Sunshine Sweet Rolls Food

LEMON SWEET ROLLS

Steps:

• Set aside 1/2 cup of flour. In a large bowl, toss the 2 and 1/4 cups flour, the sugar, salt, and yeast together until evenly dispersed. Set aside.
• Heat the water, milk, and butter together in the microwave until the butter is melted and the mixture is hot to touch. About 115°F (46°C). Stir the butter mixture into the flour mixture. Add the egg and only enough of the reserved flour to make a soft dough. I only needed 1/3 cup, but you may need the full 1/2 cup. Dough will be ready when it gently pulls away from the side of the bowl and has an elastic consistency.
• On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough for about 3-4 minutes. Place in a lightly greased bowl (I used non-stick spray) and let rest for about 10 minutes.
• In a medium bowl, combine the sugar, lemon zest, and vanilla. Stir it around until the mixture becomes sandy. Some juices may be excreted from the lemon zest; that's ok.
• After the dough has sat for 10 minutes, roll it out into a 14×8 inch rectangle on a lightly floured surface. Spread the softened butter on top. Sprinkle the lemon sugar filling all over. Roll up the dough tightly. Cut into 11-12 even pieces and place in a lightly greased 9-inch round pan. I used a pie dish, lightly sprayed with nonstick spray. Sprinkle uncooked rolls with additional lemon zest at this point, if desired.
• Loosely cover the rolls with aluminum foil and allow to rise in a warm, draft-free place for 60-90 minutes. Here is what I do: heat the oven to 200°F (93°C). Turn oven off. Place rolls inside oven and allow to rise.
• After the rolls have doubled in size, preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Bake for 25-30 minutes until lightly browned. I covered the rolls with aluminum foil after 15 minutes to avoid heavy browning.
• Right before serving, top your sweet rolls with the cream cheese frosting. Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese on medium speed until smooth. Add the confectioners' sugar and lemon juice and beat on medium-high until creamy. Frost warm rolls and sprinkle with additional lemon zest, if desired.
• Rolls are best enjoyed the same day, but stay fresh and soft in a covered container at room temperature or in the refrigerator for 5 days. Rolls (with or without frosting) freeze well, up to about 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator and heat up however you prefer.

BEST CINNAMON ROLLS RECIPE (BETTER THAN CINNABON)!

Steps:

• Warm milk in the microwave milk for 45-60 seconds. It should be warm but not hot to the touch (about 105 degrees F).
• Place milk into the bowl of your standing mixer, then add 1 TBS sugar and 1 TBS yeast to the warm milk. Stir and let it sit (proof) for five minutes or until it becomes foamy.
• Add the ½ cup sugar, butter, eggs, and vanilla to the mixture in the bowl of your standing mixer. Use a dough hook to stir until combined
• Add 4 cups flour, salt and cinnamon and stir the dough hook, starting on low and increasing to high.
• Knead dough in the standing mixer until a large ball is formed. The dough should be smooth and only slightly tacky to the touch. If the dough seems too sticky and is not forming a ball, add more flour 1 TBS at a time until a smooth ball is formed.
• Transfer dough to a floured surface and knead with your hands until it is smooth and elastic (about 3-5 minutes). Form it into a ball.
• Grease a large bowl and place the dough inside.
• Cover the bowl with a warm, damp towel and put the bowl in a warm place to rise.
• Let the dough rise in a warm place about 1 hour or until dough has doubled in size.
• While the dough is rising, make the filing. In a small bowl, combine butter, brown sugar and cinnamon until mixture is homogenous (uniform throughout). Set aside.
• Alternately, you can combine the cinnamon and sugar. Then melt the butter and brush it on the rolled dough, then sprinkle the cinnamon sugar on the butter-brushed dough. (I think this way is easier)!
• Assemble Cinnamon Rolls
• Sprinkle a large work surface with flour.
• Gently press the gas out of the dough and form it into a rectangle.
• Roll the dough into a 24x12" rectangle, about 1/4 inch thick.
• Spread the filling all over the dough using greased hands or a greased spatula. This process can seem difficult but it gets easier as you spread it. (Alternately: if you only combined the cinnamon and sugar, then melt the butter and use a pastry brush to spread the melted butter all over the dough. Then sprinkle the dough with cinnamon sugar and pat it down gently to insure it sticks).
• Roll up dough cut into 12 equal sized rolls (feel free to measure and cut each roll to be 2" long).
• Line a 9x13 inch glass baking dish with parchment paper and lightly grease. Then place rolls in 4 rows of three, evenly spaced.
• Cover and let rise until nearly doubled, about 30 minutes and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F
• Bake Cinnamon Rolls
• Once rolls are doubled in size, bake them in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 18-20 minutes. They will rise more in the oven. (NOTE: Check the center cinnamon rolls and make sure they are baked through. If your oven bakes cool or unevenly you may need to increase the baking time up to 10 minutes longer. If the top starts to brown before the center is baked, tent the baking pan with foil to prevent further browning).
• While rolls are baking, beat together cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, vanilla extract and salt. Do NOT chill the frosting. Keep it at room temperature until the cinnamon rolls are baked.
• Once the cinnamon rolls have bene removed from the oven, spread the cream cheese frosting on them while they are still warm.
• Cool & Serve!
• Let cool and serve warm.

