Diane's Homemade Yeast and Cinnamon Rolls

Howdy, all,

I should start by saying that this is my own recipe, arrived at by much trial and error......sometimes ugly, inedible error.....lol. I use the same dough recipe for my yeast rolls and cinnamon rolls, with the exception that I add a little more sugar to the dough, and sometimes add an egg, but it is not necessary. Also, for the cinnamon rolls you will need the filling and glaze ingredients, too. I have never written down the cinnamon roll recipe, so I will have to muse on that and try to put it into words that make sense to somebody besides me, ha ha. This is a SECRET RECIPE, so please don't share it with any more than a couple dozen of your closest friends and family, lol. I have used this yeast roll recipe for at least 20 years, and it has never failed to turn out well for me. Like I said, this is my own recipe, so it's written in my own style, not like a commercial recipe, and the cinnamon roll recipe will be, too. I have lots and lots of personal and family favorite recipes. My Mom was a tremendous down-home cook, and all my four sisters and I cook a lot. My personal favorite is baking and desserts, but I like to cook most everything. If you would like other recipes, let me know, and I may even list some of my personal recipes on here............we'll see.......If you make either or both of these, let me know how they turn out for you, and if you liked them.



I usually double this recipe and make half up as yeast rolls, and half as cinnamon rolls. Or, I make a single recipe, and do half of each, just making a half recipe of the glaze and using half the filling ingredients. Recipes like this that I make a lot I rarely measure anything, anyway, I just start throwing things together, lol.

DIANE'S HOMEMADE YEAST ROLLS

6 cups bread flour

2 envelopes yeast, or 2 tbsp. bulk yeast

2 tsp. salt

2 cups warm water, test on wrist like formula for a baby (110-115 degrees for the obsessive people)

5 tbsp. sugar ( 1/2 cup for cinnamon rolls)

1/2 cup melted butter, stick margarine, or oil (obviously, the butter gives the best flavor, or use 1/4 cup each butter and oil)

In a LARGE bowl, dissolve the yeast in the water. Add the sugar, salt and butter or oil; mix till sugar is dissolved. Add 3 cups of the flour; mix well. Stir in 2 more cups of the flour, reserving the last cup of flour for kneading. Mix well, and turn out onto a floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes, adding flour as needed. According to the weather, it may take a little more or less flour for kneading. After kneading, place in an oiled bowl big enough to contain the dough after it doubles in size, and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk. (I usually put mine on the top rack of my oven and put a pan of warm water on the bottom rack. This really speeds up the rising process.) Punch down and form into rolls, loaves or cinnamon rolls, (directions follow.) Place into greased pans (2 loaf pans or a 9x13 pan for rolls), and let rise again covered loosely with plastic wrap until doubled in size. Remove plastic wrap and preheat oven to 350-375 degrees. Bake loaves for 30-35 minutes or until brown and done. Bake rolls at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes, checking after 20 minutes. According to the size of the rolls and loaves and differing ovens, the baking time and temperature may vary quite a bit and have to be adjusted for those variables. If the loaves or rolls start to get too brown before they are done in the center, you may have to cover loosely with foil. Cool rolls and loaves on wire racks for 10 minutes or so, then carefully turn out onto racks to finish cooling. Run a knife around the sides to loosen if necessary. I butter (yes, real butter!) the tops of the rolls and loaves as soon as they come out of the oven. Good luck, I hope they turn out well for you.

CINNAMON ROLLS

Filling:

1/2 cup softened real butter or stick margarine, more or less, to your taste

1/2 cup sugar, more or less, to your taste

2-3 tablespoons cinnamon, more or less to your taste

Prepare the dough recipe above to the point of making into rolls, loaves or cinnamon rolls. Halve the dough. Set one half aside. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough in a rectangle to 1/2 inch thickness. Spread half the butter over the dough, to 1 inch of the long sides. Sprinkle with half the sugar and half the cinnamon. Carefully roll up, starting with the long side. Pinch the dough closed, making a seam. Seam side down, cut with a sharp knife into 1 inch thick pinwheels. Place in one or two greased 9x13 pans, 1 inch apart. Repeat with second half of dough. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in size. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and remove wrap. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until lightly brown and done. Don't let them get too brown, cover loosely with foil if necessary. Cool on wire racks.

Prepare Glaze:

1 tsp. good vanilla

1/2 tsp. butter flavoring

2 tbsp. butter, softened

small pinch salt, just a few grains

about 4 cups powdered sugar

whipping cream or canned milk to obtain consistency desired for glaze--about 3-4 tbsp. maybe

In a medium bowl, place butter and 1 cup powdered sugar. With the back of a spoon, press the sugar into the butter, mixing well. Add the salt, flavorings and the rest of the sugar. Mix well, then begin adding whipping cream or milk till desired consistency is reached. Use a wire whisk if necessary to beat out lumps. Drizzle or pour over cinnamon rolls. Serve hot if at all possible.

That's it, folks. I feel like I have written a small novel, lol. The ingredients for the filling and the glaze can be adjusted for amounts and personal preferences. I sometimes add just a drop or two of almond flavoring to the glaze. Use more or less glaze or cinnamon to your taste. These may seem like a lot of trouble, but really they are not, and believe me, they are worth the time and effort. Both the rolls and cinnamon rolls are best about 15 minutes out of the oven in my opinion. I wrap leftover rolls in a damp paper towel and heat in the microwave for 20 or 30 seconds and they are pretty good, but not like fresh from the oven.

Whew!! Now for my posting. It's another cold, wet, dreary day. A steady dripping rain, 42 degrees. I won't complain, though, because we desperately need the rain. Won't be washing any bedclothes to hang outside today, though, which is just as well, because I didn't get around to changing my bed last night, anyway. Maybe in a while.........we'll see.....I have a beef roast in the oven, another personal recipe that is a family favorite. I will quarter some potatoes to put in with it about 30 minutes before it's ready to come out of the oven, then thicken the broth with some cornstarch for gravy. My roast, potatoes and gravy is my daughter, Jessica's, favorite meal that I make. It sho' do be smellin' good rat now, I be tellin' you, lol.

I went and got those glasses at Walmart. I took my own frames to put lenses in, and it still cost me $319........how do poor folks afford glasses, I'd like to know.........If it wasn't for our energy refund, I sure wouldn't be getting any glasses, that's for sure. It'll be a week or so before they come in. I checked again on the trial pair of toric contacts, still not in. I still need to type up my Grandma Lena's Salty Dill Pickle recipe for my Uncle Billy Ray. He said he didn't have it. I'll do that after I get done here. If you really sit down and give it some serious thought, most families have a lot of memories and traditions tied to food, whether old, old recipes handed down from Umpteen-Great Grandma or Aunt So and So, or things added in this generation to our holiday or everyday menus. Think about Christmas, Thanksgiving, Mother's Day, Easter, birthdays, July 4th..........Even Sunday dinners. And by the way, around here we still have dinner at noon, and supper is the evening meal.

Well, this is not getting those other things done........I may try to make another posting later, depends on how much time I have and what I manage to actually get done and not just talk about, ha ha. Enjoy the recipes........

Diane