Maple Dirty Chai Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon Roll Base:
3/4 cup warmed milk (100-110 degrees)
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1 tbs sugar
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1/4 cup butter
3 tbs sugar
3 cups of flour
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Chai Espresso Mixture:
1 stick of unsalted butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tea bag of Chai
1 tsp espresso powder or instant coffee
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Icing:
4 oz cream cheese
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 to 2 tbs creamer
Drizzle lightly with maple syrup
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Set your oven to 350 degrees.

1. Warm your milk to 100-110 degrees. If your milk isn’t warm enough, your yeast won’t work nearly as well. If your milk is too hot, the yeast dies. The sugar will help the reaction. Combine the warmed milk, yeast, and sugar and let it sit for 5-10 minutes.
2. In a stand mixer, combine the rest of the sugar and butter. Throw in one cup of flour at a time.
3. KNEAD! It is really important that you knead your dough. If you have a dough attachment, leave your dough for like 10 minutes. If you have to do it by hand, that’s cool too! Still 10 minutes. I did a combo of both. Kneading is important because it stretches the gluten and allows for a fluffy structure, rather than a really dense one.
4. Oil a bowl, put the dough in, and let it proof for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
5. Take your fluffy dough and roll it out.
6. Once flattened, combined the butter, brown sugar, vanilla extract and pumpkin pie spice. Spread this evenly throughout.
7. Rip the chai tea bag open and dump the contents onto a plate. Take the back of a spoon, or a mortar and pestle, and ground it down as good as you can. Press down against the spoon and slide at the same time to grind the dried chai down.
8. Take the ground down chai and combine it with your espresso powder. Sprinkle this over your brown sugar mixture on the dough. It should smell heavenly!
9. Take floss and use it to cut your cinnamon rolls into pieces. Two inches each, and then put them staggered in a pan.
10. Let it proof for another hour. You’re almost there!!!!
11. Turn your oven on to 350 degrees.
12. Whisk your cream cheese until soft, then incorporate the powdered sugar. Whisk in 1 tbs of creamer until it is a slightly running consistency.
13. Bake your cinnamon rolls for 25 minutes or until turning golden brown – keep your eye on them because they will brown really quickly.
14. Spread the icing on and drizzle with maple syrup LIGHTLY and enjoy!