cinnamon pull apart bread

good morning everyone! i hope you all enjoyed your weekend and the beautiful weather we were blessed with yesterday... now it's raining again... booo...

anyways... so if any of you are on pinterest, and you frequent the food and drink section, i'm sure you have come across the delectable cinnamon pull apart bread... one of the best i've seen is by the fabulous "joy the baker"... i love, love her blog... check her out if you get a chance...

so... on saturday afternoon while my boys were busy pretending to be superheros, running a muck saving the universe, i set out to make us something delicious for a sunday morning treat... i love sunday mornings... i love sundays... most people dread the arrival of sunday, but for me... it's the most relaxing, most wonderful day of the week... filled with lots of food, games and crafts, maybe a hike or a fun outdoor activity, sometimes doing some kind of home improvement thingy... you know, full on family time...

so, i knew this recipe had a bit of a prep time, so i figured it would be perfect for sunday... and it was... it really was a delicious treat! a warm, comforting, sweet sunday treat!!

for the dough:

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup granulated sugar

2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 ounces unsalted butter

1/3 cup whole milk

1/4 cup water

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

for the cinnamon sugar filling:

1 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg

2 ounces unsalted butter, melted

directions:

1. in a large mixing bowl, whisk together 2 cups flour, sugar, yeast, and salt, set aside

2. whisk together eggs and set aside

3. in a small saucepan, melt together milk and butter until butter has just melted... remove from the heat and add water and vanilla extract... let mixture stand for a minute or two, or until the mixture registers 115 to 125 degrees

4. pour the milk mixture into the dry ingredients and mix with a spatula

5. add the eggs and stir the mixture until the eggs are incorporated into the batter... it’ll look like the dough and the eggs are never going to come together, but keep stirring

6. add the remaining 3/4 cup of flour and stir with the spatula for about 2 minutes, don't worry the dough will be sticky

7. place the dough is a large, greased bowl... cover with plastic wrap and a clean kitchen towel... then place in a warm space and allow to rest until doubled in size, about 1 hour *The dough can be risen until doubled in size, then refrigerated overnight for use in the morning. If you’re using this method, just let the dough rest on the counter for 30 minutes before following the roll-out directions below 8.while the dough rises, whisk together the sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg for the filling

9. melt 2 ounces of butter, set aside and grease and flour a 9x5x3-inch loaf pan, set that aside

10. deflate the risen dough and knead about 2 tablespoons of flour into the dough, then cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rest for 5 minutes

11. on a lightly floured work surface, roll the dough out... the dough should be 12-inches tall and about 20-inches long

12. use a pastry brush to spread melted butter across all of the dough, then sprinkle with all of the sugar and cinnamon mixture

13. then slice the dough vertically, into six equal-sized strips

14. stack the strips on top of one another and slice the stack into six equal slices once again, giving you six stacks of six squares

15. layer the dough squares in the loaf pan like a book, then place a kitchen towel over the loaf pan and allow in a warm place for 30 to 45 minutes until doubled in size

16. now to bake... place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees... bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the top is very golden brown

17. remove from the oven and allow to rest for 20 to 30 minutes... run a butter knife around the edges of the pan to loosen the bread... serve while still warm, and fully enjoy the deliciousness :)

here's the dough after fully doubled, refrigerated, then brought to room temp for about 30 minutes

after it was rolled out, it was smeared with mealted butter, sprinkled generously with cinnamon sugar... the cut into 6 strips (i had a small strip left over... i used that one for a cinnamon roll)

the strips were then stacked...

then sliced again...

 placed in a greased loaf pan to double in size...

now it's doubled in size... time to pop this baby in the oven... i can hardly contain my excitement!  

and here it is 30 minutes later... man, would you look at the delicious masterpiece!!

a delicious close up :)

i hope you have a wonderful day... stay dry... and as always, happy baking!

super big delicious chocolate cinnamon rolls

 i swoon for cinnamon rolls... i mean, don't we all... i am however not a fan of the long process of making them... but the moment they are cool enough to smear with frosting, all that annoyance just fades away...

a couple of months ago when my hubby was underway, i made some of these... the result... my constant bragging about how good they were... i think i was trying to make him jealous... he was sailing about the Caribbean at the time, and i had been wiping snotty noses... so i kept rubbing it in that he missed out on them...

but being the good wifey that i am, i decided to bake a batch for him before he gets underway again... he's leaving in 2 weeks (whaaaaaaa....)

