There’s nothing I love more than a warm fluffy cinnamon roll on a lazy Sunday morning. But better yet, one that’s filled with a creamy macadamia and coconut filling instead of cinnamon sugar – like these macadamia coconut rolls or I like to call them Tropical Cinnamon Buns! (This post was sponsored by C&H® Sugar.)
When it comes to cinnamon rolls, I know what’s up! I spent a year in my youth making cinnamon rolls almost everyday for 8 hours a day. So trust me, when I tell you this tropical twist to my classic cinnamon rolls will blow your mind. The bread itself is super duper soft and fluffy, thanks to my trusted milk bread recipe. And then comes the rich and creamy frangipane style macadamia nut and coconut filling. The whole thing is smothered in a yummy coconut sauce instead of the classic version’s cream cheese frosting.
These amazing tropical macadamia coconut rolls will whisk you away to an island vacation, you won’t find anything like these anywhere – except maybe these macadamia coconut croissants – a truly unique brunch/dessert item.
Table of Contents
Helpful tools
You will want a stand mixer with the dough hook to make your bread dough. You can make the dough by hand but it does make it a lot easier with a mixer.
And you’ll also need a food processor to make the macadamia coconut frangipane filling. A blender will also work. Now, you can make the frangipane in a stand mixer or an electric mixer but you will need to manually chop the macadamia nuts and coconut very finely. A food processor will make the mixture smoother.
A thermometer is useful to check the liquid temperature before adding yeast. But you can get by without one.
Ingredients and substitutions
As always, you’ll find the complete list of ingredients and quantities in the recipe card at the end of this post. Below are some notes and substitution tips:
- Heavy cream – because the bread dough is made with just milk and heavy cream, no eggs, no butter, the heavy cream provides all the fat and richness, so I don’t recommend substituting with milk. You can use half and half to replace both the cream and milk together.
- Milk – whole milk or 2% milk will work, or half and half to replace both the milk and cream.
- Sugar – I used granulated sugar in the bread dough and brown sugar in the filling and coconut sauce. But you can use all granulated sugar if that’s all you have or use all brown sugar for that matter. Brown sugar does add a depth of flavor to the filling and the sauce. Light or dark brown will both work.
- Yeast – you can use active dry yeast or instant yeast. Both will work just fine in the bread. Even with instant yeast, I usually activate it the same way I do active dry yeast to make sure it is working properly before preparing the bread dough.
- Salt – I use kosher salt. You can use table salt but use half as much.
- Flour – AP flour is just fine for this recipe.
- Macadamias – make sure to use raw macadamias or roasted and unsalted macadamias. You don’t want additional salt making the filling too salty.
- Unsweetened shredded coconut – I don’t recommend substituting sweetened coconut here as that can make the filling too sweet. If you do make this substitution, you’ll need to reduce the amount of sugar used in the filling by about 3 tablespoons or so. This is just a guess since I haven’t tested the recipe with sweetened coconut.
- Unsalted butter – only for the filling. Salted butter might make the filling too salty so I don’t recommend substituting salted butter in this recipe.
- Egg – just one large egg is used in the filling for richness and to bind the ingredients together.
- Vanilla – I used pure vanilla extract to add extra flavor to the filling.
- Coconut milk or coconut cream – make sure it is canned coconut milk and not coconut milk from the carton. The higher fat content of canned coconut milk or cream makes a richer and more delicious sauce.
- Cornstarch – a small amount is used to thicken the coconut sauce.
How to make macadamia coconut rolls
The following instructions, step-by-step photos, and tips are here to help you visualize how to make the recipe. You can always skip straight to the printable recipe card at the end of this post.
Make the bread dough
First, heat your cream, milk and sugar in a saucepan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is simmering but not boiling. Let it cool down to about 110°F — if you don’t have a thermometer, check with your finger, the liquid should feel warm to the touch but not hot. Sprinkle in the the yeast, and let it sit for 5-10 minutes until puffy, that’s the sign the yeast is working!
Tip: It’s okay with the liquid is cooler than 110°F, you just don’t want it to be too hot since that can kill the yeast. Use this method for both active and instant yeast.
Mix together your flour and salt in a separate bowl. Add your yeast mixture and your dry ingredients to your stand mixer bowl. Knead with the dough hook until the dough comes together, about 10 minutes and up to 20 minutes.
