Move Over, Cinnabon, These Chocolate Almond Rolls Are Comin' In Hot

I'm a sucker for a fresh pastry any day of the week, any time of the day, so when I saw spotted this almond cocoa spread at Trader Joe's, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it. I immediately thought: chocolate almond rolls! The almond cocoa spread is a must-have on your grocery list and once you try it, I promise you'll want to smear it on everything. This spread can be used on toast, waffles, pancakes, or just scooped onto a strawberry for an elegant dessert in seconds. But I knew I wanted to bake with it, and it really didn't disappoint. These rolls are so warm, soft, and gooey with a burst of nutty chocolate flavor in each bite.

When making these rolls, make sure to combine all of your dry ingredients in a large bowl and wet ingredients in a separate bowl. You want to ensure that the flour, yeast, salt, and sugar are mixed evenly to remove any clumps before combining with wet ingredients. When melting your butter, make sure to microwave in small increments so that you don't boil your wet ingredients (you want them to be warm not scolding hot). If you have one available to you, you may want to use a stand mixer to combine wet and dry ingredients to form your dough. If you don't have a stand mixer, no problem at all. I used my hands to combine everything — it just takes a bit longer and is a tad messier.

Once your dough is formed, you're going to knead it on a flat surface for about 3-4 minutes. Make sure to flour your countertop or cutting board to avoid it sticking. Once done kneading, you'll need to let it rest in a covered greased bowl for about 10 minutes. I used the original large bowl I mixed the dry ingredients in and sprayed it with nonstick cooking spray. Letting your dough sit will allow the yeast to kick into action and help your dough rise. When you roll out your dough, I recommend staying in the 3/4-1 inch think range, as making your dough too thin will make it difficult to roll and cut into pieces. Using a flat sandwich spreader or a palette knife, disperse your cocoa almond spread evenly and sprinkle with chocolate chunks.

Roll your pastry dough into a log horizontally and cut pieces into about 1 1/2-2 inches thick pinwheels. Grease your baking dish and place your rolls side by side into your dish. You'll want to make sure to use a baking dish that fits all of your rolls nice and snug. Cover and allow the rolls to sit and rise once more before baking.

These bake in about 25 minutes and come out of the oven with a golden brown tint and a warm, gooey center. The nutty chocolate aroma will attract everyone to the kitchen to rip off a roll for themselves. You can also take it a step further and whip up a simple glaze using confectioners sugar, but the rolls are just as delicious without it. Enjoy these fresh out of the oven or pop one in the microwave for about 15-20 seconds to reheat. Make sure to store them in an airtight container right on your countertop and they will last about 3-4 days.