and once again... these were no disappointment...they are big, fluffy, almost cake like... and bursting with warm and melty chocolate chips and buttery cinnamon... then topped with sweet vanilla cream cheese frosting (which is almost not even necessary)

chocolate chip cinnamon rolls:
ingredients:
1cup whole milk
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 large egg
2 ¼ teaspoons rapid-rise yeast
1 teaspoon kosher salt

filling ingredients:
¾ cup light brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
½ stick unsalted butter
½ cup mini chocolate chips
directions:
1. melt the butter and milk together in measuring cup in the microwave... add it to the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment and add the flour, sugar, cinnamon, egg, yeast, and salt... mix it well for three minutes... then add half of the flour and mix it just until the flour is combined... then add the rest of the flour and mix well...
2. switch the paddle attachment out for the dough hook and knead the dough with the mixer for about four minutes, or until it is smooth and pulls away from the sides of the bowl... tacky not sticky...
3. place the dough in large bowl that has been lightly oiled and cover it with a kitchen towel... and let it rise in a warm place to rise for about two hours, until doubled...
4. meanwhile, make the filling by melting the butter in a small bowl and stirring in the cinnamon and sugar...
5. once the dough has doubled in volume roll it out to a rectangle that is about 14×12... then spread the butter mixture over it, leaving a ½-inch border all the way around... then evenly sprinkle in the chocolate chips... roll up the dough lengthwise and cut it into ½-inch wide slices... place the rolls into a large baking dish, or two smaller dishes and cover them with a kitchen towel again... again allow them to rise for at least one hour... then, cover the dish with plastic wrap and keep it in the fridge overnight....
6. the next morning, preheat the oven to 375F and bake the rolls for about twenty minutes, or until they are golden brown on top... let cool enough to frost...

 topped with a dollop of cream cheese frosting...

look at that... oh man... pretty amazing huh :)

until nest time... and happy baking everyone

chocolate cinnamon rolls... amazing

do i really need a reason to want to make cinnamon rolls... no.. i don't... now, how about cinnamon rolls with chunks of bittersweet chocolate... umm, yesss please!!

so, i'm gonna keep it short and sweet and share this amazing recipe... so i hope you enjoy :)

cinnamon buns taken from "ezra poundcake"
adapted from peter reinhart’s “the bread baker’s apprentice”
*makes 8-12 large or 12-16 smaller buns

ingredients:
6 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
5 1/2 tablespoons shortening or unsalted butter, room temperature
1 large egg, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon lemon extract or zest
3 1/2 cups unbleached bread or all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 1/8 to 1 1/4 cups whole milk or buttermilk, room temperature

filling:
4 tbsp. butter (softened to spreading consistency)
1/2 cup light brown sugar
2 ozs. coarse chopped bittersweet chocolate
sprinklings of cinnamon


directions:
1. in a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the sugar, salt and shortening on medium-high speed...beat in the egg and lemon extract until smooth... then add the flour, yeast, and milk... mix on low speed until the dough forms a ball...switch to the dough hook, and increase the speed to medium, mixing for approximately 10 minutes, or until the dough is tacky but not sticky... lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to cover it with oil... cover bowl with plastic wrap.
2. let the dough rise at room temperature for approximately 2 hours, or until the dough doubles in size
3. mist the counter with spray oil, and transfer the dough to the counter.... roll out the dough with a rolling pin, lightly dusting the top of the dough with flour... roll it into a rectangle about 2/3 inch thick and 14 inches wide by 12 inches long for larger buns, or 18 inches wide by 9 inches long for smaller buns... spread the dough with the butter, then sprinkle with the brown sugar, chocolate and the cinnamon sugar...then roll the dough up into a log, creating a spiral as you roll... with the seam side down, cut the dough into even pieces
4. line 1 or more sheet pans with baking parchment... then place the buns approximately 1/2 inch apart
5. proof at room temperature for 75 to 90 minutes, or until the pieces have grown into one another and have nearly doubled in size
6. preheat the oven to 350 degrees F with the oven rack on the middle shelf
7. bake the buns for 20 to 30 minutes, or until golden brown
8. cool the buns in the pan for about 10 minutes, and then glaze the tops... then remove the buns from the pans, and place them on a cooling rack

now to slather them in sweet cream cheese frosting... oh yea... you know you're thinking what i'm thinking... mmmmm.....

