When I was pregnant with my daughter, I worked nearby a bakery that made fresh cinnamon rolls daily. And even with my incessant nausea, the smell of sweet buns made me so happy. Occasionally I’d go and buy one and devour it whole. I’ve made plenty of cinnamon rolls before and they are my favorite flavor, but these sweet cherry rolls with mascarpone icing, are something special.
We love cherries! My daughter especially loves cherries. She eats them faster than I can pit them for her. The other day, my husband brought home 4 bags of cherries and that’s all I could think about the whole day. I went to bed brainstorming, as I do most nights when I’m trying out a new recipe. Do I eat them all? What do I make with them? Cherry pie? CHERRY EVERYTHING? Forget the diamonds, just buy me cherries…..but also put the diamond inside :-p There are few things excite me more than In-season fruit.
These sweet cherry rolls with mascarpone icing are so decadent and luscious, you simply can’t eat just one! They don’t require much time, aside from the rising process, they are pretty quick and simple. Totally worth it!
It’s beings with a yeasted dough that is slightly sweet, but oh so fluffy! I let it rise for 34-45 minutes until doubled in size. I roll it out into a rectangle, fill it, roll it up tightly and cut into 12 pieces and rested to rise again, for another hour. The flavor is amazing.
I use fresh pitted cherries, mixed with a little sugar and vanilla for the filling. I first spread a brown sugar and butter paste all over the rolled out dough. The cherries are gently pressed on top to ensure they stick a bit and don’t flop all over the place when rolling it up. This recipe makes 12 fluffy-sweet rolls and they are baked on a 9×13 sheet pan.
Sweet cherry filling
- Pit 2 cups of fresh cherries. Add them to a bowl.
- Add 3 tbs sugar and vanilla.
- Mix to release their juices and store them into the fridge until ready to use.
If you can’t find or get any fresh cherries, You could use canned cherry pie filling. Just completely omit the sugar, since they are pretty sweet and make sure to drain them and not to use any of the liquid syrup they are soaked it.
I had some extra mascarpone in the fridge and instead of the traditional cream cheese frosting, I decided to go with a milder, creamier topping. The cherries are slightly tart on their own and I just absolutely love the combination with the mascarpone cheese.
Mascarpone Icing
- Beat room temp butter and mascarpone together, until light and fluffy.
- Add in vanilla and milk and beat until mixed in.
- Slowly add in 2 cups of powdered sugar and continue mixing until incorporated.
Notes *
If your icing is too thick, add in another tbsp of milk. If it’s too thin, add in more powdered sugar. The texture should be slightly firm and hold its shape.
Cherry Rolls with Mascarpone Icing
Equipment
- 9×13 Sheet Pan
- Rolling Pin
- Stand Mixer
Ingredients
Dough
- 3 cups +7 tbsp flour ap
- 2 tsp instant yeast
- 5 tbsp softened butter unsalted
- 3 tbsp sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 cup milk
- 1 egg
Cherry Filling
- 2 cups pitted cherries
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp vanilla
- 8 tbsp softened butter
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar
- 2 tbsp sugar
Mascarpone Icing
- ½ cup mascarpone
- 3 tbsp butter
- 1-2 tbsp milk
- 1 ½-2 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
Dough
- Heat the milk in a sauce pan on low until warm and remove from the heat. Add in the butter, yeast and sugar. Stir to combine.
- In a stand mixer, with a dough hook attachment, add in the milk mixture.
- With you mixer on low, add your egg and mix until it's incorporated. Then slowly add your flour and salt and mix until a dough forms. About 2-3 minutes. Your dough should not be sticky. if it's still sticky, add another TBSP of flour, until it pulls away from the bowl. Let it rest in a lightly greased bowl, covered for 30-35 minutes.
Filling
- in a small bowl, mix softened butter, light brown sugar and sugar until a paste forms. I used a fork for this. Leave it in the fridge, until you are ready to roll your dough out.
- In another bowl, mix the pitted cherries, sugar and vanilla. Toss for 30-60 seconds to release their juices and place it in the fridge until your ready to roll your dough out.
Mascarpone Icing
- In a stand mixer with a whisk attachment, whip your mascarpone and butter on medium, until light and fluffy. About 1-2 minutes. Add in the vanilla and milk and mix for another minute. Slowly add the powdered sugar. If the texture is too thick, add more milk and if it's too thin, add more powdered sugar. The texture should be slightly firm and hold its shape. Leave it in the fridge until you are ready to ice the rolls.
Assembling
- Once the dough has risen, punch it down. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out into a 14×20 rectangle.
- With a spatula, take your brown sugar paste and spread it all over the dough. Add your cherries without the liquid and slightly press them into the dough.
- Roll the dough up tightly and cut it into 12 pieces. Place them on a greased sheet pan and allow them to rise for 60 minutes before baking.
- In a 375° preheated oven, bake the rolls for 30 minutes.
- Allow them to slightly cool before icing them (if you can resist!) Enjoy!
Notes
- Allow your brown sugar paste to come back to room temp before spreading.
- If you don’t have any cherries, you could also use strawberries, or even raspberries!
- If you don’t have any mascarpone cheese, you can definitely use the classic cream cheese in the icing.
