Easy Homemade Cinnamon Rolls with Cinnamon Cheesecake Frosting

Moral of the day: good yeast is key to having good cinnamon rolls.

Unless you want your cinnamon rolls to feel like rubbery hockey pucks, use.good.yeast.

Let us just say, between you and me, that my Dad has not been so impressed with my recent batches of cinnamon rolls.  Cinnamon rolls are kind of his thing.  He loves a bakery here in town that makes really good ones and he is the one who made the first batch of real yeasted cinnamon rolls here at our house.  He has a high standard and I, his lovely daughter, have been falling a bit short.  So, earlier this week, I decided I was going to make cinnamon rolls without whole wheat, without honey, without anything that would make them taste less than traditional bakery style.  I was going to rock Dad's socks off with these, I mean, they were going to blow him away.

They blew him away alright.

I couldn't have done worse, really guys, the cinnamon rolls were horrible.  (I'm laughing as I write this, they were so bad.)  I can safely say there was no way I could ever share the recipe with you.  I was somewhat amused with the whole situation - I mean, here I tried to make the biggest, sweetest, bestest cinnamon rolls -  and I got hockey pucks.  Rubbery hockey pucks!  Elizabeth ate the ones I stuffed with chocolate chips ... and covered with icing ... lots and lots of icing.  But she was the only one.

Note:  Need to get rid of a bad batch of cinnamon rolls?  Make a double batch of icing.  Seriously, it works wonders. 

So, I decided to turn to one of the most trustworthy bakers out there: Sally.

Sally, I thank you for helping me meet my Dad's standards. 

I think the other recipe would've been fine had I had good yeast (did I mention this already?  Use.good.yeast.)

*yes, Mary Frances, we've got this.*

Good.  I used Red Star active dry yeast the second time - they never let me down.  When I say use good yeast, I really mean use Red Star.

Anyways, it probably would've been fine, but these?  These rocked our socks off.  And blew us away.

These cinnamon rolls are everything a good cinnamon roll is supposed to be.  Thick, with a slightly crusty edge, that melts into soft and fluffy roll full of buttery cinnamon and sugar.  I think heaven is going to full of carbs.  I really do.

 

They are so easy to mix together.  I even did these in a regular Pyrex bowl!  And they only require one rise.  The dough was so soft and stretchy, it felt amazing to knead. 

And then we have frosting.  My Dad's favorite frosting is cream cheese frosting, so I decided to skip the powdered sugar and milk icing and go all our with cinnamon cheesecake frosting.

It is creamy and thick and compliments these lovely rolls beautifully.  And as overloaded with adjectives as that previous sentence was, these cinnamon rolls are overloaded with cinnamon.  They are called cinnamon rolls, you know.  I dialed it back for my family, who is not so into cinnamon (I can't help them) but feel free to adjust to your preference.  I like a lot of cinnamon, so if I were to make a batch for myself (which probably would the biggest exercise in self control ever) I would add more cinnamon to the filling and the frosting.  As it was, I really enjoyed the lacing of cinnamon throughout every fluffy, chewy bite.

Easy Homemade Cinnamon Rolls with Cinnamon Cheesecake Frosting

Recipe Source:  Rolls from Sally's Baking Addiction

Yield: 9 rolls

Rolls:

2 and 3/4 cupsall-purpose flour
3 Tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 package Red Star active dry yeast (1 packet = 2 and 1/4 teaspoons)  (instant works, too)
1/2 cup  water
1/4 cup milk (make sure it is cow's milk)
2 -1/2 tablespoons butter
1 large egg

Filling:
1/4 cup butter, softened to room temperature
1/4 cup cinnamon and sugar mixture

Cinnamon Cheesecake Frosting:
4 oz cream cheese
3/4 cup powdered sugar
2 Tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

For rolls: Set aside 1/2 cup flour. 

Mix 2-1/4 cups flour, sugar, salt and yeast in a large mixing bowl.

Heat the water, milk, and butter together in the microwave until the butter is melted and the mixture is hot to touch.

Stir the butter mixture into the flour mixture.

Add the egg and only enough of the reserved flour to make a soft dough. I used a 1/3 cup.  Dough will be ready when it gently pulls away from the side of the bowl and has an elastic consistency.

On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough for about 3-4 minutes.
Place in a lightly greased bowl (I used non-stick spray) and let rest for about 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, roll the dough out in a rectangle.
For filling: Spread the softened butter on top.
Sprinkle cinnamon and sugar all over dough. (add more if you want)
Roll up the dough from long side.
Cut into 9 even pieces and place in a lightly greased 9-inch round pan.
I used a pie dish, lightly sprayed with nonstick spray.
Allow rolls to rise in a warm, draft-free place for 45 minutes. Here is what I do: heat the oven to 200F degrees. Turn oven off. Place rolls inside oven and allow to rise.
After the rolls have doubled in size, (mine only took 45 minutes, but yours may take 60-90 minutes) remove rolls from oven and preheat to 375F.
Put rolls back in oven once preheated and bake for 25-30 minutes until lightly browned.
For frosting: Beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, milk, and cinnamon together. 
Spread over rolls.
Store rolls in an airtight container or tightly cover pan with foil or saran wrap.

