Cinnamon Rolls

Tangzhong

• 1/2 cup (113g) whole milk
• 3 tablespoons (23g) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour

Directions for the Tangzhong:

• Combine both the ingredients in a small saucepan, and whisk until no lumps remain.
• Place the saucepan over medium heat and cook the mixture, stirring regularly, until thickened, paste-like, and the spoon or spatula leaves lines on the bottom of the pan. This should take 1 to 3 minutes, depending on the strength of your burner.
• Remove from the heat and transfer to a large mixing bowl, the bowl of a stand mixer, or the bucket of a bread machine (whatever you plan to knead the dough in).

Dough

• 2/3 cup whole milk, cold
• 2 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons instant yeast
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 package of vanilla instant pudding
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla

To Make the Dough:

• Add the cold milk, then the flour and remaining ingredients to the mixing bowl in the order listed; the heat from the tangzhong will help to warm the cold milk.
• Mix on low speed of a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment, to bring the dough together. Next, knead the dough until it’s smooth, elastic, and tacky. This will take 10 to 12 minutes on a medium-low speed of a mixer.
• Shape the dough into a ball, place it in a bowl, and cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a reusable cover.
• Let the dough rise until puffy but not necessarily doubled in bulk, about 60 to 90 minutes (depending on the warmth of your kitchen).

Filling:

• 1 tablespoon butter, melted
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 2 tablespoons King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour
• 3 to 4 teaspoons cinnamon
• 3 to 4 teaspoons sugar
• 1/16 teaspoon (pinch) salt

• To make the filling: While the dough is rising, put the melted butter into a medium bowl and add the remaining ingredients, stirring until the mixture is the texture of damp sand. Set aside.
• Lightly grease a baking sheet, or line it with parchment paper.

To assemble the rolls:

1. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased work surface and press it into a 10” x 12” rectangle that’s about 1/2” thick. For evenly shaped rolls, try to pat the dough into an actual rectangle (with corners), rather than an oval. 
2. Sprinkle the filling over the dough, covering all but a 1/2” strip along one long side. 
3. Starting with the filling-covered long side, roll the dough into a log.
4. Score the dough lightly into eight equal 1 1/2” to 2” pieces; this will make large, saucer-sized cinnamon rolls — their generous size is part of their charm. Cut the dough at the score marks. Dental floss will give you the cleanest cut: pull off a long piece of floss, loop it underneath the log at the score mark, and pull the ends in opposite directions to cut the dough. Repeat until you've cut all of the rolls. If you don’t have dental floss, a bench knife or sharp knife will work. 
5. Place the rolls onto the prepared baking sheet, spacing them so there’s at least 2” between each one and they’re 2” away from the edges of the pan; a 3-2-3 arrangement works well. To prevent them from unraveling while they rise and bake, tuck the ends of the spirals underneath the rolls so that they’re held in place.
6. Cover the rolls with lightly greased plastic wrap or a reusable cover and let them rise for 30 to 60 minutes (depending on the warmth of your kitchen). The rolls should be puffy and the dough shouldn’t bounce back immediately when gently pressed.
7. About 20 minutes before you’re ready to bake, position a rack in the top third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
8. Bake the rolls for 14 to 18 minutes, until they’re a light golden brown and a digital thermometer inserted into the center of one roll reads 190°F. Bake for the lesser amount of time for extra-soft rolls, and the longer amount of time for rolls with a bit more color and slightly firmer texture.
9. Remove the rolls from the oven, place the pan on a rack, and brush the hot rolls with 1 1/2 tablespoons of the melted butter. Let the rolls cool for 10 to 15 minutes before icing.

Cinnamon Rolls

We are stuck inside today due to a snow storm.  We were warned last night so my husband and I went off to the store to make sure that I had plenty of goodies on hand so I could bake.  There is nothing more that warms the house when it smells like fresh baked goods.  Today I baked cinnamon rolls.  I absolutely LOVE this recipe.  I have played with it till I was happy with it. 

Ingredients: 

1/2 cup warm Water

2 Tbsp Sugar

1 pkg Yeast

1 cup Milk

1/4 cup melted Butter

1 Egg

4 cups Flour

1 package Instant Vanilla Pudding dry

2 tsp Gluten

1 1/2 tsp Salt

In a small glass bowl, combine yeast and warm water. Sprinkle with sugar to "feed" the yeast. Stir to combine and let sit for about 10 minutes. The yeast should become foamy and bubbly. This means it's active.

Meanwhile, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, add melted butter, milk, sugar, salt, egg and 2 cups of flour.

Mix on a medium speed to combine.

Add the yeast mixture and continue to mix, slowly adding the remaining 2 cups of flour. Mix for about 3 minutes, until a dough forms around the hook.

Remove dough to a lightly floured surface and knead by hand for about 5 minutes.

Form the dough into a ball and place in a well-greased bowl.

Cover the bowl with a damp towel, and set the bowl in a warm, dry place for 1 hour, or until the dough almost doubles in size.

Remove the dough from the bowl onto a floured work surface and punch it down, releasing the air bubbles.

Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a 9 x13" rectangle.

Filling:

1/4 cup butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp Ground Cinnamon

Once the dough is rolled out, use a pastry brush to cover the dough rectangle with softened butter.

Evenly spread the brown sugar across the dough.

Dust with cinnamon.

Starting from the edge of dough closest to you, roll from the bottom up, like a jelly roll.

Trim the ends, and then slice the roll into 1-1 ½-inch pieces with waxed dental floss, yielding 12-14 rolls.

Place each piece into a greased 9x13" baking dish or 2 round pans.

Cover the pan once again with a damp towel and return it the warm, dry place for another 30 minutes, or until the dough is risen.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Bake cinnamon buns for 30-35 minutes, or until light-golden brown.

Frost once completely cool.