Gooey Delights - Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Glaze

I'm interrupting my previously scheduled "recipes with lime" series to tempt you (and myself) out of any previously scheduled diets. Yikes, I'm a nasty one.

In honor of my wonderful Mother who absolutely loves cinnamon rolls, I made these gooey & tasty treats for hubby and me on Mother's Day. Since my Mom couldn't actually fly out to join our glutton fest, I called her to wish her a Happy Mother's Day, and also tell her about my creation - I wasn't sure if she appreciated that or was just jealous. Sorry, Mom. I promise I'll make you some soon.

Though I'm not yeast phobic, baking with yeast is always a little bit of a gamble. My last kitchen disaster happened when I tried to make last minute dinner rolls and ran out of flour midway through the process. I still got a rise out of my rolls, but they were odd-tasting to say the least. Luckily, this attempt was much more successful.

Planning ahead this go around, I prepared the dough the night before and used the correct amount of flour. Genius, huh? After using my trusty Kitchen-Aid stand mixer to do the brunt of the work, I allowed the dough to rise (crossing my fingers the entire time) and then proceeded to roll out the dough, fill and cut like a madwoman who needed cinnamon rolls to survive.

Because I like things to be decadent if I'm going to splurge, I increased the amount of brown sugar in the cinnamon filling mixture to 1 cup. When sprinkling on the dough, it seems like an awful lot, but trust me, it's delicious and worth it. Plus, a little bit tends to fall out during the assembly process, and I want all the gooey goodness I can get. If you're so inclined, you could also add raisins or nuts to the filling and thus incorporate some vitamins into an otherwise non-nutritious meal. After rolling (be sure to make it tight!) and cutting the rolls, I covered the beauties with plastic wrap and let them sit in the fridge overnight.

Fast forward to Sunday morning, I woke up when the sunlight peeked through our blinds and and pulled the buns out. I promptly went back to sleep to give those guys a chance to rise again. Though they only need about 45 minutes for the final rise, mine had a chance to rise for 2 hours thanks to my sleepiness.

Into the oven they went:

...we were almost immediately rewarded with wafting scents of cinnamon. Luckily, we only had to wait about 16 more minutes to dive in. Yum!

**If you're visiting via Google Reader, please click on the original post to see my site makeover. Thanks to Julie from LeeLou Blogs who was a great help!!

Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Glaze
Courtesy of Molly Wizenberg on Epicurious

Dough:

1 cup whole milk (I used skim milk)

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 1/2 cups (or more) unbleached all purpose flour, divided

1/2 cup sugar

1 large egg

2 1/4 teaspoons rapid-rise yeast

1 teaspoon salt

Nonstick vegetable oil spray

Filling:

3/4 cup (packed) golden brown sugar (I used 1 cup)

2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

(add in raisins or nuts, if you choose)

Glaze:

4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

1 cup powdered sugar

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preparation
For dough:

Combine milk and butter in glass measuring cup. Microwave on high until butter melts and mixture is just warmed to 120°F to 130°F, 30 to 45 seconds. Pour into bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Add 1 cup flour, sugar, egg, yeast, and salt. Beat on low speed 3 minutes, stopping occasionally to scrape down sides of bowl. Add 21/2 cups flour. Beat on low until flour is absorbed and dough is sticky, scraping down sides of bowl. If dough is very sticky, add more flour by tablespoonfuls until dough begins to form ball and pulls away from sides of bowl. Turn dough out onto lightly floured work surface. Knead until smooth and elastic, adding more flour if sticky, about 8 minutes. Form into ball.

Lightly oil large bowl with nonstick spray. Transfer dough to bowl, turning to coat. Cover bowl with plastic wrap, then kitchen towel. Let dough rise in warm draft-free area until doubled in volume, about 2 hours.

For filling:

Mix brown sugar and cinnamon in medium bowl.
Punch down dough. Transfer to floured work surface. Roll out to 15x11-inch rectangle. Spread butter over dough, leaving 1/2-inch border. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar evenly over butter. Starting at 1 long side, roll dough into log, pinching gently to keep it rolled up. With seam side down, cut dough crosswise with thin sharp knife into 18 equal slices (each about 1/2 to 3/4 inch wide).

Spray two 9-inch square glass baking dishes with nonstick spray. Divide rolls between baking dishes, arranging cut side up (there will be almost no space between rolls). Cover baking dishes with plastic wrap, then kitchen towel. If making ahead, refrigerate dough overnight. Let dough rise in warm draft-free area until almost doubled in volume, 40 to 45 minutes.

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 375°F. Bake rolls until tops are golden, about 16 -20 minutes. Remove from oven and invert immediately onto rack. Cool 10 minutes. Turn rolls right side up.

For glaze:

Combine cream cheese, powdered sugar, butter, and vanilla in medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat until smooth. Spread glaze on rolls. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Kitchen Notes:

• Use high quality cinnamon...you won't regret it. Penzeys Spices has some good ones to choose from.
• Be sure to roll the dough very tightly to keep the rolls uniform and to prevent precious filling from falling out
• If you're not the type to wake up at 6am to have these rolls ready by brunch, prepare the dough overnight. After assembling, cover the pans with saran wrap and store in the refrigerator. Remove in the morning and allow to rise for 45 minutes - 1 hour before baking
• Not sure what to do with two batches of cinnamon rolls? Besides making some new friends at the office, freeze an already baked batch and save for a future treat. When ready to enjoy, microwave or bake in the toaster oven.
• If you're really feeling indulgent or you love icing, double the icing recipe!