Cinnamon Rolls

Mole and I made no-yeaste cinnamon roles today and talked about life. I love it when my friends hang out with me and help me bake. It's kind of my favorite thing- hanging out in the kitchen with someone fun, listening to music, singing, gabbing, baking.

I found this recipe on Recipe Girl and loved it right away. It's really not that complicated, you just need a little patience and a rolling pin. My dough stuck to the wax paper that I was rolling it out on (even though I spread flour on it first) so I had to tease it off the paper to roll it up in a log for cutting. Next time I'm just going to make sure I have a lot of flour down before I start rolling.

Ingredients:

Filling:
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon cocoa powder

Dough:
2 cups bread or all-purpose flour, + more for rolling
2 tablespoons granulated white sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup milk
1 large egg, beaten
pinch of salt

Pastry Glaze:
2 cups confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup milk (or more depending on how drippy you want your icing)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Spray a muffin tin with nonstick spray and put a pea-sized piece of butter and a sprinkle of brown sugar in the bottom of each cup.

2. Prepare the filling: In a small bowl, combine the filling ingredients with a fork until a crumbly mixture is formed.

3. Prepare the dough: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and salt. Use clean hands (or a pastry blender) to work the butter into the dry ingredients. Add the milk and the egg and stir to combine.

4. Roll the dough out on a floured surface into roughly shaped large rectangle (about 1/4-inch thick). Sprinkle the filling evenly over the surface of the dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border all the way around. Carefully roll up the rectangle starting with long end (the dough will be soft). Use a sharp knife to cut 12 rolls. If you want smaller rolls, cut them a little smaller and you'll get 18. Carefully place the rolls in the prepared muffin tin.

5. Bake 20 to 25 minutes. While the cinnamon rolls are baking, prepare the glaze: Combine the sugar, butter, vanilla, and milk with a spatula. If you want your glaze thinner add a splash more milk. Drizzle the glaze on top of warm rolls and the icing will harden quickly. Try one when it's warm!!

It smells like Ikea in here.