Cinnamon is absolutely one of my most favorite ingredients. I like to sprinkle it on my bananas, on my cereal, on my ice cream and ever since a friend of mine told me she put a dash in her AMAZING hamburgers I figure this spice knows no barriers.
A few weeks ago was General Conference (a religious meeting held 2 times a year for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints). My husband and I decided that our new tradition would be to make AND EAT cinnamon rolls Sunday morning of General Conference. So I pulled out my trusty America's Test Kitchen's The Best Light Recipe cookbook, and made my first batch of cinnamon rolls.
I forgot to take process pictures but this is the second batch. As you can see from the little deformed cinnamon roll on the left my skills at keeping the roll together when transferring it to the pan were not yet perfected.
And of course frosted them. One great thing about this recipe is that buttermilk is used in the dough and the frosting so it has a nice complimentary flavor rather than just a super sweet mess. (though I can't complain about messes especially the sweet kind) Everyone loved these!
Quick Cinnamon Rolls with Buttermilk Icing
Ingredients:
Vegetable oil spray
Filling:
1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon salt
Dough:
2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the work surface
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
Icing:
2 tablespoons light cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons buttermilk
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar
1. Adjust an oven rack to the upper-middle position and heat the oven to 425 degrees. Spray an 8-inch-square baking pan and a wire rack with the vegetable oil spray; set aside.
2. For the filling - Mix all the ingredients together; set aside.
3. For the dough - Whisk the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk the buttermilk and 2 tablespoons of the melted butter together. Stir the buttermilk mixture into the flour mixture with a wooden spoon until the liquid is absorbed (the dough will look very shaggy), about 30 seconds. Transfer the dough to a floured work surface and knead until just smooth and no longer shaggy, about 30 seconds.
4. Pat the dough with your hands into a 12 by 9-inch rectangle. Brush the dough with the remaining tablespoon of melted butter. Sprinkle evenly with the filling leaving a 1/2-inch border of plain dough around the edges. Press the filling firmly into the dough. Using a bench scraper or metal spatula, loosen the dough from the work surface. Starting at the long side, roll the dough, pressing lightly to form a tight log. Pinch the seam to seal. Roll the log seam-side down and cut it evenly into 9 pieces. With your hand, slightly flatten each piece of dough to seal the open edges and keep the filling in place.
5. Arrange the rolls in the prepared baking dish (3 rows of 3 rolls). Cover the baking dish with foil and bake for 12 minutes. Remove the foil and bake until the edges of the rolls are golden brown, 12-14 minutes longer.
6. Use an offset metal spatula to loosen the rolls from the pan. Wearing oven mitts, place a large plate over the pan and invert the rolls onto the plate. Place a greased wire rack over the plate and flip the rolls onto the rack. Let the rolls cool for 5 minutes before icing.
7. To ice the rolls - wile the rolls are cooling, line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper (for easy cleanup). Set the rack of cooling rolls over the baking sheet (to catch the dripping frosting). Whisk the cream cheese and buttermilk together ina large nonreactive bowl until thick and smooth. Sift the confectioners' sugar over the mixture; whisk until a smooth glaze forms, about 30 seconds. Spoon the glaze evenly over the rolls.
Per roll: Cal 280, Fat 4.5 g, Sat Fat 3.5 g, Chol 15 mg, Carb 55 g, Protein 6 g, Fiber 1 g, Sodium 340 mg
