Cinnamon Rolls

Before I talk about these beautiful, delicious rolls of love... let me tell you 5 reasons why these should not invoke any guilty conscious in you when you make them (and eat all of them).

1. Cinnamon. Cinnamon is good for you. It's high in antioxidants, helps digestion, and also lowers stress!

2. Has enough carbohydrates to make you want to wrestle a bear. And really, hasn't everyone always wanted to wrestle a bear before?

3. You actually can tell people what ingredients go in them! Bet you can't do that with your regular old supermarket cinnamon rolls.

4. They give you a work-out! Rollin' the dough out for these babies is like running a marathon. You'll have so much arm muscle after this you'll be able to lift up a car! (disclaimer: please do not actually attempt said statement after eating cinnamon rolls as it may cause hip displacement or other injuries to vital areas)

5. It makes 7 pans. 7. Pans. What are you going to do with 7 pans of cinnamon rolls?! You practically have to give them away! This recipe actually ENCOURAGES will-power, selflessness, and kindness to your neighbors! (even if you're still pissed at them for stealing your mail for a year)

Now that we've gotten that over with, we can continue with how amazing these cinnamon rolls are. They will make men propose to you. Make your manager give you a raise. They'll make you the most popular chick (or guy) around. Soon enough, people will be begging you to make more. In fact, they'll demand it. They are that good.

Just don't tell anyone it has four and a half sticks of butter in it. Especially not Jillian Michaels. She might come to my house and make me do burpies.

I hate burpies.

Really, though, if you want to make a special treat... This is it. This recipe makes A LOT of cinnamon rolls... so if you make the full recipe, be prepared to give some away. I gave two batches to my neighbor, three to my work (they were gone two days), and froze the last two. They are better than any cinnamon rolls you'll buy from a bakey. And people will be super impressed when you tell them you made them yourself. I highly recommend starting the night before and finishing it in the morning. You can easily freeze these like I did after their done baking or before you put them in the oven. Either way, people will be singing your praises.

Just make sure you save one for yourself.
Remember: Cinnamon rolls make your digestion better.

And who doesn't like being regular?

Right?
...Right?

...

*cricket*

Better Than Supermarket Cinnamon Rolls with Maple Frosting

INGREDIENTS

Rolls:
1 quart whole milk
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup sugar
2 packages active dry yeast (o.25 oz packets)
8 cups (plus 1 cup flour, separated) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon (heaping) baking powder
1 teaspoon (scant) baking soda
2 cups butter (4 sticks butter), melted
2 cups sugar
Generous amount of ground cinnamon


Maple Frosting

2lbs powdered sugar (1 large bag)
1/4 cup real maple syrup
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup brewed coffee
1/8tsp salt

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Mix the milk, vegetable oil and sugar in a pan. Scald the mixture (heat until just before the boiling point). Turn off heat and leave to cool 45 minutes to 1 hour. When the mixture is lukewarm to warm, but NOT hot, sprinkle in both packages of Active Dry Yeast. Let this sit for a minute. Then add 8 cups of all-purpose flour. Stir mixture together. Cover and let rise for at least an hour.

2. After rising for at least an hour, add 1 more cup of flour, the baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir mixture together. (At this point, you could cover the dough and put it in the fridge until you need it – overnight or even a day or two, if necessary. Just keep your eye on it and if it starts to overflow out of the pan, just punch it down).

3. When ready to prepare rolls: Sprinkle rolling surface generously with flour. Take half the dough and form a rough rectangle. Then roll the dough thin, maintaining a general rectangular shape. Drizzle 1/2 to 1 cup melted butter over the dough. Now sprinkle 1 cup of sugar over the butter followed by a generous sprinkling of cinnamon.

4. Now, starting at the opposite end, begin rolling the dough in a neat line toward you. Keep the roll relatively tight as you go. Next, pinch the seam of the roll to seal it.

5. Spread 1 tablespoon of melted butter in a seven inch round foil cake or pie pan. Then begin cutting the rolls approximately ¾ to 1 inch thick and laying them in the buttered pans.

6. Repeat this process with the other half of the dough. Let the rolls rise for 20 to 30 minutes, then bake at 400 degrees (see note below) until light golden brown, about 15 to 18 minutes.

