Cinnamon Rolls

I generally detest cinnamon, with only one exception – cinnamon rolls. I think that it may have something to do with the copious amounts of icing that typically drowns out most of the cinnamon taste.

When I saw this recipe, the maple icing intrigued me, and was a big factor in why I chose to make it with my standard cinnamon rolls. If you wanted to stick with the more traditional vanilla icing, simply omit the coffee and replace the maple flavoring with vanilla extract.

This makes a lot of cinnamon rolls, so unless you are going to a large event or plan on giving them away, you may want to halve (or even quarter) the recipe. A full recipe results in forty rolls.

Cinnamon Rolls

Rolls:

4 C. (32 oz) Cold Water

2 ½ Tbsp. (1.65 oz) Instant Yeast

22 ¾ C. (5 lbs) Bread Flour

6 ¼ C. (20 oz) Cake Flour

1 C. (4 oz) Powdered Milk

5 ½ tsp. (1 oz) Salt

1 ¾ C. (12 oz) Sugar

2 C. (16 oz) Butter, Well Softened

10 Eggs

2 tsp. Cardamom

Filling:

2 C. Brown Sugar

2 Tbsp. Cinnamon

Maple Frosting:

2 lb. Powdered Sugar

2 tsp. Maple Flavoring

½ C. Milk

¼ C. Melted Butter

¼ C. Brewed Coffee

⅛ tsp. Salt

Mix the dough ingredients together on low speed for approximately 6 minutes until a smooth dough is formed. Allow the dough to rise for 1 ½ hours, covered in a lightly oiled bowl.

When the dough has risen, punch it down. Cut the dough in half, and set one half aside. Roll the dough out into a 24x32 rectangle, or smaller if needed.

Brush the surface with melted butter. Sprinkle half of the filling mixture evenly on top of the dough. Roll-up tightly to form a 32" long jelly roll.

Crimp the edges when finished rolling. Cut into 1 1/2" pieces. Repeat this procedure with the remaining dough.

For individual rolls: Grease a high-sided baking pan. Place the cut rolls 2" apart on to the greased pan. Making sure each roll is evenly spaced. Press down on each roll to slightly flatten. Cover with plastic wrap, and allow to rise for 45 minutes.

For pan rolls: Grease several high-sided cake pans. Place the cut rolls evenly spaced, but not touching, into the greased pans. Press down on each roll to slightly flatten. Cover with plastic wrap, and allow to rise for 45 minutes.

Bake at 350F degrees for 25 minutes, until golden brown.

For the frosting, mix together all ingredients listed and stir well until smooth. It should be thick but pourable. Taste and adjust as needed. Generously drizzle over the warm rolls.



Source: Icing adapted from The Pioneer Woman Cooks (Ree Drummond)

Doughnuts

Doughnuts have always been on my “to-do” list, but I was always a bit intimidated. After surviving making bagels, I figured that the time had come to take on the challenge.

A few helpful hints:

1)      Do not let the shaped doughnuts rise for more than the 1-1 ¼ hours. The first time that I made these, I used the theory of “the longer something has to rise, the bigger and airier it will be.” Apparently, this recipe has a rather short breakdown period. I let the doughnuts rise for about 2 ½ hours and they ended up being rather deflated. They tasted fine, but they were rather unattractive and flat.The second batch rose for only an hour and they were much prettier.

2)      If you are using plastic wrap to cover the shaped doughnuts as they rise, please make sure that it is generously greased. There is nothing as disheartening as getting ready to fry beautiful airy doughnuts, and to have the tops pull off and completely deflate when you pull the covering off.

The second, prettier batch.

Yeast Doughnuts

For the Doughnuts:

1-⅛ C. Whole Milk, Warm

¼ C. Sugar

2-¼ tsp. (One Package) Instant Or Active Dry Yeast

2 Large Eggs, Beaten

10 Tbsp. Unsalted Butter, Melted

4 C. All-Purpose Flour

¼ tsp. Salt

Canola Oil

For the Glaze:

3 C. Powdered Sugar

½ tsp. Salt

½ tsp. Vanilla

½ C. Cold Water Or Milk

To Make the Dough:

Make sure milk is nice and warm, but not overly hot (105-115°F).Add sugar to milk. Stir to dissolve. Add yeast into a small bowl. Pour milk/sugar mixture over yeast. Stir gently, then let sit for 10 minutes.

This should be done with the dough hook attachment, not the whisk. I realized this after I took the picture and didn't remember to get updated pictures.

