Instructions for the dough

Scald ⅓ cup milk in small sauce pan till small bubbles form at side of pan or until it reaches a temperature of 110-120 F and is very warm to the touch but not so hot that it’s unbearable to touch

Gently stir in the teaspoon of sugar and tablespoon of yeast. Set aside to poof to double it’s size… about 8-10 minutes

In stand mixer with paddle attachment, mix the buttermilk, the eggs, salt and ½ cup sugar with the 6 tablespoons of very soft room temperature butter… Don’t worry too much if the butter is lumpy.

Once the yeast has poofed pour into the stand mixer bowl and stir for a few seconds

Swap out the paddle attachment now with the hook attachment

Add about half the flour in until shaggy and somewhat combined, then add the rest of the flour and knead for about 8 minutes on low speed.

Dough should be smooth, shiny, tacky and stick to the bottom of the bowl (not the sides) don’t be tempted to keep adding flour. Only add more if it’s sticking to sides and bottom…and add a spoonful at a time only. Less is more here. If it’s too dry, add a spoon of milk

Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl keeping in mind the dough will double…cover with plastic and allow to rise in a warm part of home…2 - 2 ½ hours

Line with parchment or generously butter a 12 inch baking pan or pizza pan (with no holes on the bottom. I used a pizza pan) and set aside

In a medium bowl, mix the cinnamon, brown sugar and espresso powder together and set aside

Once the dough has risen to at least double, lightly dust a work surface with flour

Punch dough down and transfer to counter. Take sharp serrated knife or dough scraper and cut the dough into 4 equal parts.

Roll each of the pieces out in a rectangular shape about 8 inches by 12 inches

Slather/spread about two tablespoons (from the half cup butter) on each rectangle using your fingers and leaving about half an inch on the edge of the entire border

Sprinkle and spread about a quarter of the filling per rectangle and roll snuggly

Not mandatory but very helpful at this point to chill the rolled dough for about 15 minutes before proceeding to next step - slightly chilled dough makes it easier to work with.

Once all four have been rolled, take a very sharp serrated knife and cut down lengthwise centre and set aside

You should have 8 tendrils now

Refer to pics above for the following steps

Take the tendril and bend at the center to make a “U”

Twist/braid the the two 'legs' so they weave together

Now starting from the center end, roll the weaved tendril all the way in a swirl motion.

Once you’ve reached the end, tuck that tail under the bun

Repeat with all 8 tendrils

Arrange your rosy buns on your baking pan or pizza pan and completely cover with a damp cheesecloth or light kitchen towel (dampen cloths by soaking with water than wringing out excess water)

Place in warm area for the second rise (until they’ve almost doubled in size) about 1 hour

Preheat oven to 375 F and place rack to middle position in oven

Brush on/pour over the ¼ cup of cream all over the buns…make sure you use the entire ¼ cup…its okay if it puddles between the buns…the liquid will get absorbed as it bakes

Bake for 20-22 minutes…I usually tent mine with aluminum foil for the last 5 minutes as my buns tend to brown rather quickly towards the end. All ovens vary, so keep an eye on your buns to avoid over browning!

They are ready once the internal temperature in the center of the buns reads 185 F on a thermometer and no longer looks doughy.

While the buns are baking, prepare the frosting

With paddle attachment, beat the room temperature cream cheese until smooth and creamy, then add the butter and beat until fully incorporated (if it gets lumpy, blow a hair dryer over the frosting while it’s beating for a few seconds)

Add the powdered sugar and beat until smooth and silky

There are a few ways to serve with the frosting.

You can slather the entire pan of buns with the frosting while they are still a bit warm (not hot)

Probably the most appetizing, but also the messiest and unestheitcally pleasing as the frosting completely covers the beautiful rosette buns

The other way to serve is by lightly drizzling the frosting over the buns with a spoon or fork once they’ve cooled and serving with a heaping dollup of extra frosting on the side.

Or serve these buns as is with a side of frosting for dunking.

Anyway you pick, it’ll all be super yummy and fun.