For the frosting, mix together all ingredients listed and stir well until smooth. It should be thick but pourable. Taste and adjust as needed. Generously drizzle over the warm rolls. Go crazy and don’t skimp on the frosting.

Cinnamon Roll Muffins

I love going to the dentist.

For serious.

No, not because of the drugs (I swear).
No, not because my doctor looks like one of those dorky guys in medical school with their smartypants black-rim glasses and "I know i'm totally awesome/smart but I'm all laid back about it" demeanor.
Not even because of the lollipop you get afterwards. Although that's always a welcomed bonus...

None of those things are reasons why I love the dentist.

I love the dentist... 'cause I love getting my teeth drilled.

There is something oddly comforting about someone working on my teeth. Whether it be extracting a tooth or somethin' else... It feels like a nice mouth massage. I know, I am so totally weird. And I mean, the headache afterwards really sucks, but man... The whole vibration in the mouth, against my tooth? So calming! Don't ask me why. I don't know. All I know is that it almost, ALMOST makes up for the fact that they stuck a needle in my mouth. Almost.

Now if they can only switch the lollipops for chocolate, we'll be in business.

I bring this up because I got one my lovely teeth taken out today. Thank God. There is nothing worse than a toothache... for real. I can take burning my hands on a hot pan. Heck, I can even take stepping on a piece of glass every now and then! And migraines. Pfft. One aleve and a nice nap and I'll be better in no time...

But toothaches? Nuh uh. No way. Toothaches = me curled up in bed for five hours crying. No fun. No fun at all.

So even though I'm sitting here, biting down on some gauze and still getting over the fact that ohmygodtheyputafreakingneedleinmymouth, I feel pretty relaxed. And very, very happy. No more toothaches for me. No sir.

Thankfully, I made these wonderful cinnamon roll buns before I went to the dentist. And he didn't even notice. Pffttt.



I know, I know. A blog post about cinnamon roll muffins and dentists...Something isn't right here. But that's okay. Because cinnamon roll muffins are involved.

I've been wanting to make a REAL batch of cinnamon rolls for quite some time now... but to be honest, I fear yeast. Using it scares me. And the whole wait-for-an-hour-thing? Yeah. No thanks. When it comes to my cinnamon rolls, I am a woman of conveniance. Sure, maybe one day I'll make 'em from scratch. But till then, I think I'll just fall back on these cinnamon roll muffins. Not only are they dasterdly cute, but they are a quick breakfast/brunch delight and totally warming from the inside out on a very rainy, yucky day. And although they do use yeast, they came out great and I really didn't have any troubles at all.




Make 'em! Surprise your family. They make your house smell heavenly. And they will kick any craving you may have to go down to your nearest cinnabun. Promise.

Just remember to brush your teeth after you eat one. ;)

Cinnamon Roll Muffins
(Adapted from Joy the Baker)

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
4 tsp active dry or rapid rise yeast
2/3 cup warm milk (100-110F; low fat is fine)
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg

Filling/Topping

2 tbsp butter, room temperature
2/3 cup brown sugar
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
pinch ground cardamom

Icing
1 cup powdered sugar
1-2 tbsp milk or cream

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar and salt. Dissolve the yeast in a measuring cup filled with the warmed milk, then stir milk mixture, vegetable oil, vanilla extract and egg into the flour mixture. Mix well, until very smooth. Pour into prepared pan and let rest for 15 minutes.

2. While the dough rests, mix together butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and cardamom in a small bowl using a fork until all the butter has been incorporated into the sugar and mixture is crumbly. Divide the batter between 12 greased muffin cups. Sprinkle evenly on top of rested dough and press the mixture down into the dough with your fingertips (or swirl in with a spatula.)

3. Place pan into a cold oven, then set the oven temperature to 350F.

4. Bake for about 20 minutes, until bread is lightly browned at the edges and the center of the bread springs back when lightly pressed. Some of the sugar mixture on top may still be bubbling.

5. Cool for at least 30 minutes before whisking the powdered sugar and milk together to form an icing and drizzling it onto the bread. Serve warm. Leftovers can be reheated in the microwave.

Brown Butter Snickerdoodle Muffins

When it comes to New Years... I'm not too big on whole "I'm gonna be a better person" or "i'm gonna eat healthy" or "I'm gonna do something great this year" switch that seems to get hit everytime our calenders restart and January rears its head back into our lives. Not that I'm against anyone who does do that. In fact, if it really does help you to set goals for yourself every year -- be my guest and do it man. I'll be right here rooting you on (yeah! eat those veggies!)

