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–+ servings
a black sesame sweet roll on a blue plate.
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5 from 2 votes

Black Sesame Sweet Rolls

A plush, pillowy yeast dough is filled with swirls of nutty black sesame paste and sugar for a delicious morning treat!
Prep Time2 hours 30 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Course: Dessert
Servings: 9
Author: Erika Kwee

Ingredients

For the dough

  • 6 tbsp whole milk, warmed to 100-110 F 85g
  • 1 slightly heaped tsp instant yeast
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature 100g
  • 2 tbsp honey 42g
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour 284g
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 5 tbsp unsalted butter, cubed, at room temperature 71g

For the filling

  • 1/4 cup black sesame paste 60g
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar 99g
  • pinch kosher salt

For the frosting

  • 4 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature 57g
  • 4 tbsp full-fat cream cheese, room temperature 57g
  • 2 tbsp black sesame paste 30g
  • pinch kosher salt
  • 1 cup powdered sugar 113g

Instructions

For the dough

  • Sprinkle the yeast and a pinch of sugar over the whole milk and let sit for 5 minutes, or until foamy.
  • While yeast is activating, combine the flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer or medium mixing bowl.
  • Once yeast has activated, stir in the eggs and honey. Pour the yeast mixture into the flour and salt and mix until combined into a shaggy dough.
  • Knead on low and add the cubed butter gradually until the butter has been incorporated into the dough. Turn mixer to medium low and knead for 8 minutes or until the dough is soft and slightly sticky. Cover the dough loosely with plastic wrap or a towel and set aside for an hour at room temperature, or until nearly doubled.
  • Once the dough has doubled, roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to approximately a 10x15" rectangle. Spread the black sesame paste evenly across the surface (an offset spatula is helpful here), then evenly sprinkle the sugar and salt over the sesame paste.
  • Starting with the long end, roll the dough up into a long log. Using a piece of unflavored dental floss, cut the log into 9 equal pieces. Place the rolls in a greased 8x8 pan and set aside in a warm place, covered loosely with plastic wrap or a towel, to rise for 1-1.5 hours (or until puffed and all the rolls are touching).
  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove the covering and bake for 24-27 minutes, or until the rolls are starting to brown on the tops and centers are no longer gooey when poked with a tester. Set aside to cool in the pan for at least 15 minutes.
  • While rolls are baking, beat together the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the black sesame paste and salt and beat to incorporate. Add the powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Top lightly warm rolls with icing and enjoy!

Video

Notes

Lightly adapted from Sarah Kieffer's wonderful cinnamon rolls.
Whole milk: The small amount of milk in this recipe can be swapped for any other milk you like (reduced fat, a mixture of heavy cream and water, plant-based milk) without sacrificing much in the final result.
Instant yeast: You can substitute the same amount of active dry yeast for instant yeast in this recipe. You'll simply need to let the rolls rest for an extra ~30 minutes during each rise if using active dry yeast.
Black sesame paste: If you can't find storebought black sesame paste, you can make your own. While black tahini can work in this recipe in a pinch, I don't recommend it. Typically, black tahini has a looser texture and non-toasted sesame seeds which yields a different flavor.