These salted caramel apple cinnamon rolls are nothing but amazing with rolls filled with caramelized apples, cinnamon, pecans and salted caramel topping.
In a large bowl, whisk together the butter, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Add the egg and mix until combined. In a separate bowl, whisk together the yeast and 2 cups of flour. Add the flour mixture to butter/sugar mixture all at once and then add water. Mix well and add an additional 1-1/2 to 2 cups of flour, 1 cup at a time, until a soft smooth dough forms. On a lightly floured surface, knead dough until smooth. Cover with a damp towel and let rest for 10 minutes.
In the meantime, combine chopped apples with ¼ cup brown sugar in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat until apples are caramelized, about 7- 10 minutes. Set aside. Grease a 13 x 9- inch pan.
Divide dough into 2 equal portions and roll each portion out to a 14 x 8-inch rectangle on a lightly floured surface. Brush each with a good amount of melted butter. Combine the rest of the brown sugar with the cinnamon and sprinkle ½ of the cinnamon sugar on each rectangle. Scatter the apples onto the rectangles and top with pecans. Roll up the rectangle from the long side and cut each roll into 8 slices.
Place rolls into prepared pan, cut side down. Cover pan and let rise until double, about 45-50 minutes. (You can freeze rolls at this point or refrigerate overnight.)
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Bake rolls for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool slightly before drizzling with caramel sauce (recipe below). Serve immediately.
For Caramel Syrup:
In a medium saucepan, melt butter. Add the brown sugar, corn syrup and vanilla extract. Whisk until blended and sugar is melted. Remove from heat. Whisk in sea salt. Pour caramel syrup into a heatproof bowl. Let cool.