Cinnamon Buns

I have changed the original (from Company's Coming Breads) enough that I am comfortable sharing it. Give these a try- they're worth it! HINT: My friend Janet sometimes makes her cinnamon buns just before bed, and lets them rise slowly in the refrigerator overnight. I've done this when I have two empty shelves, and it works a treat. In the morning take the buns out of the fridge. Turn on the oven, and while the buns warm to room temperature and the oven heats up, you go have your shower- or make the coffee, or whatever! When the oven is ready, pop in the buns and away you go. Hot fresh cinnamon buns for breakfast, without having to get up at 5:30 in the morning! (freezing them for later works too!) It's good to note that these are fairly quick buns, with only 1 rising time. When I'm using my Kitchen Aid mixer I can have them mixed up, risen and baked within 2 hours. If they are too hot to ice and it's time to eat, just tip the pan over onto a large serving platter, call them "sticky buns" and serve them hot without icing. (trust me, no one will miss that extra bit of sugar!)

1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 (1/4 oz/ 8 g) Active dry yeast (about a tablespoon)
1 large egg
1/3 cup cooking oil
1/2 tsp. salt
4 1/2 cups (approximately) all purpose flour

FILLING:

1/4 cup butter or hard margarine, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
2 tsp. cinnamon

SYRUP:

1 cup brown sugar, packed
3/4 cup butter or hard margarine
1 Tbsp. corn syrup/ golden syrup

ICING:

3/4 - 1 cup icing sugar
1/8 cup butter or hard margarine, softened
1 1/2 Tbsp. milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Line 2- 9 x 13 inch baking pans with foil. Spray foil with cooking oil spray.

Stir granulated sugar into warm water in large bowl. Sprinkle yeast over top. Let stand 10 minutes. Stir to dissolve yeast.

While yeast is proofing, mix the filling ingredients together, and measure the syrup ingredients into a small saucepan.

Mix in eggs, cooking oil and salt. Work in enough flour to make a soft dough; til dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl, and isn't sticking to your fingers. Turn out onto floured surface. Knead for 8 to 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Divide dough into 2 equal parts. Roll each part, one at a time, into a 9 x 12 inch rectangle. Spread each rectangle with half of the filling, then roll up from the long side. Let the rolls rest while you make the syrup.

Melt syrup ingredients together in small saucepan, stirring to dissolve sugar and blend well. Syrup should be smooth and un-separated, like caramel sauce*. (if it starts to boil, remove from heat or you'll find the syrup turns to hard candy on the bottom of your cinnamon buns) Pour the syrup into the two prepared pans, dividing it equally between them. If you like Pecan-cinnamon rolls, sprinkle toasted pecans (about 1/2 cup per pan) over syrup.
*if the butter hasn't blended in, it doesn't really matter; just make sure you divide it carefully to get melted butter and caramel-ly sugar as even in the two pans as you can.

Cut each roll into 12 equal (approximately 1 inch) pieces. Arrange cinnamon rolls over syrup in pan.

Cover with a tea towel. Let stand in oven with the light on (or in a warm place) for about 45 minutes, til doubled in size. Bake at 350 *F for 20 - 25 minutes. Drizzle with icing. (If you ice while warm, they'll have a nice glazed look. If you want to see the icing, wait til they're cooled) If you're making pecan buns, you might like to forgo the icing, and turn hot, baked buns out onto sheets of foil to cool (so the syrup and pecans are on the top)

Yield: 2 dozen cinnamon buns

NOTES:

Cinnamon Buns have become our traditional Christmas Morning breakfast. I often place the rolled buns (without syrup- I increase the filling by 1/2 and give them lots of icing instead) into Tree or Snowman shapes.

To make "individual" Christmas Morning Cinnamon Bun Trees I'll divide the dough that would make 12 buns into 4 parts before rolling it out. Each 1/4 of the dough gets rolled and spread with filling, then cut into "mini" cinnamon buns.

Bake these specially shaped buns on a greased, foil lined cookie sheet. If you're baking them ahead and freezing them, wrap them lightly in the foil then pop them into a freezer bag. Take them out the night before and let them thaw on the counter overnight.