So I do NOT claim to be a cinnamon roll connoisseur. While I have WANTED to make a good batch of cinnamon rolls, with past recipes I've tried, none of my batches have been worth repeating. The rolls were always either too dry or too hard.
This time it was my son's birthday and I decided to take on the ultimate breakfast for my little guy's transition to the big age of 12 by being the "ultimate mom" lol. In our house we are all about making breakfast yummy - so I decided on cinnamon rolls.
I went to look for a recipe and the first person that came to mind was The Pioneer Woman. I have legit NEVER tried one of her recipes where it hasn't immediately became my absolutely new favorite . Now, I had never seen her cinnamon roll recipe - but my gut feeling is she had one somewhere and it was probably amazing.
Her original recipe is for a LARGE group, but I found a site where it had already been adjusted to half the recipe. I made a couple little tweaks as well and Oh. My. Goodness. My husband (who is a huge fan of Cinnabon and a self-proclaimed total foodie) immediately said these were the best homemade cinnamon rolls he'd ever had.
Boom. Thanks Pioneer Woman for making me the best wife ever lol!
This recipe makes 30 rolls, split into 3 different 9" pans.
The blog I found it on said you should keep one pan for yourself/familiy and share the other 2 pans.
That sounds so altruistic . . . but (sorry neighbors), I'm ashamed to say the recipe was perfect for JUST our family of 6 lol. Because, there's no way you will eat JUST one of these babies. We ate half of the batch that morning - and saved the other half for the next day (or for midnight snacks, but who's counting).
So let's get down to WHY this recipe is SO great!
THREE leavening agents. Yup. This recipe includes yeast AND baking soda AND baking powder. Not only does it rise perfectly, but it doesn't take as long as other recipes to fully rise . . . only 30-40 min to rise in the morning.
So, let's get to it!
Side note: I used a different icing than the Pioneer Woman original recipe (but I'll link hers below). Hers calls for coffee flavoring and I'm not a coffee drinker or a fan of coffee flavor so I opted for a traditional cream cheese frosting and it was a great combination for us).
THE ULTIMATE CINNAMON ROLLS
(The Pioneer Woman)
Prep Time: 30 min
Cook Time: 15 min
Total Time: 1 day 2 hrs 15 min
Yield: 30 rolls
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You'll want to start making the dough either the night before - OR you can make it up to 1-2 days before.
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INGREDIENTS:
ROLLS
1 cups Milk (the original recipe calls for whole, but we used 2% and I felt it was still great)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 Packet Yeast (1/4 oz)
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, separated
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
FILLING
12 TB unsalted butter, melted (plus some butter to grease the pans)
3 TB cinnamon
2/3 cups granulated sugar
ICING
2 oz cream cheese, softened
7 TB butter, softened
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 TB milk
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1/4 tsp salt
You'll also need 3 (9-inch) cake pans, rolling pin, instant read thermometer, and (optional) unflavored dental floss.
DIRECTIONS:
DOUGH PART ONE:
On the stovetop, combine milk, vegetable oil and sugar. Heat (while stirring) until the temperature reaches 100 (use a thermometer).
Remove from the stove and make sure the temperature is between 95 and 100
Whisk in the yeast and let sit for 5-10 minutes. tI should be foamy / frothy (that's how you'll know the yeast was activated correctly).
Pour into a large bowl and add 4 cups of flour. (bowl needs to be large to give the dough room to rise in)
Mix with a wooden spoon until combined. Don't overmix.
Cover bowl (I use a tea towel) and let sit in a warm place in your house for 1 hour.
DOUGH PART TWO:
After 1 hour, check the dough - it should have already risen some.
In a small bowl combine 1/2 cup of flour, the baking soda and baking powder.
Add baking soda mix to the dough in the large bowl and mix with a wooden spoon until combined.
Re-cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight. Again, you can make this recipe 1-2 days in advance - but just watch the dough to make sure it doesn't rise TOO much -- If it looks like it's rising to the top of the bowl you can punch it back down a bit).
ASSEMBLY:
Spread flour over a large, clean work area. (You need an area that is at least 30"x20").
Roll out the dough into a large rectangle that measures 30" wide and 20" tall (use a ruler). The dough will be THIN.
FILLING:
In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon and sugar.
Melt the butter, and using a pastry brush, spread the butter over the dough, EXCEPT for 1 inch from the edger on the 30" side farthest away from you (this is so the filing doesn't squeeze out the end). On every other part, you want the butter to go right up to the edge.
Sprinkle the sugar mixture over the entire dough (except for the 1" area on the 30" side farthest away from you).
(Another option is to combine the butter, cinnamon and sugar all together and then spread out the "paste" on the dough).
ROLL THEM UP:
Start on the LONG 30" side and roll and tuck (tightly) into a roll until you get to the other side.
Grab a ruler and a butter knife and mark off 1-inch increments on the roll.
Cut the long roll into 30 1-inch sections. While you CAN use a knife to cut these into 1 inch sections, it can squish down the dough. What I prefer is to use dental floss (non-flavored)!
Grease the pans with butter. Place 10 rolls in each 9" round pan. You definitely want to cook these in a pan. Avoid baking them separately on a cookie sheet. Baking them together in a pan where the sides are slightly touching is the BEST! It keeps the sides nice and soft and they rise up all together. If you don't have 3 round pans, you can do a larger rectangle pan instead (but you may need to adjust cooking time).
Set the pans somewhere warm, cover and let sit for 30-40 minutes until risen. You'll know it's risen properly when you lightly press down on the dough and it doesn't fully collapse. Preheat your oven to 375.
Once risen, bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes. You want the rolls to be slightly golden on top. My family likes them a little on the soft side so I take them out when they are just starting to get golden.
WHILE BAKING, MAKE THE ICING:
First, make sure your cream cheese and butter are at ROOM temperature.
Beat together the cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer in a large bowl until creamy. Mix in the vanilla and milk, then gradually mix in the confectioners' sugar and salt until smooth and fluffy.
Place the baked rolls on cooling racks to cool.
Now, it's up to you whether you want to wait until they cool completely before pouring on the icing. I like nice and warm cinnamon rolls and the icing slightly melting into the rolls so I only let the baked rolls cool off a few minutes. If you don't want the icing to melt, you'll want to wait until they are fully cooled.
Then eat and enjoy! Goes great with a glass of orange juice or milk! :)
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