Mmm… cinnamon rolls. Is there anything more comforting (and welcoming!) than a pan full of warm cinnamon rolls, fresh-out-of-the-oven and slathered with lots of delicious cream cheese frosting?
I don’t think so!
(Ok maybe fresh bread and butter. That’s never a bad thing! And fresh, hot coffee. Mmm…)
You probably won’t be surprised to learn that I look for just about any excuse to bake. A friend coming over with her kiddos for a ‘playdate’? Cinnamon Rolls it is!! Going over to visit the parents (and knowing that Dad loves to take treats in to work for his coworkers?)… Here come some cookies!
I think my boys would be so confused if I didn’t bake at least every other day. They would wonder where their mom went! (And I guess, so would I!) Although there have been many phases of little-to-no baking these past few years – every time a new baby comes into the family, for example – it never takes long before I start to feel so lost that I just have to get back into the kitchen.
There is something so calming to me in the action of making cinnamon rolls. I love the process of rolling out the dough… feeling the soft, smooth surface of the dough as it stretches under my fingers. Changing it into something it wasn’t before and covering it with good things… lots of butter, cinnamon & sugar, sometimes raisins or nuts.
I find so much joy in changing simple ingredients into special treats for the ones I love. Especially these classic, soft & sweet cinnamon rolls. They always seem to make everyone so happy!
Ingredients
- 1 large egg + water to equal 1 cup
- 3 cups bread flour
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 3 tablespoons dry milk (or buttermilk) powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons butter, softened
- 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons cinnamon
- 8 oz regular or reduced fat cream cheese, softened
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 2-3 tablespoons milk
Directions
Add the ingredients to your bread maker following your manufacturers instructions. (Mine goes like this: Egg/water on the bottom, then flour, dry milk & sugar on top, leveled out. Salt along both edges, butter cubed and pressed into the corners and yeast dumped into a small well formed in the center of the flour.) Set to the DOUGH setting at let it do it's thing!
While the dough is doing it's thing, grease a 9x13" baking dish generously with butter.
When the dough is done, take it out of the machine and let it rest on a floured surface for about 10-15 minutes.
On that floured surface, roll the dough out into a large rectangle (10"x14", or something like that). Spread the 1/2 cup softened butter all over the rolled out surface and then sprinkle evenly with the sugar and cinnamon.
Starting on the long end closest to you, roll the dough away from you into a log. VERY gently with a sharp serrated knife, cut the log into 12 equal pieces.
Place the pieces cut-side-up into the greased baking dish, cover with plastic wrap and place in a draft-free spot to raise, for about 30 minutes or so, until the rolls are all touching in the pan.
Preheat the oven to 350ºF, place the pan in the preheated oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, until the rolls are golden brown and no longer doughy in the center.
While the rolls are baking, whip up the frosting. In a medium bowl, beat together the cream cheese, vanilla & powdered sugar, adding in milk as you go until the mixture is as thick or thin as you'd like it. If it's not sweet enough for your liking, add more sugar. You can't really hurt this kind of frosting!
Serve the cinnamon rolls warm, slathered with lots of yummy cream cheese frosting!
http://sweetannas.com/2013/07/easy-homemade-bread-maker-cinnamon-rolls.htmlAnd also, just because I can’t resist… how about a little video of the cutest little belly laugh ever!
baby Haakon laughing on the swing