Cinnamon Roll Deliciousness

Mmmmm, what's better than a plate full of warm cinnamon rolls in the morning? Probably waking up to the smell of warm cinnamon rolls :D But since I'm the little bakeress in this house my hubs gets to experience that one. The best thing about this recipe though is that you can freeze the rolls before letting them rise and pull out 1-2 whenever you want a couple! Yay for not having to do the whole batch at once!

I chose to do them in the muffin pan, individual servings!

Cinnamon Rolls

Dough

3/4 C buttermilk, warm (110 degrees)
6 T unsalted butter, melted and cooled
3 eggs
4 1/4 C all-purpose flour, reserve 1/4 C
1/4 C sugar
1 envelope instant or rapid-rise yeast
1 1/4 t salt
Filling 
3/4 C packed light brown sugar
1/4 C ground cinnamon
Pinch of salt
1 T unsalted butter, melted and cooled
Frosting
1 C softened butter
10 oz softened cream cheese
2 oz vegetable shortening
1 1/2 lbs powdered sugar
2 T heavy cream
2 t vanilla
1 T meringue powder


For the dough:
Whisk the buttermilk, melted butter, and eggs together in a large separate bowl. Combine 4 cups of the flour, sugar, yeast, and salt together in a mixer with the dough hook. With the mixer on low speed, add the buttermilk mixture and mix about 2 minutes. Increase the mixer speed to medium and knead until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. If after 5 minutes more flour is needed, add the remaining 1/4 cup flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough clears the side of the bowl but sticks to the bottom.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly oiled counter (I use cooking spray, easy!) with plenty of room and knead by hand to form a smooth, round ball. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and wrap tightly with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, 2 to 2 1/2 hours.

For the filling:
Grease a 9 x 13 pan or a jumbo muffin pan if you are doing just a few. Mix the brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt together in a small bowl. Turn the risen dough out onto a lightly floured counter and press/roll it into a 16 by 12-inch rectangle. Brush the dough with the melted butter, then sprinkle the brown sugar mixture over it, leaving a  1 inch border along the top edge. Press on the filling to ctick it to the dough.
Loosen the dough from the counter using a bench scraper, metal spatula, or any other instrument with a large flat edge, and roll the dough into a tight log. Pinch the seam closed and roll the log seam side down. Gently stretch the log to 18 inches in length with an even diameter and pat the ends to even them.
Slice the log into 12 evenly sized rolls (about 1 1/2 inches wide) using a serrated knife. Arrange the rolls in the prepared baking pan and wrap tightly with greased plastic wrap, or place a few in the oiled muffin pan and cover. If you want to freeze them, stop at this point and don't let them rise! Freeze them in whatever pan they're in, covered in heavy duty foil. Otherwise, let rise in a warm place until the rolls have nearly doubled in size and are pressed against one another, 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Adjust an oven rack to the middle and heat the oven to 350. Bake the rolls until golden and puffed, 25 to 30 minutes if you are using the 9 x 13 pan. Bake 20 to 25 minutes if using the muffin pan. Flip the rolls out onto a wire rack set over a sheet of parchment paper (for easy cleanup) and let cool for 5 minutes.

For the frosting:
In a mixer combine the butter, cream cheese, and shortening. Add the powdered sugar slowly, 1 cup at a time. Once the sugar is fully incorporated, add the vanilla, meringue powder, and cream. Beat on high for about 3 minutes. Stop, scrape down the sides and beat for an additional 2 minutes. This will make about 2 1/2 times the amount of frosting for one batch of 12 rolls. The frosting will keep about 2 weeks in the fridge and 2 months in the freezer.

Once the rolls are mostly cool, but still warm enough to slightly melt the frosting, spread the frosting over the rolls and delight anybody lucky enough to be waking up in your house that day.

"I wish they made a cinnamon roll incense because I don't always have time to make a pan. Perhaps I'd rather light a stick and then have my roommates wake up with false hopes" -Mitch Hedberg