Baker's Corner- Cinnamon Rolls

When I was on an extended holiday in the US back in 2007, one of my favorite haunts was Cinnabon. Whenever I would pass by their chain of kiosks, the heavenly smells of cinnamon and butter emanating from their baked goods would take on the form of a powerful lasso to rope me in (quite like how is depicted in cartoons). And their cinnamon rolls are absolutely to die for. I always associate cinnamon rolls with the wonderful time I spent in the US. 

I am obsessed with cinnamon and that is a serious statement. Ever since I began baking apple pies as a teenager, this aromatic spice has won over my palette and heart. I never miss an opportunity to add cinnamon in my cooking either as a tempered spice in savory rice dishes/curries, as a flavoring agent in oatmeal and pancakes, in desserts like rice pudding, fruit pies, sweets, baked goods and also in drinks like coffee, milkshakes, hot chocolate and masala chai. For me, the exotic sweet, earthy and warm taste of cinnamon is reason enough to catapult it to the top spot of my favourite spices.

I have always wanted to bake cinnamon rolls at home. Since I already had success with baking buns, I thought I would try my hand at baking these yummy delights. I poured through the internet and found many many many recipes (enough to make my head spin). I came across recipes that boasted a short-cut version without yeast but I didn't think those would be very good. I feel that if you compromise on the recipe ingredients and time, then you compromise on the taste too and I was not willing to take that gamble on my cinnamon roll debut. 

I settled on a separate recipe for the rolls and the glaze and adapted them to suit my preference. I won't lie to you - these rolls do take some time to make but the results are worth the wait. I started making them at about 10 am and was done by about 12:30 pm. But the good thing is that the procedure for these rolls does not require your constant attention (because a large chunk of the time is devoted to the dough rising). As I prepped for these cinnamon rolls, I also made breakfast, loaded the dishwasher, tidied up the kitchen, did a load of laundry, caught an episode of How I Met Your Mother and had a quick chat with my mum on the phone.

Note that I have updated the photos in this post because the original photos were ghastly

These cinnamon rolls are tender and feathery, the filling gooey and the icing sweet and smooth. Serve it for breakfast or along with coffee as an evening snack. 

I hope you try this recipe folks.

Cinnamon Rolls

Preparation time: 60-90 min

Baking time: 14 - 15 mins

Makes: 12 large rolls

Recipe category: Breakfast/Dessert/Western

Recipe level: Easy

Ingredients:

For the dough:

1 + 1/3 cups whole milk 

1/3 cup flavourless oil

1/3 cup sugar 

1 tsp vanilla essence

2 tsp active dried yeast

2 + 2/3 cups bread flour + approx 3/4 cup extra bread flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/3 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2-4 tbsp softened unsalted butter 

For the filling:

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

A handful of sultanas, Optional

For the glaze:

2 cups icing (confectioners) sugar

A pinch of salt

1 tsp vanilla essence
2 tbsp melted butter 

4-5 tbsp whole milk

Mix these ingredients together to get the desired consistency. 

Method:

1. Mix the milk, oil and sugar together in a saucepan, and heat over a medium-high heat until it reaches boiling point. Then turn off the heat and let it cool down to lukewarm temperature. 

I didn't have the patience to wait for the temperature to go down on its own so I immersed the saucepan in a water bath until the desired temperature was reached. 

2. Dissolve the yeast in the warm milk mixture and leave closed for 5 - 15 mins or so, until foamy.

3. In a large mixing bowl, sift in the 2 + 2/3 cups flour, then add the milk and yeast mixture, stirring the whole thing together until it forms a craggy mass. Note that the mixture will be wet at this stage. Lightly dampen a tea towel, drape it over the bowl and then put the bowl in a warm place to double in size. This may take anywhere between 60 to 90 min.

4. Once risen, add an extra 1/2 to 3/4 cup of flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. At this stage, give the dough a small knead, only about 5 – 7 mins by hand (grease your palms with oil first), or 4 mins on the dough hook. The dough will still be quite sticky at this stage so don't worry too much. Place the dough back in the bowl. You can use the dough immediately, or pop it in the fridge for up to three days until it’s ready to use.

5. When you’re ready to make the rolls, roll the dough out into a long rectangle on a well floured surface about 5mm-1cm thick. I assumed that this would be very tricky but I thought I managed ok. 

6. Soften the butter in the microwave, and brush the butter all over the rectangular dough evenly. Mix the cinnamon powder and nutmeg powder into the brown sugar and sprinkle the mixture over the surface of the dough. Sprinkle with sultanas if desired. I was a bit stingy with the cinnamon-sugar mix because I didn't want the rolls turning too sweet. 

7. Once you’ve covered the whole rectangle in the cinnamon sugar mix, roll tightly from the side furthest away from you. Try to keep it in a neat line, and don’t roll loosely. Once you have a long tube/slug shape, seal the end by pinching the dough and use either dental floss or a sharp serrated knife and cut into 12 rolls measuring approx 3.5 cm. 

8. Place the rolls on a greased baking tray, leaving a little space between them, but not enough so they wont be touching when they rise. Cover with a dampened tea towel, and let sit for another 30 mins. When that is happening preheat the oven to 180 deg C. 

I don't have a tray big enough to bake 12 rolls all at once so depending on how many I need, I bake them in batches and keep the remaining dough rolls in an air-tight container in the fridge.

9. Bake the rolls in the oven for 14-15 mins , until golden brown and smelling heavenly.

10. While the rolls are baking, prepare the glaze using the ingredients mentioned above. Adjust the consistency the glaze with milk. 

11. Pour the glaze over the rolls when they are warm and serve immediately.

Notes:

• I love sultanas and so I incorporated it in this recipe. You can omit if you don't like them. You can also add nuts if you like. 
• Adding a little mashed potato into the cinnamon roll dough results in even more moist and soft rolls. I will try this out the next time I make rolls.
• The most convenient way to make these rolls is to make the dough rolls in advance, let them rise for at least half an hour and then pop them in the fridge. When you need to bake them, just arrange them in a greased dish, place in a preheated oven and 15 mins later, you are done

Cheers,

Megha