Recipe: Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
It's the weekend. And weekends were made for shameless gluttony.
Today I made cinnamon rolls from scratch. They're not hard to make, just a bit time consuming. But if you're willing to make that little investment, there's a big payoff at the end--a warm, gooey cinnamon roll straight from the oven. Trust me, it's worth it.
The nice thing about cinnamon rolls is that you probably have most, if not all, of the ingredients in your house already. The only thing I actually had to go out and buy was raisins, and that's only because I like raisins in my cinnamon rolls.
Before I go into the cinnamon rolls, I'm first going to talk about our good friend yeast. Without these funny little fungi, bread as we know it wouldn't exist. So if you're going to venture into any kind of serious bread making, you first need to make friends with yeast.
There are different forms of baker's yeast available on the market. The kind I have in my fridge is the active dry kind, which is the kind you'll usually find on your supermarket shelf in packets or jars. When you have active dry yeast, it's best to proof it first. "Proofing" is checking to make sure that the yeast is still alive. If it happens to be inactive, your bread won't rise, and all your work (and ingredients) will be wasted. In my case, the jar of yeast I have expires on 29 September 10 which is oh, WEDNESDAY. So I'd better make sure it's still viable. Proofing is easy:
Heat some water so it's warm--about 100 to 110 degrees. Too cool and the yeast won't activate; too hot and you'll kill it.
Add your yeast to the warm water and give it a stir. Then add some sugar to the mixture and let it sit for 10-15 minutes.
As the yeast rehydrates, it'll consume the sugar and expel carbon dioxide, so you'll see the mixture foam. This means the yeast is still viable. If the mixture looks just like you left it then the yeast is no good.
Fifteen minutes later...
DEAR GOD IT'S ALIVE! RUN FOR THE HILLS!
So now that you know your yeast is good, you can start on the actual recipe. Rehydrate the required amount of yeast in warm water and set it aside for a few minutes. Put about half the flour, the brown and white sugars and the salt into a mixing bowl. Gently heat the milk and butter on the stove (make sure it doesn't get too hot because you don't want to kill your yeast). Pour the milk/butter mixture into the mixing bowl and stir.
Pour in your rehydrated yeast mixture and mix well.
Now I'm switching to my dough hook and adding in the rest of the flour. If you don't have a mixer with a dough hook, no big deal. You can do this part by hand.
Mix in the rest of the flour, turn it out onto a floured work surface, and complete the kneading.
Form the dough into a ball and place into a large bowl that's been sprayed down with nonstick spray. Lightly spray the top of the dough too, just to make sure it won't stick to anything as it rises.
Yeast is generally forgiving, but it tends to do its best work in a warm, moist, dark environment. It's easy enough to create those conditions. My house is usually in the 72 degree range, so I put my dough in a mildly warm oven. Turn the oven on briefly--for just a minute or two--to warm it up a bit. Then turn it off. Take a clean dishcloth and run it through very hot water and wring it out well (tip: wet your washcloth, wring it out and then put it the microwave for a minute). Then drape the hot washcloth over the bowl and you have darkness and humidity. Put the bowl into the oven.
After about an hour, your dough will have doubled in size. Punch the dough down (by the way, you know your dough is ready if it holds an indentation--you can check this by poking your finger into it).
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead lightly. This light kneading is just to get rid of any air pockets that may have developed during the rise. Flatten the dough out and roll.
The dough at this point will be very smooth and elastic, and will resist shaping. Roll, pull and push the dough out until you get a rough rectangular shape.
Take your softened butter and smear it all over the dough. Then evenly spread the filling over the dough.
Roll the dough snugly and press the end seam into the bottom of the roll. Shape into a log.
Using a sharp knife, cut the roll into whatever size pieces you'd like. I want big rolls, so I'm cutting this into eight pieces.
Place the rolls into a greased 9 x 13" pan. The rolls will expand quite a bit so make sure there's a bit of room between them. (Note: for an extra decadent experience, make twice the amount of filling and sprinkle half of it in the bottom of the pan before setting your rolls in it. This will give the rolls a gooey bottom).
Bake the rolls at 375 for 25 minutes. While they are in the oven, melt 1/4 cup of butter and mix up the icing. As soon as the rolls come out of the oven, brush them with the melted butter.
And then dress them with the icing.