Whole Wheat Gingerbread Cinnamon Rolls

January is really just the month for using up all those Christmas flavors. I"m making gingerbread an honorary member of the bowl season. It begin a couple days before Christmas and goes on until Monday. So these gingerbread cinnamon rolls are safe *whew*

Why is it, that every time there is a a bowl sheet contest, the person who cares the least does the best?  Abigail, my six year old sister, who, granted, does like football, but wouldn't know how to pick logically to save her life, was waaay ahead of all of us until last night? And that my dad and I, pretty football savvy people (ok, my dad is football savvy … I'm just competitive) are tied for fifth?  I bet my friends who just picked arbitrarily are whopping me. It always works that way. Ugh.

(Funny story; The Florida State Seminoles are playing the Auburn Tigers for the National Championship.  While Nathan was helping John Caleb pick his bowls, he asked him which one was his favorite.  John Caleb promptly responded, "The cinnamon rolls, of course!")

Anyways, as a consolation, I have these rolls. I had originally made three dozen of these for Christmas, but when plans changed and we were no longer hosting, these got to hang out in the freezer while we drove to Texas. I pulled these out, let then thaw and baked them.  The pan was licked clean. How could you resist buttery, ginger and cinnamon spiced, big fluffy cinnamon rolls?  (And these are 100% whole wheat ... Without sacrificing the fluffy factor ... Yeah, they're pretty cool ;)

The filling is where the gingerbread flavors shine.  There is molasses and cinnamon and ginger mixed in with the butter and then generously slathered onto the dough before baking.  It then melts into and around the dough, making sure these have gingerbread flavor.  It isn't overpowering, but you can definitely smell the ginger while the cinnamon rolls are baking!

Now, yeast can be scary.  Whoever thought the dark was scary has never experienced the panic that the yeast was messed up.  One of the first times I made yeasted bread, I called my best friend, frantically wondering what I needed to change in the recipe since I didn't have instant yeast, just active dry.  I was all ready to adjust the amounts of water and flour and salt, but she just laughed and told me she just subbed them equally. 

Really?  Really?!

Yeast isn't scary.  Really.  This dough is some of the easiest I have ever mixed together.  I remember how intimidated I was by cinnamon rolls and all the steps, but here it is broken down, easy peasy.

1. Mix the dough. 

2. Let rise.

3. Add remaining flour and knead.

4. Roll out and cover with gingerbread butter.

5. Cut and let rise.

6. Bake.

7. Enjoy.

Easy peasy. Really. 

I always use Red Star yeast and it has never let me down. It makes baking with yeast simple and leaves me with excellent breads. Every singe time. (I was not compensated to say that; it's just the truth!)

These aren't as fluffy as your average cinnamon roll, but they're still got fluff (that wasn't awkward at all) and are plenty soft.  The whole wheat makes them more filling and I definitely feel fuller faster (point for alliteration) when I eat these. But they're so good, it's hard to not eat seconds!

Whole Wheat Gingerbread Cinnamon Rolls

Recipe Source: The Sweet {Tooth} Life. Filling Adapted from Crazy for Crust

Yield: 2-1/2 dozen

Whole Wheat Cinnamon Roll Dough:

3-1/2 cups water

1/2 cup oil

1/2 cup honey

2 eggs

1/2 cup dry powdered milk

6 cups whole wheat flour

1 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon dough enhancer

2-1/2 tablespoons gluten

3 tablespoons Red Star active dry yeast

4 cups (more) whole wheat flour

Gingerbread Filling:

2 sticks butter

2 tablespoons molasses 

1-1/2 cups brown sugar

1/4 cup cinnamon cinnamon 

1 tablespoon ground cloves

1 tablespoon allspice 

1 tablespoons nutmeg

1-1/2 tablespoons ground ginger 

1/3 cup flour

If you have a Bosch bowl:

Layer first four ingredients for dough and pulse once or twice.  Add remaining ingredients, except for the four cups of whole wheat flour, and pulse until flour is completely moistened.  Let rest for 15 minutes.

Then, turn bowl on speed 1 and add the remaining four cups whole wheat flour slowly, until the dough cleans the sides of the bowl and the dough pulls together into a ball.

Add remaining four cups flour and turn bowl onto speed 1 for three or four minutes.  

Remove dough from bowl and cut into three equal sections. Roll each section into a rectangle. 

Take one of the rectangles and spread 1/3 of gingerbread filling evenly over the dough and roll up. Cut into 12 equal pieces (a bench cutter or floss work well)  Place cinnamon rolls in a lightly greased 9x13 pan. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, between 1-2 hours. 

Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes. 

Repeat with remaining dough and filling. 

To freeze: after placing cut cinnamon rolls in the pan, cover (make sure it is airtight) and store in freezer. When ready to use, remove from freezer and let thaw (mine took 4-6 hours) before baking. 

If kneading by hand:

Combine the dry powdered milk, 6 cups whole wheat flour, salt, dough enhancer, gluten, and yeast. Set aside. 

