Cinnamon Buns

It’s an amazing thing how smells are so deeply connected to memories. Sweet potatoes roasting in the oven bring back a memory of climbing the steps to my grandparents apartment for dinner, the smell of Polo cologne sets the stage for Christmas Eve at my childhood house on a snowy winter night and charcoal burning transports me to our beach cabana in such a real way I can feel sand in my shoes. And then there’s cinnamon buns. The amazingly sweet, spice smell of warm, gooey yeast dough baking up fresh from the ovens of…Ikea. Yep. That’s my memory connected to cinnamon buns. I’ve tried to reset the memory by baking cinnamon buns on special occasions but time and time again it’s still Ikea. I guess I can live with that. Ikea is a pretty cool place and where else can you get  furniture plus swedish meatballs, lingonberry jam and a cinnamon bun for only a $1?  

This is a fantastic recipe from Cooking Light magazine.(There are only 234 calories per roll)  The first time I made it I wrote on top ” AMAAAAZING, but  takes forever”. I decided to give it another try and re-wrote the recipe into easier to understand steps so the process didn’t seem so daunting to me. I hate when recipes call for ingredients to be “divided” throughout the recipe. I like to do the math ahead of time so there is no possibility for misreading during the process. Here is my version of the recipe which I now find just as amazing and much less confusing.

Combine and let stand for 5 minutes:

• 1 cup fat free milk at 105 degrees
• 3 TBL melted butter
• 1 TBL sugar
• 1 package of quick rise yeast

Add ; let stand 1o minutes:

• 1 egg beaten
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 cup flour

 

Add; Stir until a soft dough forms, knead 6 minutes, adding up to 1/4 cup of additional flour 1 TBL at a time if dough is too sticky:

• 2  1/2 cup flour
• 1/4 tsp salt

Place dough in bowl coated with oil, cover and let rise in warm ( 80 degrees) for 35 minutes and doubled in size.

Punch dough down, re-cover and let rise for 35 minutes and doubled in size.

Punch down and let rest 5 minutes. Meanwhile combine in a small bowl:

• 2/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 1/2 TBL ground cinnamon
• 3 TBL melted butter

Roll dough into a large rectangle, about 18 x 11 inches.

Brush on cinnamon sugar butter mixture and press into dough gently with fingers.

Roll dough up tightly from one long end to the other long end, pinch to seal.

Slice into approx 18 slices.

Arrange slices into 2, 8- inch baking dishes coated with oil or 1, 16- inch pan.

Cover and let rise 35 minutes until doubled in size.

Pre-heat oven to 350. Bake cinnamon buns for 22-25 minutes and let cool for 10 minutes in the pan.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl throughly combine:  

• 3 TBL soft butter
• 2 TBL cream ( I used milk )
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Gradually whisk in 1 cup SIFTED powdered sugar.

Drizzle over warm cinnamon buns before serving.