Quick! Pour yourself a cup of coffee, make a pot of tea, or get a big glass of milk.
Awwww, yeah. And now if you'll excuse me, I need to go run 326104 miles.
Recipe:
Dough
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 cup water
3 3/4 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 tbsp light brown sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1 egg
1/4 cup butter, softened (brush on dough before sprinkling on filling)
Filling
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp maple syrup
1/4 tsp salt
(add anything else you'd like here--raisins , crushed pecans, etc).
1/4 cup butter, melted (for brushing on rolls)
Icing
2 cups confectioners sugar
3-4 tbsp milk
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
Directions
Heat 1/2 cup of water to 100-110 degrees. Add yeast, stir and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, combine half the flour, the brown and white sugars and the salt into a mixing bowl. Gently heat the milk and butter on the stove (make sure it doesn't get too hot because you don't want to kill your yeast). Pour the milk/butter mixture into the mixing bowl and stir. Add in yeast mixture. Add egg and vanilla extract. Mix on low speed until ingredients are incorporated, then beat at medium speed for about three minutes.
Switch to a dough hook if your mixer has one. If not, remove the bowl from the mixer and add the rest of the flour by hand, gradually. Mix until you have a soft dough. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and knead for several minutes until your dough starts to feel elastic. Shape the dough into a smooth ball and place into a large greased bowl. Lightly spray the top of the ball and cover tightly with plastic wrap and/or a clean kitchen towel. Place in a warm spot to let the dough rise, about an hour.
While dough is rising, prepare the filling and set aside. Completely grease a 9 x 13" baking pan. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
Check to see if dough has doubled in size. Poke a finger into it. If it holds the indentation, it's ready. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and knead lightly. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough out, starting from the middle and working toward the ends. Use your hands to push the dough out and shape into a rectangle, about 12" x 15".
Rub the 1/4 cup of softened butter all over the surface of the dough. Distribute the filling evenly. Roll the dough snugly and shape into a log. Using a sharp knife, cut into even slices and place into prepared pan. Bake for 25 minutes.
While baking, prepare the icing and melt 1/4 cup of butter.
Immediately after the rolls are done baking, brush them all over with the melted butter, then drizzle on the icing. Serve warm.
Today I made cinnamon rolls from scratch. They're not hard to make, just a bit time consuming. But if you're willing to make that little investment, there's a big payoff at the end--a warm, gooey cinnamon roll straight from the oven. Trust me, it's worth it.
The nice thing about cinnamon rolls is that you probably have most, if not all, of the ingredients in your house already. The only thing I actually had to go out and buy was raisins, and that's only because I like raisins in my cinnamon rolls.
Before I go into the cinnamon rolls, I'm first going to talk about our good friend yeast. Without these funny little fungi, bread as we know it wouldn't exist. So if you're going to venture into any kind of serious bread making, you first need to make friends with yeast.
There are different forms of baker's yeast available on the market. The kind I have in my fridge is the active dry kind, which is the kind you'll usually find on your supermarket shelf in packets or jars. When you have active dry yeast, it's best to proof it first. "Proofing" is checking to make sure that the yeast is still alive. If it happens to be inactive, your bread won't rise, and all your work (and ingredients) will be wasted. In my case, the jar of yeast I have expires on 29 September 10 which is oh, WEDNESDAY. So I'd better make sure it's still viable. Proofing is easy:
Heat some water so it's warm--about 100 to 110 degrees. Too cool and the yeast won't activate; too hot and you'll kill it.
Add your yeast to the warm water and give it a stir. Then add some sugar to the mixture and let it sit for 10-15 minutes.
As the yeast rehydrates, it'll consume the sugar and expel carbon dioxide, so you'll see the mixture foam. This means the yeast is still viable. If the mixture looks just like you left it then the yeast is no good.
Fifteen minutes later...
DEAR GOD IT'S ALIVE! RUN FOR THE HILLS!
So now that you know your yeast is good, you can start on the actual recipe. Rehydrate the required amount of yeast in warm water and set it aside for a few minutes. Put about half the flour, the brown and white sugars and the salt into a mixing bowl. Gently heat the milk and butter on the stove (make sure it doesn't get too hot because you don't want to kill your yeast). Pour the milk/butter mixture into the mixing bowl and stir.
Pour in your rehydrated yeast mixture and mix well.
