These rolls perfume the house with the wonderful scent of fresh-baked bread and cinnamon, and they will disappear very rapidly after you make them.

SERVINGS

Makes 24 rolls

INGREDIENTS

For the Cinnamon Filling

1 cup brown sugar, lightly packed

1 cup white sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup chopped walnuts or black walnuts (see walnut)

1/2 cup dried currants

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

11/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

FOR THE DOUGH

3 cups whole-wheat flour

3 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup whole milk

1/2 cup sucanat or white sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 packages active dry yeast (about 2 tablespoons)

1/3 cup warm (105°F) water

3 eggs

Olive oil for brushing

For the Caramel Topping

1/3 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons brown sugar

11/2 cups confectioners’ sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

PREPARATION

1.    To make the cinnamon filling: Place all ingredients in a bowl and mix until crumbly. Set aside.

2.   To make the dough: In a bowl, sift together the whole-wheat and all-purpose flours. In a small saucepan, combinethe milk, sucanat, salt, and butter. Heat on low until the sugar dissolves and the butter melts, then remove from the heat and let it cool to lukewarm. Dissolve the yeast in the warm water (water should feel comfortably warm, not hot; hot water will kill the yeast).

3.    Warm a mixing bowl. Pour in the lukewarm milk mixture and add the yeast mixture, eggs, and 3 cups of the sifted flours. With an electric mixer on low speed, mix everything together for 1 minute, occasionally scraping down the sides of the bowl. Stir in enough of the remaining flour to make the dough easy to handle and no longer sticky. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured board and knead for 8 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Warm a second large mixing bowl, wipe the inside with olive oil and put in the kneaded dough, turning the greased side up. Cover with a damp kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place until it about doubles in size, about 11/2 hours.

4.    Grease a 151/2 3 101/2–inch baking sheet. Punch down the dough and transfer to a lightly floured board. Roll it out to a rectangle about 10 inches wide by 30 inches long and 1/4 inch thick. Spread the cinnamon filling evenly over the surface of the dough. Roll it up tightly, starting along the long edge, to make a 30-inch roll. Pinch the seam together. Cut the roll into 24 rounds, each 11/4 inches wide. Space them evenly apart on the baking sheet. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.