Tip: It is helpful if you have a stand mixer to make this dough. However, you can certainly make it by hand, mix the dough with a spatula or wooden spoon.
Form a ball and place the dough into an oiled bowl. Let the dough rise until at least double in size, 1 to 2 hours.
Make the macadamia coconut frangipane
First, grind up the macadamia nuts in your food processor fitted with the metal blade. Transfer it to a bowl and then without washing it out, cream together sugar and softened butter. Then add ground macadamias and coconut, followed by egg and vanilla, process until everything is incorporated and creamy.
Transfer the cream filling to a bowl and refrigerate for at least an hour or two to firm up a bit before getting spread onto the bread.
Assemble your macadamia coconut rolls
When the dough has doubled in size, dump it out onto a floured surface and roll out into a rectangle about 20”x13” in size, dollop the cream filling on top. Spread evenly using a spatula, leaving about an inch of clean dough at the top.
Roll the dough up starting at the bottom, longer edge. You may need to stretch the roll out a bit if some parts are thicker than others. Divide it into 12 equal portions.
Place the rolls into a buttered baking dish. Allow them to double in size again, and then bake until golden brown.
Make the coconut sauce
This simple coconut sauce is made by cooking coconut milk with sugar and salt, and then thickened with a cornstarch slurry, much like this Haupia (coconut pudding) but not as thick.
More baker’s tips
- Don’t use too much extra flour – The bread dough is very soft and sticky when it first comes out from the mixing bowl. Try not to add too much flour when handling it. Adding too much flour can dry out the dough. After the first rise, it will be less sticky and easier to handle.
- Use oil if needed to keep stickiness at bay – A trick you can use to keep the dough from sticking without adding too much flour is to oil your work surface and your hands.
- Don’t knead excessively – You don’t need to knead this dough for an extended period of time, we are not trying to achieve a super chewy bread but instead we’re looking for a light tender soft bread.
- What to do with leftover coconut sauce – The recipe for the coconut sauce makes almost 2 cups of syrup and you may not use it all on these tropical cinnamon buns. Refrigerate leftovers in a jar, and serve it up for brunch with banana bread french toast or this coconut french toast bake.
Storage
These delicious coconut rolls can be kept at room temperature for up to 3 days. They will fit in the 9”x13” glass baking dish with the lid on. If you don’t have a lid to your baking dish, you can transfer them to a different container for storage, or wrap them up tightly in plastic individually.
They can also be stored in the refrigerator for up to a week and in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw completely before serving. Leftovers are best served warms, you can reheat in the microwave for about 20 – 30 seconds per roll.
Make ahead tips
If you want fresh macadamia coconut rolls on a Sunday morning or for a holiday brunch party, you can plan to make these over the course of 2 days:
- Day 1: make the dough and let it rise (first rise) at room temperature. Make the filling and form the rolls. Cut and place them in your baking dish. Refrigerate and let the rolls rise overnight (second rise) in the fridge.
- Day 2: take the rolls out of the fridge bright and early. Let them come to room temperature to finish their second rise, you can help them along by placing them into an oven – don’t turn the oven on – with a tray of hot water at the bottom. Bake when ready and serve warm!
Each component of this recipe can be made well ahead of time if you need more than 2 days to prep. The tips below will give you an idea when you can plan to make each part of the recipe and how far in advance you can make them:
- You can make the dough 2 – 3 days ahead of time, shape into a ball and keep it refrigerated. It will ferment and rise slowly under refrigeration, this will be considered the first rise. When ready to use, let it come to room temperature before rolling.
- You can make the macadamia coconut frangipane filling well ahead of time and keep it refrigerated for up to 7 days.
- And finally, the coconut sauce can also be made a week in advance.