Now I'm switching to my dough hook and adding in the rest of the flour. If you don't have a mixer with a dough hook, no big deal. You can do this part by hand.
Mix in the rest of the flour, turn it out onto a floured work surface, and complete the kneading.
Form the dough into a ball and place into a large bowl that's been sprayed down with nonstick spray. Lightly spray the top of the dough too, just to make sure it won't stick to anything as it rises.
Yeast is generally forgiving, but it tends to do its best work in a warm, moist, dark environment. It's easy enough to create those conditions. My house is usually in the 72 degree range, so I put my dough in a mildly warm oven. Turn the oven on briefly--for just a minute or two--to warm it up a bit. Then turn it off. Take a clean dishcloth and run it through very hot water and wring it out well (tip: wet your washcloth, wring it out and then put it the microwave for a minute). Then drape the hot washcloth over the bowl and you have darkness and humidity. Put the bowl into the oven.
After about an hour, your dough will have doubled in size. Punch the dough down (by the way, you know your dough is ready if it holds an indentation--you can check this by poking your finger into it).
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead lightly. This light kneading is just to get rid of any air pockets that may have developed during the rise. Flatten the dough out and roll.
The dough at this point will be very smooth and elastic, and will resist shaping. Roll, pull and push the dough out until you get a rough rectangular shape.
Take your softened butter and smear it all over the dough. Then evenly spread the filling over the dough.
Roll the dough snugly and press the end seam into the bottom of the roll. Shape into a log.
Using a sharp knife, cut the roll into whatever size pieces you'd like. I want big rolls, so I'm cutting this into eight pieces.
Place the rolls into a greased 9 x 13" pan. The rolls will expand quite a bit so make sure there's a bit of room between them. (Note: for an extra decadent experience, make twice the amount of filling and sprinkle half of it in the bottom of the pan before setting your rolls in it. This will give the rolls a gooey bottom).
Bake the rolls at 375 for 25 minutes. While they are in the oven, melt 1/4 cup of butter and mix up the icing. As soon as the rolls come out of the oven, brush them with the melted butter.
And then dress them with the icing.
Quick! Pour yourself a cup of coffee, make a pot of tea, or get a big glass of milk.
Awwww, yeah. And now if you'll excuse me, I need to go run 326104 miles.
Recipe:
Dough
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 cup water
3 3/4 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 tbsp light brown sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1 egg
1/4 cup butter, softened (brush on dough before sprinkling on filling)
Filling
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp maple syrup
1/4 tsp salt
(add anything else you'd like here--raisins , crushed pecans, etc).
1/4 cup butter, melted (for brushing on rolls)
Icing
2 cups confectioners sugar
3-4 tbsp milk
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
Directions
Heat 1/2 cup of water to 100-110 degrees. Add yeast, stir and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, combine half the flour, the brown and white sugars and the salt into a mixing bowl. Gently heat the milk and butter on the stove (make sure it doesn't get too hot because you don't want to kill your yeast). Pour the milk/butter mixture into the mixing bowl and stir. Add in yeast mixture. Add egg and vanilla extract. Mix on low speed until ingredients are incorporated, then beat at medium speed for about three minutes.
Switch to a dough hook if your mixer has one. If not, remove the bowl from the mixer and add the rest of the flour by hand, gradually. Mix until you have a soft dough. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and knead for several minutes until your dough starts to feel elastic. Shape the dough into a smooth ball and place into a large greased bowl. Lightly spray the top of the ball and cover tightly with plastic wrap and/or a clean kitchen towel. Place in a warm spot to let the dough rise, about an hour.
While dough is rising, prepare the filling and set aside. Completely grease a 9 x 13" baking pan. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
Check to see if dough has doubled in size. Poke a finger into it. If it holds the indentation, it's ready. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and knead lightly. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough out, starting from the middle and working toward the ends. Use your hands to push the dough out and shape into a rectangle, about 12" x 15".
Rub the 1/4 cup of softened butter all over the surface of the dough. Distribute the filling evenly. Roll the dough snugly and shape into a log. Using a sharp knife, cut into even slices and place into prepared pan. Bake for 25 minutes.
While baking, prepare the icing and melt 1/4 cup of butter.
Immediately after the rolls are done baking, brush them all over with the melted butter, then drizzle on the icing. Serve warm.