But as for me... setting goals at the start of the year makes me feel like, if I should need an exact date to change something important about myself, to better myself as a person, then why even bother at all? I should be wanting to do that every day. I should be wanting to treat my family nice all the time. I should be wanting to show the people I love that I love them every day. I should be eating healthy because It's good for me, not because I have to shed off all the pounds I may have gained by eating a cookie or two (or five). I shouldn't need one day out of the year to be the starting point of becoming the person I want to be. And really, I just feel like I'm setting myself up for failure more than anything else. Because when I make resolutions, I tend to go the "welp, there goes that" approach and just give up altogether. Well, not this year!



Instead of sitting here thinking of ways to better myself this year... I'll just keep doing what I've been doing. Trying to follow God as best that I can, being the person He wants me to be, and in the process treating everyone I love with the respect and care that they have given me. I'll count my blessings and instead about worrying of what will come three or two months from now, focus on today.

And most of all, I will keep baking whatever I friggin' want -- healthy resolutions or not!

And I am totally not saying that just because these muffins are probably one of the most delicious things to have ever graced my kitchen. Not even joking with you.



All new years talk aside... these muffins are amazing. I can't even begin to explain to you how good these are. They have even converted a muffin hater like myself to be tempted for another bite.

These are definitely no ordinary cinnamony/sugar muffins. They have a beautiful depth of buttery flavor that comes from browning the butter in a saucepan until the butter is a nice bronze, emitting a wonderful nutty aroma that will make you want to shove your face in the saucepan (disclaimer: I am by no way responsible for any known injuries if you actually do this) and forget the muffins altogether. But please, please refrain from doing so. Because these muffins are just too good to pass up. And don't you even think of using plain, normal butter. Brown butter is definitely the way to go with these babies.

Not only that, but they have a gorgeous cinnamon sugar crust on top. While you could do a crumble crust, or just simply sift some powdered sugar over the muffins instead once they've cooled -- the crust really does make for a simple and elegant presentations and a wonderful crunch right before you hit the soft, slightly dense snickerdoodley crumbs that lay underneath; truly living up to its name as a "Snickerdoodle Muffin".

So if you're not totally sick of the holiday sweets, and you've got a soft spot for snickerdoodles (we're all big snickerdoodle lovers in my family), make these! And if you really don't trust yourself around them but still want to make them, do what I did and give them to your awesome neighbors as a New Years gift. Ten bucks says as soon as they smell the warm, cinnamon fragrance coming from these babies, they aren't gonna dare turn them down.



Or you could just hog them all to yourself and love them and call them George. Your call.

Snickerdoodle Muffins
(Adapted from Culinary Concoctions by Peabody)

Makes about 12 normal muffins and 20ish mini muffins.

INGREDIENTS:
1 stick unsalted butter, browned (see directions for instructions on browning butter)
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon cream of tarter
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon cinnamon mixed together for topping (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1. First, to brown your butter, get out a non-stick saucepan and set the heat on medium-low. Stick your stick (hah) of butter inside the pan and let melt completely. Butter should start foaming up on top, which will make it hard to see if it is "browning" or not. Don't worry, if this happens, determine if it's done or not by smell. As soon as the butter begins to starts to emit a nutty smell, give it a stir or two with your fork. It may start bubbling (thats ok). Keep the butter over medium-low heat for about 2 minutes after it starts to smell nutty. Stir again and let it bubble for a little longer, about 1 minute or so. You should see a bit of caramelization on the sides of the saucepan building up, and the smell should be getting stronger and more "caramel"-y. When this happens, take the saucepan off the heater and let cool. The foam will die down and you should be left with a glorious bronze color. If your butter does not foam (some dont) then just wait for the butter to get a bronze color before pulling it off the saucepan.

2. After browning your butter, LET IT COOL COMPLETELY. This is important because we do NOT want hot butter to go with the eggs as they will start cooking.

