especially considering that I added quite a lot of it, but with the addition of coconut sugar and maple syrup, it had a halva-esque sort of taste.
I love your blog and have had a lot of success with recipes in the past. I’m a skilled professional baker and have made puff pastry hundreds of times. I made the recipe to a T (with the exception of using homemade chocolate hazelnut praline paste for the filling), but had the same problem as other commenters. I generally bake puff pastry and other laminated doughs around 400F, and was concerned about 350, and think this might be the problem for all the butter oozing out. It dripped over the side of my muffin tin and smoked the entire house. As other commenters mentioned, the outside was done, while the inside was still incredibly raw, and tasted greasy and unappetizing.
Agree with a few other commenters- left mine in the oven for 35 minutes. Exterior was done but the inside of the rolls is definitely under. I used the proper praline paste from KAF (sooooo expensive and hard to recombine to a smooth consistency- even after the recommendation of storing the can upside down until ready to use). Also agree that these stewed in butter in the cupcake tin. One of these rolls is just so, so, so heavy and dense. I can’t even imagine adding the frosting.
This was such a fun challenge, the rolls came out nice and flaky. I’ve been really into learning how to DIY almost anything and everything lately because we moved and now live 75 minutes from the grocery store so I can’t just make a quick trip for puff pastry- this will be a nice skill in my tool box. I may even feel brave enough for traditionally made puff pastry next.
I just stumbled across this and want to try making this! How long till the next step in this series? I want to get this one done before the next one.
I made these today and they are incredibly rich & decadent. The dough came together beautifully. I’d be interested in some other recipes to use with this dough. I agree with some others that they took considerably longer to bake. I used European butter which had great flavor and I got terrific flakiness from the dough. Thanks Joy!
Yes, another Baking Bootcamp! These look divine!!!
Hi Joy,
I’d really love to follow along! I am wondering if you can make suggestions for substitutions for a dairy allergy. I often have a hard time telling if coconut milk or almond milk will substitute in along with Earth Balance butter. Somtimes the properies don’t react like good old milk and butter.
Please let me know if it’s worth trying with substitutes!
Thanks!
It is hard to tell if other milks will have enough fat to work well in recipes. However, I find that most of the time alternate milks work fine. I would suggest almond milk over coconut milk though.
My experience was the same as Jennifer and The Baking Surgeon. Exterior was too hard and the interior was too raw. The rolls seemed to stew in the butter. I’ve made puff pastry (the real deal) and generally don’t have problems with any pastry dough. I think the problem was mainly with the hazelnut spread. I used a better quality product than Nutella but had to thin it with butter to make it spreadable. My guess is that the King Arthur proprietary product works much better; I’m usually hesitant to make a recipe that relies on a special King Arthur product because the substitutes aren’t reliable.
Thanks for your feedback Margie! You’re right, these rolls are very buttery and some of the butter will bubble out of the rolls as they bake. In my experience testing this recipe, the outside of the rolls were a light golden brown and the inside doughy, but still cooked through.
My husband has discovered the source of his horrific tummy issues this year, gluten…can this recipe be adapted to use a gluten-free blend of flour?
Thank you for your BEAUTIFUL posts!!!
Is it wrong that I want to add Nutella, chocolate chips, and chopped up hazelnuts? Too much or just right? The video and photos are incredibly helpful, I can’t wait to try this recipe out. The baking bootcamp is a fantastic series!
oo neato! love a laminated dough.
I like your blog and follow you on the instagram, but now I don’t know what to say. Just… This is not puff pastry. I appreciate your desire to learn new things. Just please, learn them before you start teaching them. I repeat: This is not puff pastry. There are quick ways of doing puff pastry and this is not it. This is just a variation on sweet rolls dough whitout yeast . Your pie crust with the butter cubes is nearer to puff pastry than this.
Not sure what you mean as this lines up with a zillion other puff pastry recipes on the internet from Gordon Ramsay to Martha Stewart to many other professionals’ quick versions. What makes this not a puff pastry?
Thanks Pat! I absolutely understand that this is not traditional puff pastry.
It’s so nice to see your lovely face on camera <3
Hi Joy.
First – love your blog…
This is my first attempt at puff pastry. Already posted results on instagram. But – they came out tasting way too buttery, and by the time they started browning slightly on the outside, the outer layer was kind of overdone and the center not enough.
I’d be greatful for any tips on how to improve.
Thanks,
Di
Yep, insanely buttery and took about 40 minutes to get the top to brown as they bubbled up in boiling butter. Tasty, but mostly like butter.
LOVE your baking bootcamp posts! I’ve never made puff pastry before, I think it’s finally time! xo
very careful touch from you to make these sweet pieces
SO happy you’re doing this again! This year, I’ll make my IG profile public so you can actually see my attempts. :\ :)
Right on!
a lot of bootcamps do the losing of calories, not making of!! but i’m in. ~also, i love my king arthur yeast. i never us any other.
I’m so glad your baking bootcamp is back! I’ve only ever made puff pastry that takes a lot of time and patience, so I’m really excited to try these out!
Sounds delicious…making puff pastry isn’t that hard, but I love yummy shortcuts!
I’m still a bit of a novice with puff pastry, but it’s on my list of skills to master. These rolls look delicious, and like they’d be great practice.
I am so happy that you are doing another Baking Bootcamp series! These rolls look soooo yummy and I love all the simple, yet helpful tips that you included!
I’ve always wondered how to make homemade puff pastry, and these instructions make it sound so easy and fun! And these rolls look divine. This baking challenge is going to be loads of fun!
Hi Joy, I’d love to try these. My kids are allergic to nuts, what would be another suitable option for the filling? Would the chocolate alone be enough? Cinnamon/sugar combo? a jam option? I’m not sure about the moisture content and don’t want to use the wrong filling after the work of making a puff pastry. Thanks for any suggestions.
My husband is allergic to hazelnuts so I am hoping Joy has a suggestion for a substitution.
I haven’t tried it myself, but you can try almond butter as a substitution.
Wondering the same thing. We have a nut allergy in my family too.
Thanks for empowering us to make the things we’ve always been afraid to make. I’m ready to try this recipe but I won’t freeze the rolls. I can’t imagine living in a house where those were in the freezer instead of being eaten immediately upon being made.
I did the bread one last year and also came and baked with you in Vermont at King Arthur Flour! I would love to do that again! Looking forward to trying this one! They look delicious
Definitely my kind of rolls. I especially love that filling!!
Ok, I know it is all about the baking but. . . . I love your apron in the photo! I love to bake and especially this time of year.
The baking bootcamp posts have been great and these rolls look divine!