The Improv Cooking Challenge: Caramel Apple Cinnamon Rolls

. Take a seat and stay awhile.  You'll want to read about this little treat.  But let me first fill you in on why I [thankfully] even decided to attempt these heavenly rolls.

As a loyal follower of Sheryl's blog, Lady Behind the Curtain, I was invited to join her first ever Improv Cooking Challenge (ICC).  YES!  THANK YOU!  I absolutely love things like this, if you can't tell.  But here's how it works...

Every month, Sheryl decides on two ingredients that the members must use in any type of recipe they like, baking or cooking.  I guess there are really no other rules except that, ha!  And then, on the assigned day [chosen by Sheryl], the members post their creations.  The purpose of the entire 'challenge' is to create your own recipe or find other recipes utilizing the specified ingredients.  Also, you get to meet tons of fellow bloggers and that's always a plus!  All in all, it's a fun and exciting challenge and I'm SO very honored to be a part of it.

A couple of weeks ago, I had the entire weekend all to myself [Robbie was out of town], and I wanted to take this opportunity to make something extra special for this challenge.  Something that I wouldn't normally have the time for during the week or when our weekends are busy spent doing who knows what.  Right away, bread was on my mind.  I LOVE making yeast breads but because of the time it takes to rise, etc., I don't do them very often.  Well, not as often as I'd like.  Anywho, I'd had the recipe for Caramel Apple Cinnamon Rolls from Annie's Eats for quite some time and just knew this was it.  Her pictures alone of gooey, flakey cinnamon rolls were all of the convincing it took [which obviously wasn't very hard!].  How I decided to make it my own, however, comes from my recipe for Soft Caramel Sauce from Heirloom Baking with the Brass Sisters, which I've used in other various recipes [not yet posted...].  Man, I'm going to give Annie and the Brass Sisters a pat on the back for this one.

These rolls are a real treat, to say the least.  The dough was flakey and soft, flavored with cinnamon and a hint of nutmeg.  The filling consists of a mixture of cinnamon sugar and caramelized apples [YUM!] and the whole treat is generously doused with the homemade Soft Caramel Sauce [addicting!].  After slathering putting the caramel sauce on the rolls, I started to think that the sauce may be a bit sweet for this concoction.  But, I was dreadfully wrong and it paired perfectly with the tender dough and tart apples.  I especially loved how the smooth sauce seeped into the crevices of the rolls and melded with the apple flavors. MmmMmM!  Seriously, near [if not] perfection.  I'm just sayin'...

My only warning is that these do take a little time [i.e., two rising sessions] but otherwise they are quite simple.  And don't fret about the rises, it leaves you time to do whatever you want [of which, I was cleaning the house!].  And the result is well worth the extra effort, belieeeeeeeve me.

Gotta say, this month's ICC ingredients were divine and I had a great time!  Thanks, Sheryl! .

My Notes:

• I still haven't quite figured out how to make that perfect dough roll [or log, whatever you want to call it].  I always end up with end pieces that don't have much filling [it's always packed in the middle] and they're always WAY smaller than the rest.  If anyone has suggestions, I'd love to hear them!
• The one snafoo I ran into happened when I was cooking the apples.  I think I stirred them a little too much and ended up with a few apple slices but mostly more of an applesauce mixture [see pictures below].  Honestly, I liked it this way because I'm not a huge apple chunk fan but I wanted to note this since my apples didn't turn out the way they are supposed to.
• The only time I recommend not straying away from the kitchen is while you're making the soft caramel sauce.  This is an element that needs to be watched closely because the caramelization happens quickly.  So pay attention!
• Make the soft caramel sauce after you're done making the dough and it's rising for 2 hours.  The sauce thickens as it sits, therefore, when you're ready to use it, the sauce won't drip off the rolls quite as much [it will still happen, but it won't be AS much].  I was more than a little impatient and 1) didn't let the sauce sit long enough and 2) applied the warm sauce to warm rolls and so there was a little more sauce-drippage than I would have liked.  Whoops.

Ingredients:

Dough:

6-1/2 tbsp. sugar

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

Pinch of ground nutmeg

5-1/2 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 large egg, slightly beaten

1 tsp. lemon zest

3-1/2 c. bread flour

2 tsp. rapid rise yeast

1 c. plus 2 to 4 tbsp. whole milk or buttermilk, at room temperature

Apple Filling:

1-1/2 tbsp. unsalted butter

3 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/4-inch slices

1/4 c. sugar

1/2 tsp. cornstarch

1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

Pinch of ground nutmeg

Pinch of salt

1 tsp. vanilla extract

3 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. sugar

3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

Soft Caramel Sauce:
1 c. sugar
1/4 c. water
1 tbsp. light corn syrup
1 c. heavy whipping cream
1/8 tsp. salt

Directions:

1.  In bowl of electric mixer, cream together sugar, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and butter on medium speed until smooth.

2.  Mix in egg and lemon zest until incorporated.

3.  Mix in flour, yeast and milk until dough forms.  Switch to the dough hook and knead on low speed until dough is silky and supple, tacky but not sticky (about 8 minutes).  You may need to add in additional flour or milk to achieve the desired texture.  Lightly oil large bowl and place dough in bowl, turning once to cover with oil. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in size (about 2 hours).

