Cinnamon Rolls

Last week while we were on vacation - this is what my husband ate for breakfast every morning.  ​👉🏻😳 Don't get me wrong - I'm not calling him out - just pointing out the fact that he really loves cinnamon rolls.  

These were not just any ordinary cinnamon rolls though.  They were pillowy soft rolls made of  sweet, buttery layers of flaky pastry dough sitting on a bed of creamy vanilla custard.  Topped with a generous ladleful of warm, rich chocolate, caramel or vanilla icing - it was pretty much heaven on a plate.  😂

I knew that there was no way that I could reproduce the same type of heavenly perfection that we enjoyed at our hotel - at home, but after a week of indulging in extreme cinnamon roll decadence, I anticipated some serious cinnamon roll withdrawal when we got home.  Boy was I right.  We are craving some serious cinnamon sweets in the morning this week. 😅

I'm not trained as a french pastry chef so I don't even want to compare my homemade cinnamon rolls to those of a professional but when it's all we've got - Amy's homemade cinnamon rolls will do.  How's that for a recipe pitch?  Clearly, I need to work on my strategies for promoting my recipes.  🤦🏻‍♀️ Let me give this another shot.  These cinnamon rolls are delicious.  They're buttery and light and full of warm cinnamon goodness.  They might not be nestled in vanilla custard but they ARE smothered in cool, creamy, vanilla icing.  

Cinnamon Rolls
Tangzhong
1/2 cup whole milk
3 Tablespoons bread flour

Dough
2/3 cup cold milk
2 1/2 cups bread flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons yeast
4 Tablespoons butter, softened

Filling
1 Tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 Tablespoons bread flour
1 Tablespoon cinnamon
pinch salt

Icing
3 Tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
pinch salt
1 cup powdered sugar
​1 - 2 Tablespoons cream

Whisk tangzhong ingredients in saucepan and cook over medium heat until thickened. 

Transfer to a mixing bowl and add remaining dough ingredients.  

Use dough hook to knead dough to a smooth, soft consistency.  

Transfer to a greased bowl.  Cover with plastic wrap and let rise 1 hour. 

My dough really didn't rise a whole lot.  🤷🏻‍♀️ (I don't know why.)  

Roll dough to a 12 x 14" rectangle on the counter. 

Combine filling ingredients. 

Sprinkle filling over dough in an even layer.

Roll dough into a tight spiral, starting with a long side. 

Slice log into 8 equal pieces. 

Place in a greased baking dish.

Let rise for an hour.   (Again - very little rise.) 

Bake rolls 20-25 minutes at 375. 

Brush rolls with 1 1/2 Tablespoons melted butter.  

Combine icing ingredients using remaining 1 1/2 T. butter. 

Spread icing over lukewarm rolls. 

If you're like me and your value your sleep - you can make these cinnamon rolls before you go to bed at night.  Put the sliced rolls in the baking dish, cover the pan and put it in the refrigerator overnight.  When you wake up in the morning, take the pan out of the frig, uncover and let the rolls rise for 1 an hour before you bake them.  Hot, homemade cinnamon rolls without having to wake up at the crack of dawn - oh yea.  🙌🏻

​Ciao!

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