 Melt butter in separate bowl until almost melted. Stir to finish melting so butter won’t be overly hot. Add beaten eggs to melted butter, stirring constantly to make sure that the eggs don't cook. Add the egg/butter mixture to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook.

The yeast gets all foamy and happy after 10 minutes.

 With the mixer on 3 (if you have a KitchenAid) or medium-low speed, pour in the yeast mixture. Allow the dough hook to stir this mixture for a couple of minutes, making sure that it is thoroughly combined.

With the mixer still going, add helpings of the flour mixture in 1/4 to 1/2 cup increments until all the flour is gone. Stop the mixer, scrape the bowl, and then turn the mixer on the same speed for five whole minutes.

After five minutes of kneading, you should have a soft, but not overly sticky dough.

 After five minutes, stop the mixer and scrape the bottom of the bowl. Turn on the mixer for 30 seconds. Turn off the mixer and allow the dough to sit in the bowl undisturbed for 10 minutes.

After 10 minutes, transfer dough to a lightly oiled bowl. Toss the dough to coat, and then cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place straight in the fridge. Refrigerate dough for at least 8 hours, or overnight.

To Make the Doughnuts:



The next day, the dough is reminiscent of airy sugar cookie dough.

Remove bowl from fridge and turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface. Roll out to 1/4 to 1/3-inch thickness.

If you do not have a 3-inch or 1-inch round cutter, feel free to use other shapes. The back of a piping tip is also a good substitute. 

Using a 3-inch cutter, cut as many rounds as you can, then roll out remaining dough and cut as much as you can, etc. Cut holes out of each round using a 1 1/2-inch cutter.

Before rising, the doughnuts look similar to sugar cookie cut-outs.

Place both doughnuts and holes on a floured baking sheet. Cover with large tea towel or greased plastic wrap and place in a warm place in your kitchen.

If not allowed to rise for too long, the doughnuts should be nice and fluffy prior to frying.

 Allow doughnuts to rise undisturbed for at least 1 hour; 1 hour 15 minutes if necessary. Doughnuts should be visibly puffier and appear to be airy.

To Fry the Doughnuts:

Heat plenty of canola oil in a large pot until the temperature reaches 375- 380°F —do not let it get hotter than 380! 375 is ideal; keep the thermometer in the pan to continually monitor.

One to two at a time, gently grab doughnuts and ease them into the hot oil. Allow them to cook 1 minute on each side; they will brown very quickly. Remove doughnuts from the oil with a slotted spoon, allowing all oil to drip off.

Place doughnuts immediately on several layers of paper towels. Count to five, then flip it over onto a clean part of the paper towels. Count to five, then flip it over again; the purpose, obviously, is to drain as much grease as possible before it soaks into the doughnut. Repeat with remaining doughnuts and holes. The holes will cook more quickly than the doughnuts; about 30 seconds per side. Allow doughnuts to slightly cool.

To Glaze:

Mix all glaze ingredients in a bowl until completely smooth. One by one, dip doughnuts into the glaze until halfway submerged. (Note: completely submerge doughnut holes, and then remove with slotted spoon). Remove from glaze, then turn right side up on a cooling rack over a cookie sheet (to catch dripping glaze). Serve warm if possible, or room temperature.

Source: The Pioneer Woman Cooks (Ree Drummond)

Bagels

I have always wanted to make bagels, but have been a little afraid to attempt them. Yeast has not always been my friend and all the additional steps are a bit intimidating.

While my bagels were not the prettiest (I think that my dough was a bit too dry), they tasted pretty darn good, and were rather simple to make.

Bagels

Yield: 12 large or 24 mini bagels

Ingredients:

For the sponge:

1 teaspoon (.11 ounce) instant yeast
4 cups (18 ounces) unbleached high-gluten or bread flour

2 ½ cups (20 ounces) water, at room temperature

For the dough:

½ teaspoon (.055 ounces) instant yeast

3 ¾ cups (17 ounces) unbleached high-gluten or bread flour

2 ¾ teaspoons (.7 ounce) salt

2 teaspoons (.33 ounce) malt powder OR 1 tablespoon (.5 ounce) dark or light malt syrup, honey, or brown sugar

To finish:

1 tablespoon baking soda

cornmeal or semolina flour for dusting

sesame seeds, poppy seeds, kosher salt, rehydrated dried minced garlic or onions, or chopped fresh onions that have been tossed in oil (optional)

1. To make the sponge, stir the yeast into the flour in a 4-quart mixing bowl. Add the water, whisking or stirring only until it forms a smooth, sticky batter (like pancake batter). Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and leave at room temperature for approximately 2 hours, or until the mixture becomes very foamy and bubbly. It should swell to nearly double in size and collapse when the bowl is tapped on the counter top.

