The Blonde who Bakes Cinnamon Rolls

There is nothing like a warm, soft & gooey cinnamon roll. I remember growing up and working with my grandpa on Saturday mornings and we would always go to Cinnabon to get Cinnamon rolls after we were done with our work. Ever since then, I have been searching for a copy cat recipe that I can make at home and enjoy these sweet rolls. 

After a lot of trial and error, I have come up with a lot of delicious cinnamon roll recipes, and some that we will never speak of. (hahaha)

Here are few tricks I have found along the way:
-Try not to over mix/knead your dough. Only mix until combined. 
-Use room temperature ingredients.
-Melted butter!!! It makes a big difference with how soft and chewy your dough turns out.
-Last but not least, pour warm (not hot) Heavy Cream over top the rolls after they have risen. A lot of people question this step. I know this, because I was one of those people for the longest time. So just do it, and trust the process. (You can thank me later) 

Now let's get to the recipe......

The Blonde who Bakes Cinnamon Rolls Recipe

Ingredients:
1 cup warm milk
2 1/2 tsp instant dry yeast
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1/2 cup salted butter, Melted
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp salt
4 1/2 cups bread flour


Filling:
1/2 cup salted butter, melted
1 cup packed brown sugar
2-3 tablespoons cinnamon
1/2 cup heavy cream, warm/ room temp (to pour over the risen rolls)



Instructions:

1. Pour the warm milk in the bowl of a stand mixer and add the yeast, mix and let sit for 5 minutes. The yeast will get a little frothy to show it is activated.
2. Add the eggs, melted butter and sugar. Mix until combined.
3. Add in salt and flour, mix using the beater attachment until the ingredients are combined. I personally like to use the BeaterBlade attachment.
4. Once dough is complete, remove from stand mixer, and cover the bowl with dough inside to let proof until dough has doubled in size. This should take 30-60 minutes.
5. Set covered bowl aside, and preheat oven to 375°F
6. Make the cinnamon & brown sugar filling by melting the butter in a medium size bowl, add in brown sugar & cinnamon and mix until well combined.
7. Once dough had doubled in size, remove from bowl and roll out in the shape of a rectangle on a floured surface.
8. Smooth the filling onto the dough, and roll the dough up tightly.
9. Cut into equal slices, and place on a greased 9x13 pan. Space apart about 1” evenly.
10. Cover the pan and allow rolls to rise again. (30-40 minutes).
11. Once rolls have risen, pour the room temp heavy cream over all of the rolls.
12. Place pan in the oven and bake for 25-27 minutes. Or until very lightly golden brown.
13. Once rolls are done baking, add frosting as soon as possible.
14. Serve and enjoy!