Happy New Year! May the new year be filled with happiness, health, and good food!

Every time when the new year rolls in, resolutions fly off the shelf. Diet, do not eat sweets and fats, exercise; one sees this in the coffee room at work. People avoid snacking and sometimes even avoid coming up for coffee so the temptation of snacking does not hit them. This usually lasts for a few weeks. Then why am I putting up these delicious cinnamon roll recipe on New Year’s, you may ask? I believe in eating in moderation, through the year. I cannot and will not give up my desserts, even if it is just one luscious bite or a piece of heavenly dark chocolate!

My son is visiting and I made the rolls for him for Christmas morning. So, if you are tempted by the cinnamon rolls, try it. They were moist, delicious and really worth the effort and time. They were one of the best I have eaten, way better than the store bought ones. I will surely try making them again. This recipe makes 12 cinnamon rolls and stays for a couple of days.

The recipe is from Alton Brown, one of my favourite chefs. The recipe can be found at https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/overnight-cinnamon-rolls-recipe-2014250 Here are the directions (copied from the food network website) with my pictures.

Ingredients:

• 4 large egg yolks and 1 large egg, room temperature
• 1/4 (2 oz) cup sugar
• 6 tbsp (3 oz) unsalted butter, melted
• 6 oz buttermilk
• 4 cups all-purpose flour (I used 2 cups all-purpose and 2 cups whole wheat flour), plus additional flour for dusting
• 2 1/4 tsp instant dry yeast (I used 2 packets)
• 1 1/4 tsp salt
• vegetable oil or cooking spray

Method:

• For the dough: in the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, whisk the egg yolks, whole egg, sugar, butter, and buttermilk. Add approximately 2 cups of the flour along with the yeast and salt; whisk until moistened and combined. Remove the whisk attachment and replace with a dough hook. Add all but 3/4 cup of the remaining flour and knead on low speed for 5 minutes. Check the consistency of the dough, add more flour if necessary; the dough should feel soft and moist but not sticky. Knead on low speed 5 minutes more or until the dough clears the sides of the bowl. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface; knead by hand about 30 seconds. Lightly oil a large bowl. Transfer the dough to the bowl, lightly oil the top of the dough, cover and let double in volume, 2 to 2 1/2 hours.

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• Combine the brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a medium bowl. Mix until well incorporated. Set aside until ready to use.

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• Butter a 9 by 13-inch glass baking dish. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Gently shape the dough into a rectangle with the long side nearest you. Roll into an 18 by 12-inch rectangle. Brush the dough with the 3/4-ounce of melted butter, leaving 1/2-inch border along the top edge. Sprinkle the filling mixture over the dough, leaving a 3/4-inch border along the top edge; gently press the filling into the dough. Beginning with the long edge nearest you, roll the dough into a tight cylinder. Firmly pinch the seam to seal and roll the cylinder seam side down. Very gently squeeze the cylinder to create even thickness. Using a serrated knife, slice the cylinder into 1 1/2-inch rolls; yielding 12 rolls. Arrange rolls cut side down in the baking dish; cover tightly with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator overnight or up to 16 hours.

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• Remove the rolls from the refrigerator and place in an oven that is turned off. Fill a shallow pan 2/3-full of boiling water and set on the rack below the rolls. Close the oven door and let the rolls rise until they look slightly puffy; approximately 30 minutes. Remove the rolls and the shallow pan of water from the oven.

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• Preheat oven to 350ºF/180ºC. When the oven is ready, place the rolls on the middle rack and bake until golden brown, or until the internal temperature reaches 190 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, approximately 30 minutes.

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• While the rolls are cooling slightly, make the icing by whisking the cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer until creamy. Add the milk and whisk until combined. Sift in the powdered sugar, and whisk until smooth. Spread over the rolls and serve immediately.

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Notes: I used a glaze on a few. Found it too sweet. It was just the right amount of sweetness without the glaze. In the future, I will not use the glaze. I did not try the cream cheese icing.

Glaze: Mix 2 tbsp butter with one cup powdered sugar and add 1/2 tsp of vanilla. Add hot water 1 tablespoon at a time (up to 3 tbsp) until the glaze reaches desired consistency. Spread over slightly cooled rolls. This is from Paula Deen.

Enjoy!