2. To make the dough, in the same mixing bowl (or in the bowl of an electric mixer), add the additional yeast to the sponge and stir. Then add 3 cups of the flour and all of the salt and malt. Stir (or mix on low speed with the dough hook) until the ingredients form a ball, slowly working in the remaining ¾ cup flour to stiffen the dough.

3. Transfer the dough to the counter and knead for at least 10 minutes (or for 6 minutes by machine). The dough should be firm, stiffer than French bread dough, but still pliable and smooth. There should be no raw flour – all the ingredients should be hydrated.

The windowpane test: Start by pulling off a piece of dough about the size of a walnut. Using both hands, pull the dough between your hands. The idea is to tease the dough into a sheet or film. From time to time, rotate the dough 90 degrees so you will be pulling on different sides. As you pull on the dough, it should form a sheet, or film, that is thin enough that light can pass through it.

The dough should pass the windowpane test and register 77 to 81 degrees F. If the dough seems dry and rips, add a few drops of water and continue kneading. If the dough seems tacky or sticky, add more flour to achiever the stiffness required. The kneaded dough should feels satiny and pliable but not be tacky.

4. Immediately divide the dough into twelve, 4 ½ ounce pieces for standard bagels, or smaller if desired. Form the pieces into rolls.

5. Cover the rolls with a damp towel and allow them to rest for approximately 20 minutes.

6. Line two sheet pans with baking parchment and mist lightly with spray oil. Proceed with shaping the bagels by pushing a hole through the center and stretching out the hole to 2 ½ inches in diameter.

7. Place each of the shaped pieces 2 inches apart on the pan. Mist the bagels very lightly with the spray oil and slip each pan into a food-grade plastic bag, or cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let the pans sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes.

8. Check to see if the bagels are ready to be retarded in the refrigerator by using the “float test”. Fill a small bowl with cool or room-temperature water. The bagels are ready to be retarded when they float within 10 seconds of being dropped into the water. Take one bagel and test it. If it floats, immediately return the tester bagel to the pan, pat it dry, cover the pan, and place it in the refrigerator overnight (it can stay in the refrigerator for up to 2 days). If the bagel does not float, return it to the pan and continue to proof the dough at room temperature, checking back every 10 to 20 minutes or so until a tester floats. The time needed to accomplish the float will vary, depending on the ambient temperature and the stiffness of the dough.

9. The following day (or when you are ready to bake the bagels), preheat the oven to 500° F with the two racks set in the middle of the oven. Bring a large pot of water to a boil (the wider the pot the better), and add the baking soda. Have a slotted spoon or skimmer nearby.

10. Remove the bagels from the refrigerator and gently drop them into the water, boiling only as many comfortably fit (they should float within 10 seconds). After 1 minute flip them over and boil another minute. If you like very chewy bagels, you can extend the boiling to 2 minutes per side. While the bagels are boiling, sprinkle the same parchment-line sheet pans with cornmeal or semolina flour. If you want to top the bagels, do so as soon as they come out of the water. You can use any of the suggestions in the ingredients list or a combination.

11. When all the bagels have been boiled, place the pans on the 2 middle shelves in the oven. Bake for approximately 5 minutes, then rotate the pans, switching shelves and giving the pans a 180-degree rotation. (If you are baking only 1 pan, keep it on the center shelf but still rotate 180 degrees.) After the rotation, lower the oven setting to 450° F and continue baking for about 5 minutes, or until the bagels turn light golden brown. You may bake them darker if you prefer.

12. Remove the pans from the oven and let the bagels cool on a rack for 15 minutes or longer before serving.

Source: The Bread Baker’s Apprentice by Peter Reinhart, 10 Speed Press, 2001.

Chocolate Waffles

I wanted to do something fun for breakfast this morning, since we were both awake in time for breakfast (which is rare). The first thing that I thought of was chocolate waffles!

Chocolate Waffles
1 ½ c. Bisquick Baking Mix
1 c. Sugar
1/3 c. Cocoa Powder
¾ c. Water
2 tbsp Vegetable Oil
2 Eggs