Super Cinnamon Rolls

Your friends may say, ”You’re as sweet as a cinnamon roll!” But can you compete with these? Let’s find out!

My mom found the recipe for these sweet bits of heaven when looking for something to make for Easter Sunday a few years ago.  I’m pretty sure that we haven’t made another recipe since!

We call this recipe our ‘secret weapon’.  That’s because if you bring a few pans of these out while people are visiting, you may never be able to convince your new best friends to leave.  I totally haven’t had some of my friends threaten to move into my house.  Totally.

In regards to portions, it is more personal preference than anything else.  One recipe makes 16 cinnamon rolls.  I always double the recipe, but I’m also in a family of eight, so choose wisely.  That being said, you can always freeze half, or give them away.   All I can say is that I’ve never heard, “Dang it, I wish we hadn’t made all of these cinnamon rolls!” It has never happened.  Ever.  True story.

Anyway, I think you’ll really enjoy these. I know that I have!

Ingredient list:
1 (1/4-oz.) envelope active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water (105° to 115°)
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar, divided
1 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
4 1/2 cups bread flour
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 to 1/2 cup bread flour
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup very soft butter
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Cream Cheese or Buttercream Icing

Buttercream Icing:

½ cup of softened butter
3-4 tbs. of heavy whipping cream
1 tsp. of vanilla extract
⅛ tsp. of salt
2 cups or 1 (16-oz) bag of powdered sugar

Makes about 3 cups.

Combine ½ cup of butter, 3-4 tbs. of heavy whipping cream, 1 tsp. of vanilla extract, and ⅛ tsp. of salt. Whip these with a hand-mixer on a high setting for a few minutes until creamy. Gradually add 2 cups of powdered sugar, beating on low until blended. Once blended, beat at a high speed for about 2 minutes, or until creamy.

So, first thing is first: assemble the ingredients.

Now, combine one packet of active dry yeast, ¼ cup of 105º-115ºF water, and 1 teaspoon of sugar. I then let this sit for about 5 minutes.

Pull out your stand mixer, and beat ½ cup of soft butter. When the butter is creamy, add ½ cup of sugar and 1 tsp. of salt. Beat this at a medium speed until it has light and fluffy texture. Now, add eggs, milk and lemon juice, and mix until blended. Make sure to squeeze the lemons yourself so that it is fresh. The high acidity in fresh lemons will make the rolls tender and melt-in-your-mouth.

Add 4½ cups of bread flour and ¼ tsp. of nutmeg. Slowly add this to the mixer and beat on low until it’s fully blended together.

On a large, smooth area, sprinkle between ¼ and ¾ cups of bread flour and dump the dough out on it. Now, stop and give yourself flour-warpaint.

Okay, now that you’ve had a little fun, knead the dough until smooth and stretchy. Add more flour until it stops sticky sticking. If the dough is a little gooey, more flour will help. You can see the gooey, shiny texture of the dough attached to the mixer paddle. The matte, shapely consistency of the pile of dough is what you’re aiming for.

Spray the inside of a large bowl with Pam, place the dough in it, and spray more Pam on top. Cover it with a dish towel, and let it rise in a warm, undisturbed place for 90 minutes. It should be about 85ºF inside; I use my oven.

If you want to add pecans, toast them on a baking sheet in a single layer at 350º for 8-10 minutes, stirring half way through.

Re-flour your flat surface and dump the dough onto it. Knead it a little bit, and then roll it into a 16 x 12 in. rectangle. Take ½ cup of very soft butter and spread it out evenly on the dough. Skip the outer inch of one of the 12 in. sides. Set it so that when you roll the dough up, this plain edge is on the outside. This will help keep the dough rolled up. Mix together brown sugar, cinnamon and ½ cup of sugar and spread this evenly over the buttered dough. Add the pecans or other toppings of your choice here.

Gently and firmly roll the dough up, starting with the covered 12 in. edge. Use a serrated knife to gently saw the roll into 16 equal pieces. Do not press down and squish the dough, it makes your life so much harder. Trust me; I found out the hard way!

Spray a light coating of Pam onto baking dishes. I prefer to use 15 x 9 baking dishes, but round dishes will work perfectly as well. Just be prepared to duel someone for the *one* middle roll!

Cover the pans with dish towels, and let them rise in a warm, undisturbed place for 1 hour. Again, I used the oven to protect my cinnamon rolls.

Bake at 350º for around 20 minutes. The cinnamon rolls should look golden-brown and smell irresistible.  Let them cool in their pans for about 5 minutes.  Spoon on copious amounts of cream-cheese or buttercream icing. I prefer buttercream, so I included my favorite recipe for it below.  To finish up, eat an entire pan, because these cinnamon rolls are worth it.

Link to the original article:

http://amp.myrecipes.com/recipe/cinnamon-rolls-3