Raspberry-swirl sweet rolls + a performance I love

I love Michael Mann – he’s one of my favorite directors; so when I saw that “The Insider” would be on cable a couple of weeks ago I knew I was going to watch it again. At the end my husband, who had never watched that movie before, told me: “wow, that is an excellent movie!”, and I instantly knew he’d really loved it, like I do.
Russell Crowe is really easy to love, I’m aware of that, but to me Jeffrey Wigand is his finest role so far, even greater than Maximus – I know many will disagree with me here, but think of how much more difficult it is to play a guy with lots of flaws than it is to play a hero, and yet Crowe gets the audience by his side. To top it all off, Crowe’s physical transformation is another thing of beauty and a sign of an actor extremely committed to his craft, and yet his performance is so much more than putting on dozens of pounds – it’s the whole thing, all the details connected, blessed by a talented director. It makes me of think Robert De Niro’s Jake La Motta which to me is the best performance ever delivered by an actor, so you get the idea.

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I have been baking bread quite often lately but mostly savory ones – I decided to switch to sweet mode after seeing this recipe on a magazine that has been growing on me a lot lately; I am crazy for cinnamon rolls and found this raspberry twist so interesting I had to try it. And the rolls turned out delicious, very tender, irresistible. The dough, perfumed with lemon zest, is very soft, easy to work with and tastes wonderful – I bet that a number of different fillings would be used with great results.

Raspberry-swirl sweet rolls
from the delicious Food & Wine

Dough:
1 cup (240ml) lukewarm whole milk
2/3 cup (133g) granulated sugar
1 ½ tablespoons active dry yeast
½ cup (113g/1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
¼ teaspoon salt
4 ¼ cups (595g) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

Filling:
One 10-ounce package IQF (Individually Quick Frozen) raspberries, not thawed
¼ cup + 2 tablespoons (74g) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cornstarch

Glaze:
¾ cup (105g) confectioners' sugar, sifted
3 tablespoons (42g) unsalted butter, melted
1 ½ tablespoons heavy cream

Dough: pour the warm milk into the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with the dough hook and stir in the sugar and yeast. Let stand until the yeast is foamy, about 5 minutes. Add the softened butter, eggs, lemon zest and salt. Add the flour and beat at medium speed until a soft dough forms, about 3 minutes, then continue beating until the dough is soft and supple, about 10 minutes longer.
Scrape the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead it with your hands 2 or 3 times. Form the dough into a ball and transfer it to a lightly buttered bowl. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and let stand in a warm place until doubled in bulk, 1 to 2 hours.
Line the bottom of a 22x32cm (13x9in) baking pan* with parchment paper, allowing the paper to extend up the short sides. Butter the paper and sides of the pan. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and, using a rolling pin, roll it into a 25x60cm (10x24in) rectangle.
In a medium bowl, toss the frozen raspberries with the sugar and cornstarch. Spread the raspberry filling evenly over the dough. Tightly roll up the dough to form a 60cm (24in) long log. Working quickly, cut the log into quarters. Cut each quarter into 4 slices and arrange them in the baking pan, cut sides up. Scrape any berries and juice from the work surface into the baking pan between the rolls. Cover the rolls and let them rise in a warm place until they are puffy and have filled the baking pan, about 2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F**. Bake the rolls for about 25 minutes, until they are golden and the berries are bubbling. Transfer the pan to a rack to cool for 30 minutes.
In a small bowl, whisk the confectioners' sugar with the butter and heavy cream until the glaze is thick and spreadable.
Invert the rolls onto the rack and peel off the parchment paper. Invert the rolls onto a platter. Dollop glaze over each roll and spread with an offset spatula. Serve warm or at room temperature.

* I made the exact recipe above using a 20x30cm (8x12in) baking pan

** the temperature worked out for me but apparently did not for other people, who had their rolls too dark; you might want to check the rolls earlier or bake them in a lower temperature

Makes 16