Halva & Date Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon Rolls are the best thing to wake up to on a weekend morning. I decided to change up the traditional filling with halva and a date spread and wow did they turn out good. Matter of fact, my fiancé asked for them two weekends in a row because they were that good (he doesn’t have a sweet tooth and isn’t a huge fan of halva or tahini). So, if you’re unsure about these, you should give them a chance because you might really like them!

One great thing about the filling of these cinnamon rolls, is that they’re not filled with sugar like traditional sugar rolls. The dates give the filling most of the sweetness, and only a tbsp of brown sugar to make it extra sticky and sweet. If you’ve never had halva before, it’s a confection made from tahini and adds a rich and slightly salty flavor to balance out the sweet. I use halva from Hebel & Co and they have a variety of flavors to try! Check out more of my halva recipes like my Double Chocolate Cookie and Skillet Cookie.

---

Halva & Date Cinnamon Rolls

Dough:

• 1 cup milk
• ½ cup + 1 tbsp granulated sugar, divided
• 1 tbsp active dry yeast
• 2 eggs, room temperature
• 6 tbsp butter, melted
• 4 ¼ cup all purpose flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp cinnamon

Filling:

• 1/3 cup hot water
• 12 pitted dates
• 1 tbsp cinnamon
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 tbsp crumbled vanilla halva

Frosting:

• 2 tbsp softened butter
• ¼ cup powdered sugar
• 1 tbsp milk
• ¼ tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• Crumbled halva (optional)

1. Warm milk in the microwave for 30-45 seconds until warm. Put the milk in a stand mixer bowl and add 1 tbsp sugar and yeast to the milk. Gently stir and let sit for 5 minutes (should look foamy).
2. Add ½ cup sugar, butter, and eggs to the bowl and stir using the dough hook until combined. Add 4 cups of flour, salt, and cinnamon to the bowl. Start on low and increase stirring to high until the dough is kneaded into a ball. Dough should be slightly tacky – if too wet gradually add 1 tbsp of flour at a time until a smooth dough ball is formed. Transfer dough to a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic (about 3 minutes). Form into a ball, grease a large bowl with butter and put the dough inside, covering with a warm, damp towel in a warm place to rise for an hour until doubled in size.
3. While the dough is rising, add the dates to a bowl with the hot water and let sit for 30 minutes.
4. Place the dates with date water into a food processor and process until smooth. Stir in the cinnamon and brown sugar.
5. Line a 9×13 inch baking dish with parchment paper and spray lightly with nonstick spray. When dough has doubled, roll out onto a floured surface until about ¼ inch thick and 24×12 inch rectangle.
6. Spread the filling evenly all over the dough with the back of a spoon. (It might seem like not enough filling, but it will spread easier over time and will be enough). Crumble the halva evenly over the filling and roll to form a long dough tube. Cut dough into 12 even rolls (using floss to cut the dough is a GREAT trick) and place into the baking dish. Cover and let rolls rise for 30 minutes and preheat oven to 350F.
7. Bake rolls for 19 – 20 minutes.
8. Make the frosting while rolls are baking by beating the butter until light and fluffy. Beat in the powdered sugar, milk, vanilla, and cinnamon.
9. Frost the cinnamon rolls a few minutes after taking out of the oven and sprinkle with extra halva if using.

If you make these Halva and Date Cinnamon Rolls, please comment and tag me on istagram @theladlebearer so I can see what beauties you made!