Apart form chocolate, candy and caramel, there is an ingredient that instantly brings winter to our minds;

CINNAMON!

It is inevitable. Whether it is in a pie, or a drink or in cakes in any season, cinnamon IS the flavor of wintery cold days. The feeling of warmth it brings can be exaggerated to be compared to a warm hug from a loved one on a cold night. Or it can be just a flavor. Choose whatever suits you 😉

This post is not specifically a Christmas recipe, but it works well during this season. I baked these cinnamon rolls on a Sunday morning when I felt like trying something new in the kitchen. I picked the recipe from fellow foodies The Food Architects who posted it on their page some time ago. The recipe was a sure winner among my family and aunt’s who were present for lunch. Even though we were full because of mom’s delicious food, we couldn’t but have 2 rolls each for they felt so light and fluffy we wanted to eat more. We decided to skip the frosting and went straight for the rolls. In both cases they were fingerlicking good!

This weekend, I was told that old people long ago used to replace yeast with beer when making bread for instant use and to save time on rising. I liked the idea and decided to give it a try to give my cinnamon rolls a boozy twist. I used the original recipe that this is adapted from and the dough was OK. Except that it didn’t rise. And it didn’t bake well. And I had another problem which is the flour. Mom got this flour that is so hard to work with. No matter how much you leave the dough to rest, when rolling the dough, it always shrinks back. I was rolling and stretching it and it kept shrinking back. It got me so sick I couldn’t wait to finish and leave it. It was a fail.
No boozy dough for now. I’ll try the recipe again and I’ll infuse some Jim Bean Bourbon that I bought yesterday and see how those boozy cinnamon rolls would turn out.

I owe a couple of persons a share of these delicious and light rolls. I’ll have to pay my dues.

Cinnamon Rolls Recipe

From The Food Architects, Originally adapted from Two Peas & Their Pod
Makes 15-20 rolls

Ingredients

For the dough

• 1 tbsp yeast
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 40g butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 5 cup flour (more is needed for kneading and dusting the surface)
• 1 cup hot water
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 tsp salt

For the stuffing (i didn’t measure here but used what felt good)

• Butter (softened)
• Brown sugar
• Cinnamon

For the glaze

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• Water
• 1 tsp Vanilla extract

Procedure

• Dissolve yeast into the 1/2 cup of warm water, sprinkle some sugar and leave aside
• In a large bowl, whisk the butter, sugar and warm water until combined. Let the mixture get to a lower temperature
• Add 2 cups flour and salt then mix either with the whisk, wooden spoon or with hands
• Mix in the yeast mixture then add the beaten egg and combine well
• Gradually add the remaining flour and mix until a dough starts forming
• On a floured surface, knead the dough well until smooth
• Return to the bowl and cover for 30 min to rise away from air drafts (unlit oven for example). It might take more time in lower temperature
• Heat the oven to 220 degrees celsius
• After the dough has doubled in size, remove from the bowl and divide into two
• Roll one half into a rectangle with the rolling pin
• Using a brush, or your fingers, spread softened butter on the dough evenly and cover with lots of brown sugar and cinnamon
• Roll the dough into a log and use a sharp knife (or non-flavored dental floss) to cut into pieces (4 or 5 cm thick)
• Line a high-edged baking pan with baking paper and arrange the rolls in place around 3 cm apart
• Repeat with the other half of the dough
• Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 175 degrees celsius and continue baking until browned for 5-7 minutes
• Let them cool for 5 min while you mix the powdered sugar and vanilla with enough water to make a barely pourable mixture
• Pour the frosting on the warm rolls if you like or enjoy them plain

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