LEMON SWEET ROLLS

Steps:

• Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with unsalted butter. Set aside.
• For the dough: Combine the milk, butter and 1 tablespoon of the sugar in a small saucepan and heat until the butter melts and the mixture's between 105 degrees F and 115 degrees F on an instant read thermometer. Whisk in the yeast and let stand until the top is foamy, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl. Whisk in the eggs and remaining sugar and set aside. Combine the flour and kosher salt in the bowl of a heavy stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. Mix on low speed until combined, about 1 minute. Turn the mixer to medium speed and add the yeast mixture. Continue to mix until the dough comes together in a ball and is smooth and no longer sticky, about 13 minutes.
• Coat a large bowl with cooking spray. Transfer the dough to the bowl and cover with a kitchen towel. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
• Punch the dough down and turn out onto a lightly floured work surface. Roll the dough out to a 20-by-12-inch rectangle with the longer side parallel to you.
• For the filling: Combine the lemon zest and juice in a medium bowl. Add the granulated sugar. Use your hands to rub the zest into the sugar and lemon juice.
• Spread the softened stick of butter evenly over the dough. Sprinkle the lemon-sugar mixture evenly over the butter.
• Starting at the bottom, tightly roll the dough up into a long log. Cut the log into 15 (about 1-1/2 inches-wide) crosswise pieces with a serrated knife or dental floss. Arrange the rolls cut-side-up in the prepared baking dish. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
• About 30 minutes before the second rising time is done, adjust an oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Once ready, uncover the rolls and bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes.
• While the rolls bake, make the frosting: Beat the butter and cream cheese with the paddle attachment in the bowl of a stand mixer until fluffy and smooth. Add the lemon juice and vanilla. Sift the powdered sugar into the bowl, add the salt and beat until combined. Add the poppy seeds, and beat until smooth, about 10 seconds. While the rolls are still warm, spread the tops with the frosting. Serve warm (see Cook's Note).

GRAMMA'S OLD-FASHIONED CINNAMON SWEET ROLLS

Steps:

• In a liquid measuring cup, heat milk/water to "wrist-warm" (do NOT boil; just warm).
• Add yeast and 2 tablespoons of the sugar (you'll use the rest in the next step). Stir the yeast and sugar; let this "work" for about 5 or 10 minutes. You should have some bubbly, frothy stuff in the cup when you return. (If not--your yeast is no good, dump it out and get better yeast.).
• Pour yeast-milk into mixing bowl, and add remaining sugar, butter, eggs, salt and 1 cup of the flour. Using beater, mix this mess for about a minute.
• Switch to the paddle (flat beater) or a dough hook, and add remaining flour one cup-at-a-time. The dough will form a ball, and feel slightly sticky. You may not need the entire 5 1/2 cups (depends on humidity, too).
• Fill medium glass bowl with hottest tap water. If your oven can be adjusted to 100 degrees, set it to 100 degrees. Also, if your oven has a light, turn it on; place the hot water on the bottom of the oven. Close the door.
• Grease a large, glass bowl. Remove dough from mixing bowl to a floured table/counter-top; knead for 1 minute; form into a ball and place in greased bowl, turning to get grease on all sides. Cover bowl loosely with a sheet of plastic wrap.
• Turn off 100 degree oven, place bowl of dough into oven; close the door. Set the timer for 1 hour.
• Clean up the mess BUT leave floured counter-top AS IS.
• At the end of one hour the dough should've risen to about double the size. If not, let it go for another 15 minutes (set the timer--it's easy to forget---out of sight, out of mind!).
• Gather filling ingredients: 1/4 cup of melted butter; cinnamon; brown sugar; raisins and/or chopped nuts (optional).
• Punch down the down; remove from bowl; with a large butcher knife, cut dough into two equal parts. Set one aside (cover with plastic wrap).
• Grease two 13x9-inch pans with BUTTER (no substitutes are allowed -- this is GRAMMA's recipe). :-) humor me, okay?.
• On floured counter-top, lay dough and with a rolling pin, shape & roll into large rectangle, oh about 8 x 16 inches or a bit larger, keep thickness consistent throughout.
• Pour HALF of the melted butter over this, and spread with a pastry brush, right out to the edges. Sprinkle generously with cinnamon (like 1-2 tablespoons), then a handful of brown sugar, spreading it evenly with fingers; right to the edges!
• Sprinkle some raisins and chopped nuts -- if using. Keep these closer to the long side closest to you.
• HERE's THE HARD PART: Starting at the side closest to you, LOOSELY roll away from you. Loosely is the KEY word. Tuck in any runaway raisins or nuts.
• Use that big knife to divide the roll in half in the middle. Then cut each half into SIX equal portions, for a total of 12 rolls.
• Starting in the middle of the roll (nicest shaped rolls) and working to the sloppy outside roll piecs, set them along the outside edges of the buttered pan, spacing evenly in the pan. Put the two end rolls in the very center of the pan. Set the cut side DOWN (so the top looks flat-ish). Set this pan on the stove for now.
• Repeat with remaining dough; vary the ingredients -- if you skipped raisins or nuts, maybe add some to this pan of rolls.
• Check if the water in the oven is still warm, if not dump out and start with fresh hot water. Put plastic wrap on both pans (re-use the other piece), and pop in the warm oven. Set the timer for 45 minutes. Go do something productive---clean the counter-top before all that stuff gets hard! :-D.
• When the rolls have risen to the top of the pan (or a smidgen over), remove them from the oven, preheat oven to 350. When it's warm bake them for 20 minutes; tops will be golden brown.
• Cool on a rack; then frost with a cream cheese/butter cream frosting (slather it on thick like Gramma does for the grandkids!).
• You have JUST entered the Pearly Gates!