Tomato Rolls with an Herby Cream Cheese Swirl

I don't know what it is about swirl rolls, but I love making them, no matter if they're sweet or savory. They're just fun.

The rolls are pretty much never identical, which I also like. It's not what you want if you're baking for a bakery, but I like the idea that I can have a small roll if that's what I want, or a larger roll. Or one with more or less filling. Because that's how I am. Sort of random and chaotic.

Tomato powder from The Spice House is an awesome ingredient. It adds a punch of tomato flavor without adding extra moisture, which is great for a lot of recipes where you don't want to add liquid. But the powder is also very useful when you want to add some depth of flavor to a tomato sauce or salsa. Or a meatloaf. Or...well, anywhere you might add tomato paste, really.

Besides getting tomato powder and the Sunny Greek seasoning I used for this recipe, I got a whole lot of other great ingredients to work with. Ancho coffee rub and porcini salt were new items for me, but I also stocked up on toasted sesame seeds and refilled my chip dip mix, which is really awesome stuff.

Tomato Rolls with an Herby Cream Cheese Swirl
By Donna Currie, Cookistry

For the filling:
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 Tablespoon Spice House Sunny Greek seasoning

For the dough:
1 1/2 cups water
2 1/4 Tablespoons Red Star active dry yeast
1 Tablespoon sugar
13 1/2 ounces bread flour
1 teaspoon salt
4 Tablespoons butter
2 Tablespoons tomato powder
1/2 cup potato flakes (instant mashed potatoes)

To make the filling:
Combine the cream cheese and herbs in a small bowl and mix until well combined. Set aside at room temperature until needed.

To make the dough:
Combine all of the ingredients in the bowl of your stand mixer and knead until the dough is smooth, shiny, and elastic. Cover the bowl and set aside until the dough doubles in size, about an hour.

When the dough has risen, flour your work surface and heat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9 x 13 inch baking pan with baking spray.

Turn out the dough and roll it into a rectangle about 11 x 16 inches. With one of the long sides of the dough facing you. spread the filling over the top of the dough, leaving about an inch uncovered on the far side. It can be easier to spread the filling with your fingertips rather than using a spatula.

Roll the dough up, jellyroll-style, not too tight, and seal the seam when you reach the far end.

If the roll is very uneven, roll and nudge is so it's a fairly even thickness, then cut the roll into 12 even pieces. Place the pieces, with one of the cut sides up, in the baking pan.

Cover the pan and set aside until the dough has doubles, about 30 minutes.

Bake at 350°F until lightly browned on top - the sides tend to brown more than the top. Remove the pan from the oven and turn the buns out to cool on a rack.

I received products to work with from The Spice House through 37 Cooks.