4.  For caramel sauce, combine sugar, water and light corn syrup in heavy saucepan over high heat.  Bring to boil, stirring with wooden spoon.  

5.  Reduce heat to medium high.  Do not stir.  Continue boiling until mixture turns golden brown (not dark brown, about 6 minutes).  Remove pan from heat.  Swirl sauce gently in pan twice.

6.  Add butter and stir slowly until melted.  Add in heavy whipping cream and stir again (if caramel seizes, place pan on medium heat and stir with wooden spoon until smooth, about 1 minute).  Add salt.  Pour caramel sauce into bowl and cool to room temperature.  Set aside until ready for use.

7.  For filling, melt butter in skillet over medium-high heat.  Add apple slices, 1/4 cup sugar, cornstarch, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.  Mix until apples are evenly coated.  

8.  Cook about 18 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Remove from heat and add vanilla extract.  Set aside to cool.  

9.  Once dough has risen, spray work surface with cooking oil.  Roll dough into 12x14-inch rectangle (or 9x18-inch rectangle for smaller rolls).

10.  Sprinkle dough with cinnamon sugar mixture.  Evenly distribute caramelized apples over dough.

11.  Starting with wide edge, roll dough into log.  Slice the log into the desired number of rolls.  Transfer rolls to parchment-lined baking sheet, about 1/2 to 1-inch apart.  Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise until rolls grow into each other (about 75 to 90 minutes).  

12.  Heat oven to 350°F.  Bake 20 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.  Let cool on pan 10 minutes before transferring to wire rack to cool completely.  Place parchment paper from baking sheet under wire rack to catch excess caramel sauce when glazing rolls.

13.  Using a large spoon, glaze rolls with soft caramel sauce.  There will be caramel drippings from the rolls, but spoon the excess from the parchment paper and replace on rolls.

Yield: 1 dozen rolls

Check out all of the other ICC participants through the blog hop below, happy clicking!

Tried & True Tuesday: Classic Pumpkin Bread

. I'm letting you in on a little secret.  A family secret, actually.  Okay, Robbie's family secret.  But a great secret nonetheless!

Mmhmm, you guessed it!  The Knight's family recipe for Classic Pumpkin Bread.

I gobbled down tasted this perfectly composed bread the very first time I was ever introduced to Robbie's relatives.  His aunt obviously knew the way to my heart [but aren't I the one who was supposed to impress them?].  Anyways, the moment we stepped in the house I was handed a dainty white plate with a serious-looking piece of this Pumpkin Bread, topped with a dollop of whipped cream.  Now I'll be at honest, at the time I wasn't a huge Pumpkin Bread fan.  Don't ask why, because I still don't know what I was thinking.  But from the very first bite, this Pumpkin Bread stole my heart.

So consider yourself lucky that I was given permission to share this recipe with you all.  It yields three loaves, so you can precede to share the love with everyone you know! .

My Notes:

• To add a little variation, you can also add in 1 cup of chocolate chips or raisins [or 1/2 cup of both!].  
• I don't know about you, but I definitely only have one loaf pan.  Since I'm guessing most don't have three, don't worry about leaving the batter out while the others loaves bake.  Just make sure to cover the bowl so nothing gets in it.
• Like banana bread, this loaf is best a day or two later when all of the flavors have time to come together.  So don't worry about making this ahead of schedule!

From Mrs. Knight's Kitchen ☺

Ingredients:

3 c. sugar

1 c. vegetable oil

4 eggs

1 (15 oz.) can pumpkin puree

2/3 c. water

1-1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. nutmeg

3-1/3 c. all purpose flour

2 tsp. baking soda

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350°F.  Lightly grease three 9x5-inch loaf pans.
2. Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.
3. Divide batter evenly among prepared pans.
4. Bake 1 hour or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Yield: 3 loaves

Tried & True Tuesday: Blueberry Oat Scones

.  Can you believe what time of year it is already?  August.  Which means that Fall is right around the corner [or maybe it's already here, who knows].  A part of me is a little sad about this thought, where did the freakin' summer go?  I haven't had enough time to try out all of the seasonal fruit recipes I have bookmarked!

But then I think about the Fall.  And Fall to me means pumpkin, apples, and spices galore!  And I have quite a number of fabulous Fall recipes that I can't wait to share.  Okay, I guess I'm not that sad.

However, I feel like summer needs to be ushered out the door rather slowly.  I really do love summer fruits and creating wonderful fruity baked goods, so a post or two more of fruit desserts seemed appropriate [let's see how many times I can include 'fruit' in a sentence].

For this Tried & True post, I decided on the Blueberry Oat Scones I made a while back when my relatives were in town.  They were supposed to be a breakfast item, but the moment these lovelies came out of the oven my uncle and cousin were swipin' on some butter and fully enjoying a late night snack.

These truly are a wonderful.  They're delicate and slightly crumbly.  The majority of the flavor comes from the juicy blueberries and a little crunch comes from a sprinkling of oats and sugar.  I will warn you that these are very light in a flavor, more of a true scone (i.e., not extremely sweet).  Probably why I would prefer these more at breakfast time.  But delicious nonetheless .

