Whole Wheat Caramel Walnut & Pecan Rolls

This is the first time i've ever made this. I found a recipe online and tweaked it a little. There is a local bakery that makes this- except they only use walnuts on top. I am addicted to it. They always run out and sometimes I get lucky and get the last one=) Okay, lets get started.

The stars of the whole production:



1 to 2 cups all purpose flour (follow directions)
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 package active dry yeast
¾ cup milk
¼ cup water
2 tablespoons shortening or vegetable oil
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted
½ cup chopped, toasted nuts

**the next time I make this, I am going to use 2 cups of whole wheat flour and 1 cup of all purpose flour. The bakery's version uses mostly whole wheat flour. **


I toasted the nuts at 350 degrees for about 10-15 minutes, stirring and flipping it over every couple of minutes.

In large bowl, combine 1/2 cup of the all purpose flour, whole wheat flour, sugar, salt and yeast; blend well.

In small saucepan, heat milk, water and shortening (or oil) until very warm - 120-130 degrees; Add warm liquid mixture to flour mixture. Stir by hand until dry ingredients are moistened. Stir in an additional 1/4 cup to 3/4 cup flour to form a stiff dough.

On floured surface (or in bowl of a stand mixer with dough hook), knead in remaining 1/4 cup to 3/4 cup all purpose flour. Knead about 5 minutes or until dough is smooth and elastic. Place dough in a greased bowl and cover. Set in a warm place to rise for 1 ¼ hour. **I have to admit that I added too much flour, then added some water- which made the dough too wet, then added flour again. So, my dough in that picture looks kinda funny. I used the dough hook on my Kitchen Aid and I over kneaded it. Don't make that same mistake because it will make the dough more chewy. I was talking to my brother on the phone while making this so I was distracted. It still turned out pretty good though.**

Grease a 9 inch square pan. Punch down dough and remove all air bubbles. On lightly floured surface, roll or press into 16×12 inch rectangle. (If you have trouble with this step, rub a thin layer of oil across the top of the dough).

In small bowl, combine brown sugar and butter. Spread evenly over dough then sprinkle with nuts. Roll into a 16 inch spiral/log pressing edges to seal. Cut into 16 slices and place cut side up in greased pan. Cover and let rise for 45 to 60 minutes.

Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 30-35 minutes. Cool two minutes, then turn onto a sheet of foil so that bottom side is up.

My Variation
I melted together a 1/2 cup of unsalted butter, 1 cup of packed brown sugar, & 2 Tbsp of light corn syrup in the microwave at 30 second increments, then stirred it together until it looked like this.

This is the caramel topping.
I got my pans ready- I used two 8" rounds, greased it and divided the caramel mixture in both pans, and placed the nuts on top. When I rolled out the dough, I rubbed a mixture of sugar and cinnamon on top before rolling the dough and cutting it.

Again, the finished product:

Make sure you let it cool so the caramel gets nice and crunchy, but still chewy. Enjoy~ Happy eating=)