The best cinnamon rolls ever !!! (Recipe)

This is hands down the best cinnamon rolls I’ve ever made (and ever eaten, to be humble). I’ve been tweaking this recipe for a while, and it’s now perfect.
They don’t look very nice after baking, because the filling overflowed as I put a ton of cinnamon paste in those bad boys. However, the taste and texture is perfect. The brioche crumb is very soft and stringy, and the rolls have just the right amount of gooeyness thanks to the salted butter caramel and heavy cream. The icing is a pure drug, with a very profound brown butter and vanilla taste.
The only adjustment I will make is to roll the dough less tighly next time, to avoid the center of the rolls from rising during baking.

RECIPE

BRIOCHE DOUGH
– Whole milk : 265 gr
– Dry yeast : 8 gr
– Eggs (beaten) : 165 gr
– Soft salted butter : 170 gr
– Sugar : 30 gr
– A pinch of salt
– 12% protein flour : 540-570 gr

Thoroughly knead all ingredients except butter until the dough passes windowpane test. You should start with 540 gr of flour, and add a bit more (maximum 30 gr) if the dough doesn’t come together after 10 minutes. Gradually add the soft butter and keep kneading until the dough is smooth and very elastic (the whole kneading process can take up to 40 minutes of you want a great result, a real brioche dough).

Form a ball with a dough scraper on your working surface, using Richard Bertinet technique (you can check on youtube). I like putting the dough overnight in the fridge (after it has risen almost double) because it enhances flavor, and helps a lot during rolling out the dough. You can also choose to make this recipe in a single day with 2 room temperature rises. Your call.

CINNAMON PASTE
– VERY soft (almost melted) salted butter : 200 gr
– Packed brown sugar : 150 gr
– Cinnamon : 26 gr

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. The paste should be very easy to spread.

ICING (Make the brown butter ahead and make the icing while the rolls are baking !)
– Mascarpone : 250 gr
– Salted butter : 90-100 gr (to make approx 75 gr of brown butter, because the water evaporates during the process)
– Icing sugar : 80-120 gr (adjust to your liking)
– Vanilla beans, scraped : 2-4 (I put 4 to give a strong vanilla flavor)
Take the mascarpone out of the fridge early enough to have it at room temperature. Scrap the vanilla beans and add the seeds to the butter in a pan. Make a brown butter. Let the brown butter cool down (use your fridge/freezer if you’re in a hurry). Combine mascarpone and brown butter (they both should be at room temperature, very important !) with a whisk. Gradually add icing sugar until the taste is to your liking. Whisk hard until the icing thickens.

SALTED BUTTER CARAMEL (optional but highly recommend)
– Sugar : 70 gr
– Heavy cream : 120 gr
– Salted butter : 25 gr
– Kosher salt : 1 gr
Dice the butter into cubes and put it in the freezer. Put the cream in a pan, on medium heat. Make a dry caramel with the sugar in another pan, until you get a nice color. Add the butter to the caramel, mix well until all the butter is incorporated. Let the cream to a boil, and add the cream to the caramel gradually, while mixing. Let the caramel cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the salt and mix well. Pour some of the hot caramel in the bottom of the pan you will cook the rolls in, while it's still liquid. Do not pour all the caramel ! Just a fine layer is enough.

SHAPING AND BAKING
Roll the dough into a 60×25 cm rectangle, spread the cinnamon paste, and shape the rolls (dental floss is your friend). The dough should be 0,5 – 1cm thick, do not roll it too thinly or the rolls will be dry ! The rolls should be approx 5cm high. This recipe yields 12 big rolls, that should be ideally baked in a 23x33cm pan (9×13 inches). Put the rolls directly on the caramel layer (grease the pan if your are not using caramel).
Before baking, heat up 150 grams of heavy cream so it's warm, and pour it onto the rolls (there should be a 0,5-1cm cream layer in the bottom of the pan). Bake at 170°C for 25-35 minutes, depending on your oven. The rolls should have browned a bit, but not too much (the spaces between the rolls should be just lightly colored).
Pour (or pipe) the icing on the rolls when they have cooled a bit (5 minutes). ENJOY !