Every Valentine’s Day throughout my childhood, my mom would wake up a little bit earlier than normal and set out all kinds of sweet treats for my brother and me at our places at the kitchen table. She included handwritten notes, heart-shaped chocolates, and lots of candy conversation hearts.
We could usually count of a festive-themed dinner with heart-shaped grilled cheese sandwiches or sliced strawberries arranged into a heart around the rim of our plates. And if we woke up with enough time in the morning, Mom cooked a special breakfast—not just the typical bowl of cereal and milk—for us too.
For her, the easiest breakfast “treat” was pancakes. She could practically mix up the batter in her sleep, and it took almost no extra effort to pour it into heart shapes instead of the Mickey Mouse faces we usually requested. Sometimes, she even dyed the batter pink with red food coloring or let us put chocolate chips on top.
This year, I wanted to make an extra special breakfast of my own for my family, but because out favorite buttermilk pancakes were off-limits (my brother is now lactose-intolerant and allergic to eggs!), I decided to bake something everyone could enjoy.
And since I value my sleep and didn’t exactly want to wake up at the crack of dawn to do it, I created these easy Strawberry Sweet Rolls. They’re light and fruity with a decadent drizzle, so it’s practically like eating chocolate-dipped strawberries for breakfast!
The dough for the sweet rolls consists of fairly typical ingredients: coconut oil, sweetener, salt, yeast, and Silk® Unsweetened Cashewmilk. Unlike other yeast doughs, this one does not require proofing the yeast in warm milk, which shaves off an extra 15 minutes. So sleep in a little later!
To make these more nutritious, I used 100% whole wheat flour. However, the rolls are still as soft and tender as regular sweet rolls made with all-purpose flour! You could easily substitute white whole wheat or whole wheat pastry flour instead, and yes, even all-purpose flour if that’s all you have on hand.
The filling simply consists of frozen unsweetened strawberries and cornstarch. When baking with fruit, I generally prefer frozen because it’s cheaper and readily available all year round. The cornstarch thickens the juices that the berries release while baking and maximizes the bright fruit flavor.
After rolling up the filling inside of the dough, the frozen strawberries will rapidly chill the dough. Extremely cold dough does not rise as quickly as room temperature dough. So you have two options… (a) Bake the sweet rolls right away slightly longer, or (b) cover the pan tightly with plastic wrap, refrigerate, and bake them first thing in the morning. Either way, the rolls will magically rise and spread in the oven, so it’s just a matter of how much you want to sleep in!
For the dark chocolate drizzle, you’ll need cocoa powder, sweetener, and more Silk® Unsweetened Cashewmilk. I prefer a really deep, dark chocolate flavor to complement the sweet strawberry filling, so I use more milk than sweetener. Tweak the recipe to suit your tastes according to the notes beneath the recipe.
So this Valentine’s Day, treat yourself to an easy make-ahead breakfast with these Strawberry Sweet Rolls with Dark Chocolate Drizzle. There are more than enough to share with your family and loved ones, and I’m guessing none of them will refuse chocolate for breakfast!
| Strawberry Sweet Rolls with Dark Chocolate Drizzle | Print |
- for the rolls
- ½ c (120mL) warm Silk® Unsweetened Cashewmilk (100-110°F)
- 6 tbsp (90mL) agave
- 1 tsp (4g) coconut oil, melted
- 1 tsp (5mL) vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp (2g) salt
- 2 ¼ tsp (one ¼ oz envelope) yeast
- 2 ¼ – 3 ½ c (270-420g) whole wheat flour
- 2 ½ c (210g) frozen unsweetened strawberries, thawed slightly (just enough to slice)
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- small bowl of water
- for the drizzle
- 3 tbsp (15g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tbsp (15mL) agave
- 5 tsp (25mL) Silk® Unsweetened Cashewmilk
- Lightly coat a 9”-round cake pan (or two 6”-round cake pans) with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, stir together the warm cashewmilk, agave, melted coconut oil, vanilla, salt, and yeast. Add 1 + ¾ cups of flour, and stir until it’s completely incorporated. Continue adding flour, 2-3 tablespoons at a time, until the dough no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl. Turn the dough out onto a clean, well-floured surface, and knead for a few minutes or until it springs back when you gently press your index finger into it. Let the dough rest for at least 10 minutes.
- While waiting, prepare the filling. Dice the strawberries, and toss them with the cornstarch in a medium bowl until they’re completely coated.
- Re-flour your surface if necessary, and lightly flour a rolling pin. Roll out the dough into a large rectangle about 12”x16”. Spread the strawberries into a single layer on top of the dough rectangle, leaving a 1” border on the two longer edges. Starting at one longer edge, carefully roll up the dough into a log towards the opposite longer edge, trying not the squash the strawberries too much. Brush water onto the second longer edge and where it meets the dough log before pinching shut to seal.
- Slice the dough log into 12 equal portions using dental floss (see Notes in the text of this blog post). Place them cut side down into the prepared pan(s).
- Option A: To bake right away, preheat the oven to 350°F while letting the rolls rest in the pan. Bake at 350°F for 32-35 minutes, or until the spirals of the rolls in the center feel somewhat firm. Cool in the pan for at least 5 minutes before removing.
- Option B: To bake the next morning, cover the top of the pan with plastic wrap, and wrap a large rubber band around the rim to keep the plastic wrap in place. Chill overnight. In the morning, remove the pan(s) from the refrigerator, and let them sit on the countertop at room temperature while preheating the oven to 350°F. Once the oven is ready, remove the plastic wrap from the pan(s), and bake the rolls at 350°F for 27-30 minutes. Cool in the pan for at least 5 minutes before removing.
- To prepare the drizzle, stir together the cocoa powder, agave, and cashewmilk. Spoon into a zip-topped bag, cut off one corner, and drizzle on top of the rolls just before serving.
For a sweeter drizzle, increase the agave by 1-2 teaspoons and decrease the cashewmilk by the same amount until it reaches your desired taste.
{vegan, clean eating, low fat, low calorie}
Irresistibly smooth, Silk® Unsweetened Cashewmilk is creamier than skim milk but with 1/3 of the calories. You + Cashewmilk = True Love. To celebrate, Silk® will be giving away hundreds of The Perfect Match Gift Sets for you and a friend at PerfectMatch.Silk.com!
*This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Silk®. As always, all opinions, text, images, and recipe are my own.
I immediately saw this recipe and have decided I am making them this weekend! You mentioned in a comment about freezing these? Would I freeze these and then just take them out to thaw them when I want to bake them??
I did the opposite Angie: I baked them first and froze individual sweet rolls once they had cooled. I’d recommend doing that instead of freezing the unbaked rolls. I’m excited to hear what you think of them!
that looks delicious. You’re making me so hungry right now!
Thanks Melinda!
Could you use almond milk instead of cashew? Great recipe! looks sooo yummy!
Thanks Berkeley! Yes, you can — I’ve made them with both! I hope you enjoy them!
Just came across these the other day and have been dying to make them. I just took them out of the oven and they taste great. Not too sweet, and I don’t feel guilty at all for eating one this morning.
Also, toddler approved, because.. well, look at them.
I’m so glad you and your toddler enjoyed these sweet rolls Hannah! 🙂