Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

*Pictures are pending...

Last weekend my Hubby was in a baking kind of mood. I can't complain, I get to see him do it, help here-and-there, and taste the wonderful goodies that he makes *sigh.* I had always told my family I wanted to marry a guy that would like to cook and bake. The Lord sure heard my prayer and answered it. It's really wonderful to tell him what I crave (happens often) and he makes it for me :-) I will definitely make this recipe for him sometime, especially now that I have a really good idea on what I'm supposed to do.

Making cinnamon rolls takes time and a few hours of preparation.  Moms...do we have a lot of hours to spare in the kitchen??? More than likely, the answer would be "not really." His Mom, like most Moms, was really busy between raising her children and working. However, those long hours working in the kitchen sure made a difference! and my hubby still remembers waking up to the smell of a cinnamony,  warm, and yummy breakfast on a cold Saturday morning in Santiago.

That's the reason this recipe is so special and I'm sure it could become a memorable breakfast to your child.

Alright, so here is the recipe for the Cinnamon Rolls:

Ingredients:

• 2 packages active dry yeast
• ½ cup warm water (105-115)
• 1 ½ cups lukewarm milk (scalded from cooled)
• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 tbsp salt
• 3 eggs
• ¼ cup shortening or butter or margarine, softened
• 7 ¼  to 7 ½ cups all purpose flour

Preparation: 

1. Dissolve yeast in warm water.
2. Stir in milk, sugar, salt, eggs, shortening and 4 cups of the flour.
3. Beat until smooth.
4. Mix in enough remaining flour to make dough easy to handle.
5. Turn dough onto lightly floured board; knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes.
6. Place in greased bowl; turn greased side up.
7. Cover; let rise in warm place until double, 1 ½ to 2 hrs
   (You may cover the bowl with a towel to keep the dough in a warm environment)
8. Punch down dough; divide in half.
9. Roll each half into rectangle, 15 x 9  inches (approximately)
10. Spread butter (at room temperature so that it’s easy to spread with a knife)
11. Mix sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over rectangle.
12. Roll up, beginning at wide side.
13. Pinch edge of dough into roll to seal well. Stretch roll to make even.
14. Cut roll into 15 slices.
15. Place slightly apart in greased baking pan, 13x9x2 inches, or in greased muffin cups.
16. Let rise until double. Bake 25 to 30 minutes. (Oven should be preheated to 425 degrees)

After baking:

While warm, frost rolls with icing (see details below)

Icing

Cold Water (or milk) with powdered sugar and vanilla.  

Source: Betty Crocker’s Cookbook (1969)

Tips:
(thanks to my mother-in-law)

ü *To seal dough – you can also use a bit of water; like sealing an envelope – My Grandmother used to do this as well, especially when making Empanadas.

ü *To cut dough easier – so it doesn’t stick to a knife – use dental floss to cut dough.

Enjoy!