Vanilla Molasses Rolls with Gooey Chocolate Filling & Zesty Orange Glaze (vegan)

Directions

1. Dough: Combine soy milk, butter, molasses, and vanilla in a small pot over low heat. Warm, stirring frequently, until temperature reaches 115° F and butter just melts.
2. Whisk together flour, powdered sugar, yeast, and salt in the bowl of stand-up mixer. Pour in soy milk mixture and use dough hook to combine over low speed. Once flour’s moistened, boost speed to medium and knead until dough is smooth & clings to the hook; about 1 minute.
3. The dough should be very moist, but not so much so that it sticks to your fingers. If the dough sticks to the bottom of the bowl, add enough flour for it to firm up enough to cling to the hook. If the dough’s too stiff, add a touch of soy milk to loosen.
4. Remove dough from the hook, form into a ball, lightly grease bowl of your stand-up mixer, place back in bowl, cover with plastic wrap or tea towel, and stash in a warm place until it’s doubled in size; about 1 hour.
5. Filling: While dough rises, combine chocolate, butter, cocoa powder, and espresso powder in a heat-resistant bowl. Place on top of a pot that has about 2 cups of water in it (forming a double-broiler), turn heat to medium, and gently stir until chocolate’s smooth & melted; if it starts melting too fast, reduce heat to low.
6. Remove from heat, sift in 1/4 of the powdered sugar, and whisk until smooth. Repeat until all of powdered sugar’s incorporated. Should form a thick but spreadable paste.
7. Remove plastic wrap from dough and press down to remove air. Lightly dust a section of your counter with flour, plop dough down in the middle, and dust with more flour.
8. Roll dough into a rectangle roughly 20 inches wide and 14 inches long. Once you get close to the size you want, pull the edges to get closer to a square shape.
9. Use a spatula to spread chocolate paste all over dough, reserving about ¾ inches of space on the edge furthest from you, then tightly roll dough away from you. Once you get to the edge use your finger spread on a little bit of water, then crimp to seal. (Click here for a visual demonstration.)
10. Roll dough so it’s seal-side down, then use a sharp chef’s knife to cut log in half. After that, cut each piece in half, and repeat until you have 16 total rolls. Alternatively, you can use tooth floss to cut the rolls.
11. Lightly grease two 8 inch cake pans with butter, evenly disperse rolls, cover with plastic wrap or tea towels, and let them rest for 1 hour.
12. When dough’s almost finished proofing, heat oven to 350° F. bBrush melted butter on top of rolls and bake for 27-30 minutes, rotating pans halfway through. Cool for 10 minutes.
13. Whisk orange juice, zest, and powdered sugar together in a medium mixing bowl until smooth. Drizzle glaze atop rolls and serve while warm. Cover leftovers with plastic wrap and store at room temperature for up to 3 days. Reheat in a microwave for about 15 seconds.