Gooey Cinnamon Rolls

Dough:
1 cup very warm water - not hot to the touch
3 teaspoons dry active yeast
1 egg
3 tablespoons melted butter
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 cup sugar
3 - 3 1/2 cups flour
3 tablespoons gluten

Filling:
4 tablespoons softened butter
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup regular sugar

Gooey goodness for the bottom:
1/3 cup butter melted
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon corn syrup
Pecans (optional)

3 Tablespoons or so heavy whipping cream

Cream cheese frosting:
8 oz creme cheese softened at room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon heavy whipping cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla


Put warm water in bowl. Sprinkle yeast over and let set a few minutes. With paddle beater attached to KitchenAid mixer, stir in egg, butter, salt, sugar and 2 cups of the flour sifted with the gluten. Mix a few minutes till 'elasticy'.

Switch to the dough hook and add in remaining flour 1/2 cup at a time until dough is no longer sticky, the sides of bowl are clean and the dough is smooth. You might not use all of the flour.

Take dough out of bowl and kneed by hand a few minutes. Adding in too much flour will make your dough too stiff. If dough is sticking to board, dust it with flour and continue kneeding. I love this part. It makes me feel a little bit like Mrs. Ingalls. Never mind that the dough just came out of the KitchenAid, someone just texted me on my cell phone, and I will NEVER have that sweet of a voice, nor wolves lurking outside my door!

To kneed, I grab behind the dough

Pulling it forward to fold in half and squish down

Then with the heel of my hand, I push down and away.

Turn the dough 1/4 turn then repeat. Do this for a few minutes till dough feels smooth, and you can part with the Mrs. Ingalls in you.

Put dough in a greased bowl flipping dough to grease top. I use olive oil for this. Cover with saran wrap.

Let rise till double.

Depending on how warm the house is, it can be 45 minutes to 1 1/2 hours. If my house is really cold or if I'm in a hurry, I heat a mug of water to boiling in the microwave (all by itself - no dough). Then I put my bowl with the covered dough in the microwave and close the door letting it rise.

Meanwhile, mix butter, sugar and corn syrup and spread in 9x13 pan. Top with toasted pecans if desired. Set aside.

When the dough doubles, punch it down.

Put the dough on the board lightly dusted with flour.

Roll into a sheet about 12"x16". Approximate here, friends. No need to hunt down a ruler:) Spread butter on dough. Mix Cinnamon and both sugars together then spread mixture on top of butter.

Roll up along longest side to make a long roll. Cut into approximately 1" slices.

 Place in the 9x13 baking pan you already prepared with the gooey goodness. Cover with saran wrap and let rise till doubled, about an hour, again depending on the temperature of your home.

Just before serving, pour a few tablespoons whipping cream over the rolls allowing it to drip between the rolls onto the gooey goodness below. I think this is the trick to making them especially carmely. A dear lady, Ma Gunderson, taught me this little secret in my early days of marriage. I also do a final sprinkling of some cinnamon and sugar.

Bake at 375 for 22 minutes or until done. Let rest a minute or two. Run knife around outside of rolls to release them from sticking to pan. Place an oversized platter over top of pan and using potholders or a towel, flip the rolls onto platter being careful to not get carmel on you, as it is quite hot.

To make cream cheese frosting, whip creme cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla and cream in KitchenAid with wisk attachment until fluffy. Serve frosting on the side.

This recipe started out as our Christmas morning tradition. It has now spilled over to Thanksgiving, birthdays, and now Easter. Maybe it will become a tradition of your family, too! Enjoy! And feel free to ask me any questions.