CinnamonBuns

Mix water, teaspoon sugar and the yeast together in a small bowl until dissolved and set aside for about 10 minutes. Put milk into a quart or larger Pyrex cup and microwave on full power for about 4 minutes or until scalded. Cut the butter into pats and add to the warm milk and let melt. Allow to cool slightly.

In the bowl of a heavy duty mixer, put 4 cups of the flour, both 1/4 cups of sugar, the eggs, salt, lemon zest and the mace. Add the milk and butter mixture and blend. Add the yeast and beat on low until the dough forms spidery patterns in the bowl. Slowly add additional flour until the dough stiffens but is still soft and sticky. Knead for 6 to 10 minutes until the dough is springy. Add in the fruit and blend. Knead for another 2 minutes and add additional flour until the dough is no longer sticky and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

Place dough into an oiled heavy pottery bowl and lightly oil the top of the dough. Cover with plastic wrap. Place the bowl into any large bowl or pot that will hold it and a water bath of 2 gallons or so of lukewarm water. Allow dough to rise until double in size, adding warm water to the big bowl if necessary to maintain a bath of about 100 degrees.

When the dough has doubled, punch it down and turn it out onto a lightly floured counter. Knead it smooth and roll it out into a rectangle 9 to 10 inches wide and about 31 inches long. Brush the dough with about 2/3 of the melted butter, mix the 1 1/4 cup brown sugar and the cinnamon and sprinkle it over the dough. Roll up the dough like a jelly roll, trim the ends, and cut into 20 1 1/2 inch pieces.

Place the rolls 4 across and 5 down on a greased 12 x 17 inch sheet pan and brush the tops with the remaining butter. Loosely cover the rolls with plastic wrap and place the sheet pan on top of the water bath and let rise until double in size. Bake in a 375 degree pre-heated oven for 15 to 20 minutes. Mix glaze ingredients and drizzle over the rolls after they have cooled.

To make the rolls on Saturday for Sunday morning breakfast, underbake slightly and cover tightly with foil. Do not refrigerate. In the morning, remove foil and bake until fully brown and top with glaze.

The unglazed rolls freeze very well.


		Cinnamon Buns (makes 20 big, fat rolls)
Sue Kleber Now these same voracious omnivores are busy with young families of their own, totally focused on building careers or scattered all over the globe. And in our mature neighborhood, from house to house, it’s just two pairs of eyes over the breakfast table and neither one of us eats as much as we used to. But I still have the cookin’ Jones and puttering around the kitchen on a lazy Saturday afternoon makes me happy. Making cinnamon rolls isn’t hard work. It’s just a few parcels of effort spread out over several hours time but it’s an effort that seems a little silly when there are only two of us. So we’ve been sharing the wealth and, on Sunday morning, plates of cinnamon rolls have been flying all over town. I get to do my puttering, the house smells terrific and I think our family has gotten a whole lot bigger. How could all my friends have gotten so old when I haven’t aged a day in the last fifteen years? Fifteen or twenty years ago we were all busy with teenagers and all their activities and churning out enough good food to keep them fed was nearly a full time job. Restaurant sized pots of soups, stews and spaghetti were downed in a flash and an hour later I heard the question “What do we have for a snack?”			Dough: 1/3 cup lukewarm water 2 pkg dry yeast, regular or rapid rise 1 tsp sugar 1 1/2 cups milk 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter 6 to 7 cups all-purpose flour, pref unbleached 1/4 cup sugar 1/4 cup light brown sugar 3 eggs 1 1/2 tsp salt grated rind of l lemon 1/2 tsp mace 1/2 cup dark seedless raisins 1/2 cup currants, minced dried apricots OR golden raisins Filling: 1 stick unsalted butter, melted 1 1/4 cups light brown sugar, firmly packed 1 1/2 TB cinnamon Glaze: 1 1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar 3 oz. cream cheese (optional) 3/4 tsp vanilla extract warm water Mix water, teaspoon sugar and the yeast together in a small bowl until dissolved and set aside for about 10 minutes. Put milk into a quart or larger Pyrex cup and microwave on full power for about 4 minutes or until scalded. Cut the butter into pats and add to the warm milk and let melt. Allow to cool slightly. In the bowl of a heavy duty mixer, put 4 cups of the flour, both 1/4 cups of sugar, the eggs, salt, lemon zest and the mace. Add the milk and butter mixture and blend. Add the yeast and beat on low until the dough forms spidery patterns in the bowl. Slowly add additional flour until the dough stiffens but is still soft and sticky. Knead for 6 to 10 minutes until the dough is springy. Add in the fruit and blend. Knead for another 2 minutes and add additional flour until the dough is no longer sticky and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Place dough into an oiled heavy pottery bowl and lightly oil the top of the dough. Cover with plastic wrap. Place the bowl into any large bowl or pot that will hold it and a water bath of 2 gallons or so of lukewarm water. Allow dough to rise until double in size, adding warm water to the big bowl if necessary to maintain a bath of about 100 degrees. When the dough has doubled, punch it down and turn it out onto a lightly floured counter. Knead it smooth and roll it out into a rectangle 9 to 10 inches wide and about 31 inches long. Brush the dough with about 2/3 of the melted butter, mix the 1 1/4 cup brown sugar and the cinnamon and sprinkle it over the dough. Roll up the dough like a jelly roll, trim the ends, and cut into 20 1 1/2 inch pieces. Place the rolls 4 across and 5 down on a greased 12 x 17 inch sheet pan and brush the tops with the remaining butter. Loosely cover the rolls with plastic wrap and place the sheet pan on top of the water bath and let rise until double in size. Bake in a 375 degree pre-heated oven for 15 to 20 minutes. Mix glaze ingredients and drizzle over the rolls after they have cooled. To make the rolls on Saturday for Sunday morning breakfast, underbake slightly and cover tightly with foil. Do not refrigerate. In the morning, remove foil and bake until fully brown and top with glaze. The unglazed rolls freeze very well.
	Courtesy of: Real Estate & Living www.somocorealestate.com