Sunday, December 13, 2009

Mom's Fluffy Cinnamon Rolls



These are the best cinnamon rolls you will ever have the pleasure of putting into your mouth. Nothing beats my mom's recipe. I know everyone loves Cinnabon in the airport and malls but, after you eat one of these, you will never want to waste your money on them again. No offense to Cinnabon of course. They just don't compare! These are soft and fluffy with the perfect amount of cinnamon and sugar. The rolls do take a little bit of time, but it's worth it! Cinnamon rolls have been a part of our family ever since I can remember. This recipe makes about 4 dozen, but they will be gone fast! Freezing the freshly baked rolls helps keep them from going stale and you can warm them up in the microwave for about 10 seconds, yum.

Mom's Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients

Dough
1 Cube Butter
2 C Milk
2 Tbs Yeast
1/2 Cup Sugar
1 tsp Salt
4 Eggs
~6.5 Cups Flour (no more than 7 cups)

Filling
~ 1 Cube Softened Butter
~ 2 cups Cinnamon Sugar
~ 6 cups Brown Sugar

Frosting
2 lbs Powdered Sugar
1 Cube Butter
A few Tbs milk or add until spreadable
1 tsp Vanilla
1/4 tsp salt if needed
Beat for about 5-10 minutes.

Directions

In your KitchenAid mixer:
Pour hot milk (~2 min in microwave) over 1 cube butter, sugar, and salt. Wait 10-15 minutes or until butter has softened and milk has cooled down. If the milk is too hot it will kill the yeast. Stir in the yeast and wait about 5-10 minutes for the yeast to get foamy.
Using the mixer, add the eggs. Add the flour a little at a time and mix until the dough is smooth. This should take about 1-2 minutes.
Cover with a clean dish towel and let the dough rise until it's double in size. The amount of time this takes can vary depending on the temperature of the room. Check it after 30 minutes, it probably shouldn't take more than an hour.

This is the part of the recipe that is really not exact...
Divide the dough into 4 pieces. Roll out on a floured surface into a rectangle about 10x5 1/2 inches. You just don't want to roll the dough too thin. It should be about 1/2 - 3/4 inch thick. Spread softened butter with a spatula onto the rolled out dough. You can be pretty generous. Make sure it is even. Sprinkle about 1/4 inch thick of brown sugar on top of the butter, keeping it even; again you can be pretty generous. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top of the brown sugar, covering all areas.

To roll, take the longer side and fold about and inch in, and push down with your fingers to pinch the dough down. Then roll it up- be sure to pinch the edge on the last roll to seal the roll up and keep it from unrolling. Cut into 12 slices and transfer to a 12x17 inch pan with parchment paper. Roll out, fill, roll up, cut and transfer the next 3 portions of dough. You should end up with 2 dozen on each cookie sheet (12x17 in.) when finished. One dozen can fit on a 9x13 inch pan if needed. Cover the pans with a clean dish towel and let the rolls rise until they double in size. Check after about 30 minutes.
Bake at 400 degrees for about 9 minutes. Let the rolls cool for a few minutes before frosting.
Cover and freeze immediately if saving for more than about 5 hours later; they defrost in the pan on their own in about 1 hour.

Sorry, parts of this recipe are an approximation, but that is what's great about it-you can add as much or as little filling as you like.