Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Cinnamon Buns

Declaring something 'the best' is tricky, but I can easily proclaim something like these cinnamon buns to be 'my favorite' I've ever made. And, I've made lots of different cinnamon buns or rolls. In fact, cinnamon rolls are one reason this blog was started in the first place. I once spent most of a Saturday morning hunting through files and stacks of recipes trying to find the one for some cinnamon rolls I had made before. Several hours later, I remembered the recipe was from an old Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. This blog makes it so much easier to keep track of details like that. But, that was some other version of cinnamon rolls. The ones shown here today are now my favorites. They come from Maida Heatter's Cakes, and the secret is potatoes. I knew potato dough for breads is very tender and fluffy, but I had never considered making cinnamon buns from a potato dough. Maida explains that yeast likes potatoes, and indeed, the dough puffed very well while rising. The twelve buns filled a fifteen and a half inch by ten and a half inch pan. Fear not, there is no flavor of potatoes in the dough. The buns taste buttery, cinnamony, and sweet. The potatoes just affect the texture, and they do so in the best way possible.

First, you're going to need some plain, mashed potatoes. Anything leftover that might have been seasoned with salt and pepper or garlic isn't going to work. Maida points out that three quarters of a pound of potatoes will produce the one cup of mashed potatoes needed. The plain mashed potatoes were warmed in a saucepan, and milk was slowly stirred into them followed by sugar, a little salt, and butter. Meanwhile, yeast was added to warm water in a measuring cup, and in a separate bowl, and egg was mixed with vanilla. Then, in the bowl of a mixer, the potato and milk mixture was combined with the water and yeast and egg. Flour was slowly added, and this produced a sticky dough. The dough was turned out onto a floured board, and kneading was easier with a dough scraper. When the dough felt smooth, it was placed in a oiled bowl and left to rise for an hour or a little longer. After rising, it was rolled out on a floured board into an eighteen inch square, covered with melted or very soft butter, and sprinkled with a mix of cinnamon, sugar, and nutmeg. I opted to leave out the raisins. Next, the dough was rolled into a log and cut into buns. I let the covered tray of buns rest in the refrigerator overnight, and then brought them to room temperature while the oven pre-heated the next morning. They baked for twenty minutes, and when cool, the glaze was drizzled on top. I added a few tablespoons of cream cheese to the butter, confectioners' sugar, vanilla and almond extracts, and cream in the glaze.

Usually, the best part of a cinnamon bun is the very middle, but these were that good all the way on the outside edge. For years, my favorite cinnamon bun or roll was one made with pumpkin puree, and when October arrives, I reserve the right to change my mind again. Until then, these cinnamon buns will hold the title.

I’m submitting this to Yeastspotting where you’ll find some seriously well-made bread.



31 comments:

  1. Those look wonderful! The addition of mashed potatoes must have given them a delightfully smooth texture.

    Cheers,

    Rosa

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  2. Daaahling, if YOU say its the best, I'd pretty much believe you. You are a cooking and baking wonder!
    *kisses* HH

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  3. Oh how I wish I had one of these in front of me right now. They look so light, fluffy and delicious. Delish!!!

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  4. Cinnamon buns with potatoes? I guess I can't see why it wouldn't work!

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  5. WOWZA! I'll take your word for it, these look AMAZING. And they have potato too, fabulous. :) Gorgeous pictures, cant wait to try this little beauty. :)

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  6. Yikes! Do these look marvelous! Much as I love Maida Heatter, it will take some doing to get me to move over from Ina Garten's puff pastry sticky buns, to Maida's cinnamon buns. But I'm tempted to try if you say so! :)

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  7. Wow, perfect cinnamon rolls! Potatoes in sweet roll dough -- makes perfect sense when you consider the effect of potato on dough, but I never thought of it before. Definitely one to try!

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  8. I left a comment yesterday, but something must have happened, the gremlins took it away :-)

    Love the idea of potato in the dough - some bread recipes I've tried use mashed potatoes and the dough feels so nice to work with!

    I wish I had that cookbook, but it's the first time I hear about it, seems pretty nice

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  9. I admire a woman who makes a cinnamon bun from scratch! These look decadent and delicious.

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  10. Those cinnamon buns look scrumptious! Love the addition of potatoes in the dough.

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  11. Great shot! I heart cinnamon rolls and so does my Dad. I may have to try this recipe out for his visit next weekend.

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  12. Thanks for dropping by and your lovely comment. This cinnamon buns looks so perfectly baked. I am not a good baker and these recipes makes me crave for them so badly.

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  13. My grandmother made us some fritters for the feast of Epiphany every year; they were small marble size and coated in syrup and she used potato, that she mashed and flour 00. See how interesting that these cinnamon rolls use a similar recipe. Yours look extremely good and totally irresistible~

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  14. where is the actual recipe with measurements?

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  15. I love the idea of using leftover mashed potatoes to make something so delectable. I can see the difference in the dough - they look amazing!

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  16. Oh my goodness! Your Cinnamon Rolls look absolutely heavenly! I'm not much of a bread baker, but I love the addition of mashed potatoes in the recipe. I have some vintage books that often mention mashed potatoes in baking.

    Thanks for sharing, Lisa. I'm hoping I can convince my daughter to give these rolls a try when she comes to visit next week. (she's the baker in the family:) Will let you know...

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  17. Anonymous: I don't re-print recipes from books. I link to books that have been used, or when recipes are from a publication that includes them online, I link to those sites.

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  18. That's one of my favorite parts of blogging too - everything is easy to find! The potatoes in these sound so interesting - how nice the outside of the roll is as tasty as the center :)

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  19. No matter what you are making it always looks so amazing :)And potatoes..is really interesting ingredient

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  20. Potatoes......That sounds interesting and they look delicious!!!

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  21. These looks so good. I want to take a bite. I liked them so much I tweeted them. Yum!

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  22. I absolutely love cinnamon and these buns look so gorgeous, so elegant. I really believe they taste the best!

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  23. These look so beautiful. Bravo to you for not reprinting the recipe without permission, too!! And how do you get the frosting to look like that? I have tried to drizzle it with a fork before, but I don't get the same brilliant white color or definition that you've got going on...

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  24. I rarely make cinnamon buns as I have such happy memories of the ones my mom makes, if only she lived closer. I love the mashed potatoes in this version it all sounds just delicious.

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  25. I trust you implicitly - if you say they are the best, I'm sure they are spectacular. I have been forever spoiled by the Holly B's cinnamon rolls which are not super sweet and feature some whole wheat flour, but these do look incredibly awesome and I'm sure the potato adds a lot of softness to the dough.

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  26. i like mashed potatoes, but the flavor would be way out of place in a cinnamon bun. how awesome that they only contribute what they need to contribute and nothing more! :)

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  27. your cinnamon buns look sinful but no one can resist them. love the idea of adding the potato

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