A Sweet Tradition
Nothing is better on a cold Christmas morning. Once a year, we treat ourselves to homemade cinnamon rolls. Well, really it’s twice a year. Since is is just the two of us, I save half of the unbaked rolls in the freezer to have on New Years morning. Maybe that will change once we have a family… or I will just make double the rolls!
I stumbled across Molly Wizenberg’s recipe for her cinnamon rolls while reading her blog in February 2008. I saved the recipe in my little folder anticipating our first Christmas morning last year. (Has it already been two years?!) We made those last year and boy, were they good! I thought I would share with you how we made them this year. Now, I haven’t altered it much, but I figure why keep directing you to other locations when you can just read it here (and now I can just read it off my site next year).
Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Glaze
by Molly Wizenberg
Dough:
Combine 1 cup milk and 3 tablespoons butter in glass measuring cup. Microwave on high until butter melts and mixture is just warmed (30 to 45 seconds). Pour into bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Add 1 cup all-purpose flour, 1/2 cup sugar, 1 large egg, 2 packets of rapid-rise yeast, and 1 tsp salt. Beat on low speed 3 minutes, stopping occasionally to scrape down sides of bowl. Add 2-1/2 cups flour. Beat on low until flour is absorbed and dough is sticky, scraping down sides of bowl. If dough is very sticky, add more flour by tablespoonfuls until dough begins to form ball and pulls away from sides of bowl. Affix the dough hook to the mixer and let it knead the dough for 8 minutes until it becomes smooth and elastic, adding more flour if sticky. Form into ball.
Lightly oil large bowl with nonstick spray. Transfer dough to bowl, turning to coat. Cover bowl with plastic wrap, then kitchen towel. Let dough rise in warm draft-free area until doubled in volume, about 2 (or 3 hours if your house is chilly) hours.
Filling:
Mix 3/4 cup of brown sugar and 2 tablespoons cinnamon in medium bowl.
Punch down dough. Transfer to floured work surface. Roll out to 15x11-inch rectangle.
Spread 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) room temperature butter over dough, leaving 1/2-inch border.
Sprinkle cinnamon sugar evenly over butter.
Starting at 1 long side, roll dough into log, pinching gently to keep it rolled up.
With seam side down, cut dough crosswise with thin sharp knife into 18 equal slices (each about 1/2 to 3/4 inch wide) OR you can use the method I learned in 4th grade where you use a piece of dental floss (unflavored) to “tie” a loop around the roll and pinch off pieces:
Line two baking dishes with parchment paper (I like to use spring-form pans). Divide rolls between baking dishes, arranging cut side up. Typically, I store half of the rolls in a zip-lock container which is pop into the fridge and transfer to the fridge in the morning on New Years Eve so that the following day we can have freshly baked cinnamon rolls (yum).
Assuming you are making these the day before you want to cook these suckers, cover with plastic wrap and pop the pan into the fridge. The next morning (typically I wake up a few hours before we want to eat and preheat the oven to 375ºF an set the pan on top of the oven — then I crawl back into bed).
Cover baking dish with plastic wrap, then kitchen towel. Let dough rise in warm draft-free area until almost doubled in volume, 40 to 45 minutes.
Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 375°F. Bake rolls until tops are golden, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and invert immediately onto rack. Cool 10 minutes. Turn rolls right side up.
Glaze:
While the cinnamon rolls are baking, mix together 4 ounces cream cheese (room temperature), 1 cup sifted powdered sugar, 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter (room temperature), and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract in a medium bowl with an electric mixer. Beat until smooth. Spread onto cinnamon rolls and serve warm (or at room temperature, if you’re into that kind of thing).
I kind of went overboard this year… but they are so yummy.
What are your traditions?
Better than one though! How was your Christmas? Was it just you and Robb?
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