happy baking everyone :)

i just couldn't help myself :) i just had to make the cinnamon roll cake

well, if you're hip to the baking scene i'm pretty sure you've seen this cake floating around recently... i present the devilishly delicious cinnamon roll cake... and like everyone else who baked this up, i have nothing but praise for this sweet and spicy goodie... it's light, tender, and satisfies that cinnamon roll craving without having to wait for the yeast to double and rise...

so... if you have a few free moments and you want to fill your belly with something really warm and delicious, get your tushie in the kitchen and bake this right away... you will not be disappointed :)

cinnamon roll cake (from the blog, the girl who ate everything):
cake ingredients:
3 cups flour
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 ½ cups milk
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup butter, melted

topping/ filling recipe:
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon cinnamon

directions:
1. preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9x13 inch baking pan
2. with an electric mixer or stand mixer mix the flour, salt, sugar, baking powder, milk, eggs and vanilla
3. once well combined, slowly stir in the 1/2 cup melted butter
4. pour batter into a greased pan

now for the topping/filling:
5. in a large bowl, mix the 2 sticks of softened butter, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon until well combined
6. drop evenly over cake batter by the tablespoonfuls and use a sharp edge of a knife to swirl the topping through the cake
7. bake for 25-30 minutes or until toothpick comes out nearly clean from center
8. cool, but best served warm :)

most people who made this cake glazed it, but i just couldn't resist the classic cinnamon roll topping... a slightly sweet cream cheese frosting... i mean come on, how do you not use cream cheese frosting on a cake like this... man... it was fantastic :)

happy baking everyone!

sweet tooth sunday... cinnamon rolls :)

so yesterday was a bit of a lazy day for me... my hubby had work, so it was just me and the two little guys... who, by the way, had been up the night before WAY past their bed time... so i deemed Sunday to be movie and pajama day... i love that day :) especially when you have two rambunctious boys on your hands... i think pajama day should be a monthly holiday...

well anyways, i asked my oldest little guy what sweet treat he wanted me to make up... and at first he said ice cream, but once i told him it would take a little while to make, he quickly changed his mind to cinnamon rolls... and i jumped all over that... what's better then warming up a house on a cold day with the sweet smells of cinnamon... wanna know what's even better... eating these sweet bad boys, wrapped up in blankets with my two little guys, and watching toy story3 (which by the way... tear-jerker)... but hey, it's all about making memories people...

now, this recipe was new for me in the cinnamon roll world... instead of using my go to recipe, i decided to use the beignet recipe i used a few posts ago... i was so pleased with the way the beignets came out, that i figured why not try using the dough for something like cinnamon rolls... i know, i know, it's not a huge revelation in the baking world... but it worked for me :)

these babies came out soft, springy (can i use that word to describe baked goods?), flaky, and darn it... just plain delicious... and the sweet buttery filling was insanely good! brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and just a hint of ginger... mmmm... too bad i ate one a few minutes ago, cause now i'm feigning for another...
and i decided not to drench these guys in too much frosting... just a smear of sweet vanilla creamcheesie heaven...

don't you wanna just like the screen...
hope that satisfied your sweet tooth, cause it sure did satisfy mine... and as always...
happy baking everyone :)

what a way to greet the morning!

so... unless you're a complete nutter, there is something absolutely unbelievable about ooey gooey fresh from the oven cinnamon rolls! and i always seem to have a hankering for them, which is a big uh-oh especially now that i'm getting back in shape... (no more baby-belly and swimsuit season is just 'round the corner, whooo0 hooo0!) so i thought about it for a while, whether or not to make them, and well... the devil on my shoulder won...

so to make up a little bit for my lack of willpower, i decided to prolong the inevitable by making alton brown's overnight cinnamon rolls... but this didn't curb my desire to gorge myself, it made it worse!! having to count down the hours until they would be ready was torture! but in the end.... so worth it!

they were so0o0o0o0 good... not to dense, not to cakey... just perfect!

the one thing i altered in the recipe is the cinnamon filling... i added 1/2 tsp. of ground ginger, 1 tsp. of fresh ground nutmeg... and for added fattiness i chopped some dark chocolate (about 2 ozs.) really fine and added that too... it was subtle, but the and spicy-chocolate combo was AWESOME...

i used my cream cheese frosting recipe from my red velvet cupcake recipe, but just halved it... i love frosting, but i didn't want to overload the rolls, and lose all that yummy flavor...

i could not wait to dig into these... i really didnt even have patience to set them up to take some pictures!