Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon Rolls

A LOT of people love cinnamon rolls. I happen not to be one of them. And I do not like the old fashioned American Apple Pie either (though my folks cannot get enough of it). Don't get me wrong, I do a lot of rolls and apple pies, they just don’t contain too much cinnamon for anyone to recognize them as familiar. In many cases, I go a step further and change the filling altogether. So I’ve come up with things like red bean rolls, apple rolls, butterscotch apple pie, and many others.

I had earlier published a recipe for Red Bean Rolls. Then I got a request for old-fashioned cinnamon rolls. So I’m bowing to the request of a good friend. (Christian, this is for you and your hubby!)

As mentioned in the Monggo Bread/ Red Bean Rolls Recipe, I use only one dough recipe for all my rolled sweet breads. To make cinnamon rolls, the filling would have to be different: cinnamon sugar.

Filling

With the dough neatly rolled out into a rectangle (as in the recipe for the Red Bean Rolls), brush the surface with two to four tablespoons melted butter, more if you like. Be sure to leave a one-inch margin on all sides so that the dough will stick or seal when rolled. In a small bowl, mix together ½ cup brown sugar, ½ cup white sugar and two tablespoons cinnamon. Sprinkle this mixture over buttered surface. At this point, you can even add ½ cup of toasted chopped nuts such as walnuts or pecans and/ or ½ cup of raisins or any other dried fruit. Roll the dough on its long side then pinch the edges to seal. Leave a bit of space for it to expand as you roll. In other words, do not roll tightly!

Cut the log of dough into twelve to fifteen slices then place on a pan earlier sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. You may also use a non-stick pan. Bake as directed in the original recipe.

The rolls would then need to be iced after cooling:

Icing

Cream an 8-oz package of cream cheese. Add one teaspoon vanilla extract. Add in 1 and a half cups of confectioner’s sugar (you may reduce the amount if you do not like it too sweet). Cream until mixed. You may add a few tablespoons of milk to the icing if it gets too thick. Ice rolls.

For old-fashioned rolls, my aunt usually drizzles the cooking pan with around ½ cup or more of maple syrup prior to laying out the dough. After baking, she immediately turns the rolls over on a wire rack as the syrup usually hardens as it cools, making removal from the pan impossible! This version of the recipe would obviate any icing.