📖 Recipe card
Tropical “Cinnamon Rolls” with Macadamias and Coconut
Equipment
- 9"x13" Baking Pan
- Thermometer
Ingredients
Dough
- 1 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream (240 g)
- 1 Cup Whole Milk (240 g)
- ½ Cup Granulated Sugar (90 g)
- 2 Teaspoon Active Dry Yeast
- 1 ½ Teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 4 Cup All-purpose Flour (520 g)
- Additional flour for rolling
- Melted butter for baking dish
Filling
- 1 Cup Macadamia Nut (roasted, unsalted, 141 g)
- 1 Cup Unsweetened Shredded Coconut (80 g)
- 1 Tablespoon All-purpose Flour
- A Pinch of Kosher Salt
- 4 oz Unsalted Butter (room temperature)
- ¾ Cup Brown Sugar (lightly packed, 132 g)
- 1 Large Egg
- ½ Teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
Coconut Sauce
- 1 Can Coconut Milk (13.5 oz)
- ⅓ Cup Brown Sugar (lightly packed, 62 g)
- A Pinch of Kosher Salt
- 1 Tablespoon Cornstarch
Instructions
Make the bread dough
- Add cream, milk and granulated sugar to a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring constantly, about 5 minutes. Transfer to the stand mixer bowl and allow the mixture to cool down to below 110°F, check with a thermometer.
- Sprinkle active dry yeast over the top of the milk mixture, stir and let it bloom for about 20 minutes. The mixture should visibly puff up.
- Sift the flour and stir in the salt. Add flour to the liquid mixture and knead with the dough hook on low speed until everything is incorporated and a wet dough forms.
- Scrape the dough out onto a floured countertop and knead a few times to form a ball. Place the dough ball into an oiled large bowl, cover with plastic, and allow to rise in a warm spot until double in size, about 2 hours.
Make the filling
- Make the filling while waiting for the bread to rise. Chop up the macadamia nut in a food processor, remove the ground nuts and mix it with shredded coconut, flour and salt in a small bowl.
- In the same food processor, mix the softened butter and brown sugar until creamy. Add the nut mixture back into the food processor and mix again until incorporated.
- Beat the egg with the vanilla extract in a small bowl, and pour it into the food processor, process until everything is incorporated and creamy.
- Remove the cream filling from the food processor, cover and refrigerate until needed.
Make the coconut sauce
- Whisk the cornstarch with about ¼ cup of room temperature coconut milk until completely dissolved. Set aside.
- Add the remaining coconut milk to a small saucepan along with brown sugar and salt. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently until the sugar dissolves completely and the mixture starts to simmer.
- Drizzle the cornstarch mixture into the simmering coconut milk, stirring constantly. Continue to cook for another 2 – 3 minutes until the sauce starts to thicken. Take it off the heat and allow it to cool. The sauce will thicken further as it cools.
Assemble the buns
- Melt a tablespoon of butter and brush it all over your baking dish and set aside.
- When the dough is ready, dump it out onto a floured countertop. Roll and stretch it out to a rectangle 20”x13” with the longer edge facing you.
- Take the cream filling out of the refrigerator and add dollops of the filling over the top of the dough. Use a spatula to spread it as evenly as possible over the surface of the dough, leaving about an inch untouched at the top.
- Roll the dough up starting from the bottom edge closest to you. When you get to the end, tuck the seam under. If the roll looks uneven, lift it up and stretch it out to make the entire roll about the same diameter. At this point, the roll could stretch out to about 23” – 24”.
- Divide the roll into 12 equal portions with a serrated knife. Place them into the buttered 9”x13” baking dish and allow them to rise for another hour until double in size.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F and bake for 30 minutes.
- Take the rolls out of the oven, use a knife to separate them and drizzle coconut sauce over the hot rolls. Serve warm.
Notes
- You can also use dark brown sugar for even a deeper flavor and more molasses taste in the filling and sauce. But if you don’t have brown sugar, granulated sugar will work just fine.
- The dough can be made without a stand mixer, just mix the flour into the liquid with a spatula or wooden spoon and knead by hand.
- This dough is very soft and sticky when it first comes out from the mixing bowl. Try not to add too much flour when handling it. After the first rise, it will be less sticky and easier to handle.
- After you roll up the dough with the filling inside, some parts of the roll may seem thicker than others. You can gently lift it and stretch it out to make the entire roll as even as possible. It’s okay if the roll stretches out longer.
- You can use a ruler to measure while rolling and cutting, but if you don’t have one long enough, just eyeball it and cut the roll into 12 portions as evenly as possible.
- You may not use all of the coconut sauce, store leftovers in the refrigerator and use on pancakes.
Nutrition
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Made them last weekend…super yummmy. My husband likes them better than traditional cinnamon rolls!
so delicious. dough is not too sweet and not to heavy. I could eat them all!
Thanks for your feedback Narda, I’m glad to hear you enjoyed these 🙂
Wow! These are so soft and perfect and that coconut sauce – divine!