Cinnamon Rolls

I don't have much to say except that these cinnamon rolls are the best cinnamon rolls I've ever tasted. Oh wait, I've never tasted cinnamon rolls before.

I've been meaning to bake cinnamon rolls for a loooong time. The last time I tried to do it, I attempted crepes of wrath's Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls which was a bit ambitious, given that I seldom bake with yeast and am therefore, unfamiliar with it. When shopping for ingredients, my mom had reassured me that we had freshly bought yeast at home, and I used hers. To my horror, it had expired almost a year. Unsurprisingly, I threw the entire pan of cinnamon rolls down the chute in anger and disappointment.... 

So today is a little homecoming of sorts. This time round I made sure to i) try something simpler that didn't involve me buying a million different spices and pounding them and ii) to read my instructions/recipe really clearly before carrying it out. 

I was very surprised that it was so much easier than I last remembered! Having good yeast really makes one a lot happier. Oops, no puns intended. 

So I used a recipe from ol' trusty allrecipes.com once again. I replaced margarine with butter, and I think I could have afforded to put less sugar and butter in the filling. Also, I think the dough can be rolled into more than just 12X9 inch. Will try the next time! Details below!

Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients

Original recipe makes 12 rolls

3/4 cup milk

1/4 cup margarine, softened

3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 (.25 ounce) package instant yeast

1/4 cup white sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup water

1 egg

Filling

1 cup brown sugar, packed

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup margarine, softened

1/2 cup raisins (optional)

Directions

.        Heat the milk in a small saucepan until it bubbles, then remove from heat. Mix in margarine; stir until melted. Let cool until lukewarm.

.        In a large mixing bowl, combine 2 1/4 cup flour, yeast, sugar and salt; mix well. Add water, egg and the milk mixture; beat well. Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the dough has just pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, about 5 minutes.

.        Cover the dough with a damp cloth and let rest for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together brown sugar, cinnamon, softened margarine.

.        Roll out dough into a 12x9 inch rectangle. Spread dough with margarine/sugar mixture. Sprinkle with raisins if desired. Roll up dough and pinch seam to seal. Cut into 12 equal size rolls and place cut side up in 12 lightly greased muffin cups. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

.        Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until browned. Remove from muffin cups to cool. Serve warm.

Enjoy!