BEST EVER (NO KNEAD) CINNAMON ROLLS

I thought I had the best cinnamon roll recipe, but oh my goodness..."Katy bar the door" --- drop everything and try this recipe. Here's why:
.
1. The dough is light and fluffy, not "bready"
2. There is no kneading, but it sure tastes like there is
3. The flavor is outstanding!!
4. They have the texture of a good donut
5. Covered, they stay fresh and delicious for 2-3 days
6. They freeze beautifully

Do I have your attention yet? Click on this photo so you can see the light and airy texture of the baked rolls.

2 cups buttermilk
1/2  cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup sugar
1 packet dry active yeast (I use 1 tablespoon)
4  1/2 cup all purpose flour (DIVIDED)
1/2  teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

FILLING
3/4  brown sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
pinch of salt

1 cup chopped pecans
2 tablespoons butter (soft)
Mix the buttermilk, vegetable oil and sugar in a saucepan and warm this mixture to just before the boiling point… (see note) then remove from heat let it cool down then stir in dry yeast. Let this mixture sit for a few minutes to let the yeast bloom.

Add 4 (of the 4½ cups) of flour to the buttermilk mixture and stir well (no need to knead, just mix well). Dough at this stage will be extremely sticky and more like a thick batter. Cover dough with plastic wrap and let it sit in a warm place for an hour.
In a small, separate bowl, mix the final ½ cup of flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. After the sticky dough has rested/raised for an hour, stir it down and add this final half cup flour mixture. Mix until well incorporated (by hand or electric mixer)...just takes a minute.
 
Turn batter (which will still be quite soft and sticky) out onto WELL-floured counter and roll the dough around a few times, coating the surface with flour so it is not so sticky. Roll (or pat) dough out into a rectangle that is about ½” thick. Spread dough surface with 2 tablespoons butter then evenly spread on the filling ingredients and top with nuts (pat the nuts into the sugar a little). Roll up, jellyroll style, keeping it as tight as you can. Pinch the seam shut tightly. Cut 1½” slices and lay them, cut side down, in a greased 9x13 baking dish. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 30 minutes. Bake in pre-heated 375F oven for about 20 minutes or until golden and they sound hollow when you tap on them. Drizzle with glaze while the rolls are still hot.

MAPLE GLAZE

1 + 1/3 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon maple extract
2 OR 3 tablespoons milk

 NOTE: For the first step, I warm the buttermilk-vegetable oil mixture up in the microwave. I don't find it necessary to bring the buttermilk to "near boiling" like the instructions tell you to. I just microwave it until it feels good and warm (not hot) when I put my finger in it.

MAPLE TWISTS

I highly recommend that you visit Mennonite Girls Can Cook. They posted a sweet roll recipe that looked delicious; it was called Charlotte Rose's Maple Twists. Three hours later, this beauty was cooling on my kitchen counter. It may sound complicated, but it really isn't and the final product is a show stopper.

CLICK ON THIS PHOTO TO GET A BETTER LOOK.

DOUGH
2 and 3/4 to 3 CUPS ALL PURPOSE FLOUR
3/4 CUP MILK
1/4 CUP BUTTER
3 TABLESPOONS SUGAR
1/2 TEASPOON SALT
1 TABLESPOON DRY ACTIVE YEAST
1 TEASPOON MAPLE EXTRACT
1 EGG

Heat the milk and butter until very warm. Blend it (in stand mixer) with 1 cup of flour, 3 tablespoons sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, yeast, egg and maple extract. Beat this on low for 2 minutes. Add the rest of the flour 1/2 cup at a time (you may not need all 3 cups). Knead into a soft dough. It will become smooth an elastic in about five minutes. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let it rise for 45 minutes (or till at least double in size).

While the dough is rising, make the streusel:
1/4 cup melted butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1/3 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon maple extract
Mix everything together and set aside.

ASSEMBLY
After the dough rises, divide it into three pieces. Roll each piece into a 12" circle. Place the first circle on a buttered 14" pizza pan (I used parchment paper and sprayed it a little). Top the first circle with 1/3 of the streusel mixture and spread it around as thin as you can get it (repeat with 2nd and 3rd circles).

Find something that is 2" across (like a dixie cup) and center it on the circles (press down a little to make a mark). Using scissors, cut from the outer edge into the cup mark, making 16 wedges. Sounds confusing, but a picture is worth a thousand words, so here is what it will look like:

Gently life and twist each section 5 times. Tuck the end in just a little so that it stays twisted. It will look like this:

Lightly cover this with plastic wrap and let it rise for about 45 minutes to an hour. Bake in a 375° oven for 18-22 minutes (mine took the full 22 minutes). Remove from oven and let rest for 5 minutes before you top with glaze.

GLAZE

1 cup powdered sugar

2 tablespoons melted butter

1 to 2 tablespoons milk

1/2 teaspoon maple extract

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (my tweak)

Whisk until smooth and drizzle over warm rolls.

NOTE: I didn't have any maple extract, so I used a Crescent flavoring called Mapeline (worked great).
 

NOTE: Sorry about the photo quality, the maple twists were too big to fit into my light box, so I had to take the photo on the kitchen counter...like the old days, lol.

BREAD MACHINE CINNAMON ROLLS (and a Thank You)

Until I started digging through my old recipes for this blog, it never occurred to me how many recipes I have for hubby’s sweet tooth! It has been quite an eye opener. Here is yet another favorite. I tried to make cinnamon rolls out of bread dough for years with minimal success. They were always tasty while still warm, but got “tough” when they cooled off. The addition of egg, makes all the difference. This recipe is very good (warm or cold) and it’s made in a bread machine, so it is as easy as it gets.

¼ cup water
¼ cup butter, melted
(½) of a 3.4 ounce box instant vanilla pudding
1 cup warm milk
1 egg room temperature
1 tablespoon sugar
½ teaspoon salt
4 cups bread flour
1 packet of yeast (I use 1 tablespoon)

FILLING
¼ cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
4 teaspoons cinnamon
¾ cup chopped pecans or walnuts

FROSTING
½ of an 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
¼ cup butter, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 ½ teaspoons milk

BREAD MACHINE INSTRUCTIONS: In pan of machine, mix water, melted butter, pudding mix, warm milk, egg, 1 tablespoon sugar, salt, flour and yeast. Set machine on dough cycle and press start. When dough cycle has finished, turn dough out onto lightly floured counter and roll 17” x 10”. Spread with soft butter. Mix brown sugar, cinnamon & nuts and sprinkle over dough. Roll dough up (start with long side). Slice into 16 one inch pieces and place in 9x13 buttered pan. Let rise in warm place until double (about an hour). Bake in 350° PREHEATED oven for 15-20 minutes. Take out of pan and frost with cream cheese frosting.

NOTE: I don’t own a bread machine, so I do this the old fashioned way and it works great. I don’t cut 16 one inch pieces, John likes thicker rolls, so I cut about 8-10 of them.