Heat the water, oil, and honey together in the microwave until the the mixture is hot to touch, 1-2 minutes.  Stir the water mixture into the powdered milk/flour mixture. Add the eggs. On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough for about 3-4 minutes. Place in a lightly greased bowl and let rest for 15 minutes. 

Add in remaining four cups flour and knead again, for several minutes, until dough has an elastic consistency.

Remove dough from bowl and cut into three equal sections. Roll each section into a rectangle. 

Take one of the rectangles and spread 1/3 of gingerbread filling evenly over the dough and roll up. Cut into 12 equal pieces (a bench cutter or floss work well)  Place cinnamon rolls in a lightly greased 9x13 pan. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, between 1-2 hours. 

Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes. 

Repeat with remaining dough and filling. 

To freeze: after placing cut cinnamon rolls in the pan, cover (make sure it is airtight) and store in freezer. When ready to use, remove from freezer and let thaw (mine took 4-6 hours) before baking. 

100% Whole Wheat {Huckleberry} Cinnamon Rolls

Sorry I missed yesterday's Salad Saturdays.  It's been a busy week! 

The National Festival of Breads was held in Manhattan last week. My mom found out about it and thought it looked right up my alley. She thought my dad would enjoy it, too, so we both went. Although we caught the later end of the festival, it was incredible. Earlier that day, the final contestants had baked their breads live and had given away recipes.  Because we came so much later, all but one of the finalists recipe cards were left and believe me, it was a good one: Red velvet cinnamon rolls. With a secret ingredient. (Not far off from this one!)  There were demos throughout the day and there were some great tips shared in them.

Such as when making a braid, to cut the corners out like a box so there isn't all dough at the ends. Also, an egg wash before adding jam or the filling to help it stick. There was a session on grains and whole wheat and though we usually get whole wheat stuff, it was a near overview of why it is better and then all these other good grain options. Like did you know quinoa flour is incredibly nutty?  So much that testers at AIB thought it was a peanut butter cookie when it was only quinoa flour.  Lots of really helpful stuff and we were there for about an hour. Not only did we get head knowledge, they gave us few bags of flour!  No joke, they even seeked you out to ask "Have you received your free bag of flour yet?"  And there were lots of recipe booklets of previous contestants recipes that look so amazing. Like, Charred Lime Dinner Rolls or Granola Morning Muffins.

But back to the free flour. We grind our wheat flour here at home and buy all purpose. Baking with white whole wheat had been on my bucket list for awhile.  And, Dad and I bought this jar of huckleberry jam on our trip.  It was high time I used it.  A couple days ago, at about four, I decided I wanted to make something.  We were leaving at five for swimming lessons, so it had to be fast.

Of course I picked yeast bread. 

But, I actually had enough time, because this cinnamon roll recipe is incredibly easy to assemble and any time is spent letting it rise.  The dough came together like that and I let it rise while we were swimming.  Seriously, soft (dare I say gooey?) sweet rolls and they are full of whole wheat.  No, these are not airy and light, but soft and fluffy.  They are way more filling than regular cinnamon rolls, but still taste just as good as normal ones.  I think they are even better.  Maybe its because my siblings have been eating more whole wheat the past couple years, but they love these.  The batch I made ended up making almost four dozen cinnamon rolls and we have been eating them for breakfast and dessert and snacks in between.  You'd think we would get tired of them.  Not these.  They are SO good.  And it doesn't help that I am a carbaholic.

Another wonderful thing about this recipe  is that all you have to do is after tossing your ingredients together, you can clean up any mess you might've made while the dough is rising. You dough can rise, your oven can preheat, your kitchen can be cleaned, and you can relax. 

Win for everyone.

Whole Wheat {Huckleberry} Cinnamon Rolls
Recipe Source: The Sweet {Tooth} Life.  Roll recipe from Shelly's Breads
Yield: 18 rolls

Cinnamon Rolls:
1 3/4 cups hot water
1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup honey
1 egg
1/4 cup dry powdered milk
1 1/2-3 cups milled soft wheat flour
½ tablespoon salt
½ tablespoon dough enhancer
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon yeast (Red Star Dry Active)
2-3 cups white whole wheat flour

1 egg, beaten (for egg wash)

Huckleberry jam (or jam of choice)

In a Bosch bowl, add all the ingredients, with the yeast on top, except the last amount of flour. Pulse, until flour is completely moistened. Turn off and let sit for 15-20 minutes.

Turn machine back on speed 1 while adding the additional flour, until dough cleans the sides of the bowl and forms a ball.

Grease counters and hands. Remove dough from Bosch bowl and roll into a rectangle. Brush with egg wash (you may not use all of it.) Spread with jam. Roll jelly roll style and cut into 18 equal pices. Place rolls in a 9x13 pan and let rise until doubles, about an hour.

Bake for 20-25 minutes at 350. Frost when cooled.

Cream Cheese Frosting:
8 oz. low fat cream cheese, softened
2 cups powdered sugar

Beat ingredients together until fluffy.