Super Awesome Most Amazing Cinnamon Rolls EVER

Hey guys, just letting everyone know that Wednesday and Thursday are my weekend days. I'm going to try to post on those days as well but I'm going to be really busy. Last night I moved all of Brandon's remaining roommate's stuff into the den as he wants it to now be his room. I spent a few hours getting every thing moved and taken care of. I suspect that's what I'll be doing the next couple of days, moving things around so that I can get every thing else finalized. It's going to be busy, but I'll try to keep everyone updated. For this post though, I decided to introduce you guys to something amazing- my mom's cinnamon roll recipe. I will go ahead and tell you that it does involve some work, but it's worth it. I've been spoiled on these cinnamon rolls and really can't eat the canned kind anymore, I think they taste like cardboard and aluminum foil. Here they are!




Mom's Cinnamon Rolls:

Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls
1 Recipe Sourdough bread dough
1/2 cup butter or margarine softened (I use butter)
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 T. Cinnamon
1/2 cup raisins (I omit these)
3 Cups sifted powdered sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
5 - 6 T. milk

• Divide dough in half. Roll each portion into a 12 x 10 rectangle. Spread each rectangle with 1/4 cup softened butter to within 1/2 inch of edge. Sprinkle each with 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon and 1/4 cup raisins (if desired).
• Roll dough, jellyroll fashion, starting with long side and press firmly to eliminate air pockets. Pinch seams to seal. Cut into 12 1" slices, place cut side down in 2 greased 13 x 9 x 2 baking pans.
• Cover, let rise in a warm place 1 hour or until doubled
• Bake 350 degrees 20 minutes or until golden
• Combine powdered sugar, vanilla and milk. Drizzle over rolls.

Yield 2 dozen rolls.
Enjoy warm!

Can refrigerate, just let rise before baking. Can place in aluminum baking pan, cover with plastic wrap and share as a gift or buy a nice baking dish, place rolls in dish with instructions on baking and give as gift for recipient to keep the dish!

So, the sourdough starter I posted last night is needed to make this bread. And this bread dough is needed to make the cinnamon rolls, follow the steps through to dividing in half. It takes a little time, but it is so worth it! Makes good sandwiches and makes good roll substitute for any meal! Happy Baking! These loaves can also be wrapped and given to friends as gifts this upcoming holiday season! :)

Sourdough Bread

• 6 cups bread flour
  
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup sugar
  
• 1 cup sourdough starter
• 1 pkg active dry yeast
  
• 1 1/2 cups warm water (120 - 130 degrees)
• 1 TBSP salt

-- Combine first 4 ingredients in a large bowl. Gradually stir in oil and remaining ingredients.

-- Turn dough out onto a floured surface; knead lightly 4 - 5 times. Place in a well bowl, turn to grease top. Cover and let rise 2 hours or until doubled.

-- For bread, punch down, divide in half, shape each portion into a loaf, place in lightly greased loaf pans, brush tops with 2 tbsp melted butter, cover and let rise one hour or until doubled.

-- Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until loaves sound hollow when tapped. Remove from pans immediately and cool on wire racks.



Sourdough Starter
1 pkg dry yeast 3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups warm water 3 T. instant potato flakes

Mix dry yeast with 1/2 cup of the warm water. Combine sugar, remaining 1 cup warm water, and potato flakes. Stir and add yeast mixture. Stir. Loosely cover with plastic wrap with two or three air holes punched in it. Let stand all day. Refrigerate. On day 3, take out and bring to room temperature. Feed with feeder below.

Sourdough Feeder
1 cup warm water
3/4 cup sugar 3 T. instant potato flakes

Mix feeder ingredients. Add to starter. Allow to stand out of refrigerator all day. Should start to bubble. At the end of the day (or 12 hours) remove 1 cup starter to use in making bread. Return remainder to refrigerator. After 3-5 days feed again. Remove one cup starter to give away or make bread, return remainder to refrigerator and repeat cycle. Can be stored in a canning jar, glass bowl or plastic bowl!

I usually feed at night, then when the 12 hours are up, it is daytime hours and I make my bread. :)



See? I told you guys there was some extensive work to these rolls! Trust me though, they're really worth the work. That bread is awesome too. Check out the rest of the blog for more recipes. It's got a lot of  great stuff!

Run, Run, As Fast As You Can

We haven't got to do our gingerbread houses yet this year like we normally do but I decided to post about them anyway. I'm sure you have all seen the little gingerbread kits at Walmart and other stores. If you haven't, you should check it out. They're normally less than ten bucks and they're a lot of fun. There's no baking involved, the house pieces come pre-cut and pre-baked and they even include the royal icing and candies! If you want you can purchase different candies that you prefer, or maybe some healthier alternatives like candied or dried fruits and nuts. We just use what it comes with, I'm all for healthy diets and proper nutrition, but these are children and it's Christmas!!!

These kits are a real time saver, I don't know if you've ever tried to make a gingerbread house from scratch but it's really time consuming and not something I'm willing to undertake with three toddlers running around. These kits are the perfect solution!







There's little Tobi, ready to eat them even though we just finished them! The kits even come with a little tray, as seen above, where the pieces fit in nicely for display purposes. Or, if you'd rather you can make them seperate like the one to the right. However, the doors and windows are already pre-marked on the walls. You may want to take that into consideration before purchasing your own.



There's my Bubba! He's in his high chair if you're wondering. He was in a terrible climbing phase at the time. I had found him on the table and countertops several times around this age and decided that it would be best if he were strapped down during this process. Don't worry if you make a mess with any of this as it was very easily cleaned up with a little hot water- another HUGE plus!! So, get out there and have fun!!!