3. Preheat your oven to 375F degrees, spraying a paper-lined 12 cup muffin or 2 mini muffin tins with nonstick spray.

4. In separate bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and cinnamon.

5. In your mixing bowl (the one that will hold your muffin batter), take a whisk and whisk together the sugar, eggs, COOLED brown butter, vanilla, milk, and sour cream. Do not over whisk. It's okay if there are a few lumps from the sour cream.

6. Add flour mixture and whisk in JUST UNTIL there are no signs of flour left. Once again, DO NOT OVERMIX. It's okay if the batter is lumpy -- it's suppose to be.

7. If using the sugar and cinnamon topping mix, GENEROUSLY cover the top of each muffin with the mix (about a heaping tablespoon for each).

8. Bake muffins at 375F for 15-20 minutes, sticking a toothpick in the middle of one of the muffins to check for doneness (in other words, the toothpick should come out with only a few moist crumbs). Take out and cool muffins on wire wrack.

9. Muffins can be frozen and then warmed in the oven or microwave if desired. These are best served warm and out of the oven with a strong cup of coffee.

Maple Snickerdoodles

When I was smaller, my mom and I went on a trip to visit my Grandparents who lived in New Jersey at the time. I can't remember if we flew or drove there... but I do remember being in the car with my grandma, driving to her house.

While we were driving, I was in the backseat, swinging my legs back and forth because they were too short to reach the car floor. I was literally faceplanting the window, staring in awe at the autumn trees. Everything was covered in ruby and golden leaves. It was so gorgeous, and I had never seen anything like it before. Back in Florida, we didn't have "fall". Our trees did not change colors and we scarcely saw the transition from summer/fall/winter. Besides the chillier temperatures, we never really got a full blast of autumn like most places did up north.

I remember being totally wide-eyed and captivated by what I saw. As soon as we got back to my grandma's house, I went back outside and played in those very same leaves. Giggling like a schoolgirl. I loved it. I really did. The best part was going back inside to a warm fireplace.

That was fall to me. That was autumn.

Unfortunately, I've only been able to see that beauty once in my entire life... but it did leave a permanent mark on me. I also remember playing around with my grandma's neighbor's little girl. We would sneak down into her basement and play grocery-shopping. And then I'd secretly want to eat the plastic foods.

Don't judge me. They totally looked real.

Anyway. Living down south, the only real feel of autumn we can get is through food and spices. This is the time of the year where we start getting extra snuggly with our blankets in the early morning, and we have to literally get to our local grocery store at 6 in the morning just to get the canned pumpkin puree before anyone else does. It's also the time of the year where the smell of cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg, can be found wherever you go. Not that I have a problem that ;).

Although nothing can compare to those autumn leaves falling down all around me, these Maple Snickerdoodles come as close as can be. Just the smell of them baking in the oven was enough to tickle my senses. And the taste? Oh baby. Move over Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies. You are gonna have to wait.

They are so ridiculously easy to make -- and so, so good. Soft and extremely chewy. I love it. I seriously do. While you can bake these right after mixing the dough, I prefer to refrigerate my dough because of the humidity. And because I don't like my cookies to spread too much.

Remember though, when making these, you want to use REAL MAPLE SYRUP. Not that fake stuff you put all over pancakes. Although that stuff is good too. But not for these cookies. Trust me on this one. It's worth the splurge. You can find real maple syrup right by the fake stuff in the pancake aisle. If you want, you could definitely use it to replace the fake stuff. So much better. Soooo good.

Do you have any cookies that remind you of fall or maybe just some good autumn memories? Or maybe foods that you particularly tie along with the coming of colder weather? Share your stories! I'd love to hear them. :)

That is, if you can stop trying to maul your screen. :P

Maple Snickerdoodles

Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon baking soda

1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon salt

½ cup butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

3 tablespoons real maple syrup

1 egg

1/4 cup granulated sugar

2 tbsp cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.

2. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.

3. In a large bowl, cream the margarine and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the maple syrup and egg until combined. Add dry ingredients. Beat until just mixed.

4. Combine 1/4 cup granulated sugar and 2tbsp of cinnamon in a bowl.

5. Roll dough into 1-inch balls. Roll each ball in cinnamon-sugar mix. Arrange balls on cookie sheets, 2 inches apart.

6. Bake until tops are crackly, about 8 to 10 minutes. (Mine took about 7)

7. Remove from oven, and leave cookies on sheets to cool slightly. Transfer cookies to wire rack to cool completely.