A Babe with a Big Appetite: ACK Cooking Series: Cinnamon Rolls

On my last full day in Chicago, I had a few minutes in food heaven: Ann Sather's Cinnamon Rolls. These cinnamon rolls were so soft, warm, and gooey; everything that a breakfast/ brunch dessert should be. Ever since that morning, Ive been wanting to a good cinnamon roll, and I mean a GOOD cinnamon roll. And since there are no Ann Sather's in New York or Massachusetts, it was either to go back to Chicago or suffer with substitutes...

And then I found the recipe.

ANN SATHER'S CINNAMON ROLLS (from the Chicago Tribune)
Makes 12 rolls
1 envelope (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 cup warm water (110 degrees)
1 cup milk, scalded, cooled
1/4 cup (2 ounces) butter, melted
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 1/2 to 3 cups all-purpose flour
4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) butter, room temperature
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Powdered sugar glaze, optional, recipe follows

1. In a large bowl, stir the yeast and 1 teaspoon of sugar into the warm water and let stand for 5 minutes. Stir in milk, melted butter, 1/3 cup sugar, salt and 1 cup flour. Beat with a spoon or an electric mixer until smooth.
2. Gradually stir in 11/2 cups flour, keeping the dough smooth. If the dough is still moist, stir in 1 tablespoon flour at a time to make a soft dough. Cover with a dry cloth and let it rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
3. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Divide the raised dough in half. On a lightly oiled board, roll out (with a lightly floured rolling pin) and stretch 1 piece of dough to make a 12-by-8-inch rectangle. Spread 2 tablespoons of the soft butter over the top of the dough. Sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon. Beginning on the long side, roll up tightly, jelly-roll fashion. Repeat with remaining dough.
4. Cut the dough into 2-inch slices. Place on greased and floured baking sheets. Let the dough rise (in a warm place) until doubled in bulk, about 45 minutes.
5. Bake in the oven for 12 to 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Take the baking sheets out of the oven and place the cinnamon rolls on a wire rack to cool.
6. Top rolls with a sugar glaze immediately, if desired. Serve warm or at room temperature.

POWDERED SUGAR ICING
Makes 1/2 cup
1 cup sifted powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon milk, plus additional as needed

1. Combine sugar, vanilla and 1 tablespoon milk in a small bowl. Stir in additional milk, 1 teaspoon at a time, until icing is loose enough to drizzle.

Warm, soft, gooey, sweet, yummy, delicious, and best of all, HOMEMADE.
Now, they werent exactly Chicago's Ann Sather's cinnamon rolls. They were quite small compared to Ann Sather's because I was too impatient to let the dough rise. But dang, I make a good cinnamon roll.

Quick FYI: Research shows that the smell of baking cinnamon turns men on the most http://bit.ly/b1qgAR Oo honey, I'll make cinnamon rolls any time you want me to ;P

Here are some photos of my cinnamon roll making.

Made my own icing