My Notes:

• You can switch out the blueberries for any type of berry available.  I've made these with raspberries as well and they were fantastic!
• If you don't have a food processor, cut in the butter with a pastry blender or rub the mixture in between your fingers.
• The scones spread quite a bit while baking (as you can see, they're large!), so make sure to space the scones out on the baking sheets accordingly.

Blueberry Oat Scones

From bon appetit

Ingredients:

3 c. all purpose flour

1/3 c. packed golden brown sugar

1 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. baking powder

1-1/2 tsp. baking soda

3/4 tsp. salt

11 tbsp. unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 c. plus 3 tbsp. old fashioned oats

1 c. fresh or frozen blueberries

1-3/4 c. half & half, chilled

1 tsp. vanilla extract

5 tsp. raw sugar (turbinado or demerara sugar)

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350F.  Position one rack on top third and one rack on bottom third of oven.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in food processor; blend for 5 seconds.  Add butter.  Pulse until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  Transfer mixture to large bowl.  Add 1 cup of old fashioned oats and blueberries.  Gently stir to blend evenly.
3. Stir half & half and vanilla extract in small bowl.  Gradually add to flour mixture, tossing until dough just comes together (dough will be very moist).
4. Using 1/2 cup measuring cup, drop dough in mounds onto baking sheets, spacing 3 inches apart.  Sprinkle tops with remaining 3 tablespoons oats and raw sugar.
5. Bake 15 minutes.  Reverse sheets and bake an additional 12 minutes or until scones are golden and toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean.

Yield: 1 dozen scones

Chocolate Amish Friendship Bread

. So I have a little griping to do.  And I don't think I've done this before on here, so just hear me out.

I went running yesterday with Ollie.  It was an absolutely beautiful day, around 80°F and close to zero humidity [I couldn't believe it either!].  I don't know what's with Nebraska weather lately, but I'm lovin' it!  And so are my feetsies.

Anyway, Ollie and I were keeping a pretty good pace on our normal run route.  We started our way up a slight hill when I noticed an older lady coming from the opposite way.  She didn't appear to be making any adjustment on the path, so I started to bring Ollie to the grass so we could pass her with ease.  Side note, I get nervous that people we pass by are scared of dogs [or something crazy like that], so I always make sure to leave enough room between us.  Well lo' and behold, there was a nasty little hole covered in grass that I obviously didn't see.  You can guess what happened next.  Yep, goodbye ankle!

Embarrassment.  Hurt.  Annoyance.  Giggles.  Frustration.

Just a few of the emotions that swept through me as I stood on the path trying to not look like my spill actually hurt.

And so here I sit at home with my bum ankle.  It really isn't that bad, I can walk around [with some good lookin' limpin' going on].  And as I've sat on my butt all day, my ankle seems to be a bit better.  A little swollen, but it's so much better than even just this morning.  Man, oh, man.  Stupid body parts.  And to think that I was going to run on the treadmill yesterday instead.  But hindsight is 20/20, huh?

So you can probably guess that I've been in quite a depressing mood today.  I hate the feeling of being helpless.  Not that I really am, but even the thought of getting up seems like a lot of work.  It's things like this that make me realize how much I take even the simplest things for granted, like walking around normally.  But I guess we all need to be woken up every once in a while!

But anyway, blogging felt like a good remedy.  And I have the most perfect concoction, a recipe that would brighten up anyone's day.  I mean c'mon, 'Friendship' is in the name!  Just thinking about it makes me happy.

A couple of weeks ago, a co-worker brought me two large plastic bags filled with a tan goo and a sheet of directions.  As I scanned the sheet, I read directions like 'mush the bag', 'day 9', etc.  Mush the bag?  This thing takes 10 days?!  What the hay was he giving me?

The basic explanation I got was that this Amish Friendship Bread was , ah ha, bread, and extremely good.  The time period alone of this goodie peaked my interest and so I took it home, and for the next week or so, did exactly what the directions said to.

And on the 10th day [I feel like I'm creating the world], I mixed in the remaining ingredients and bready bliss came out of the oven an hour later.

Seriously, this bread is tops on my list.  It is by far the most odd creation I have ever been introduced to [the process, that is] but the product is absolutely heavenly.  And what I love even more about this bread are the endless varieties.  The bread gets its flavor from pudding packets, so basically what I'm saying is that the number of combinations is only limited to the different flavors of puddings.  And when I was at the grocery store, there were shelves of pudding flavors.  Oh yeah, and multiply that by any type of add-in your little heart desires.  Variety craziness.

For my first attempt, I chose to do the chocolate version [obviously].  The bread had that banana/pumpkin bread texture [which is expected, it is in the end a quick bread!].  But what topped it off was the milk chocolate chips in the bread.  And right out of the oven, the chocolate chips were melted and gooey.  It's a wonderful thing.

So thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Gunderson for giving me this recipe and allowing me to share it with the blog world!  This is a true gem of a find and I will keep this in my repertoire for the rest of my life.  Oh, you bet I will!

P.S. the whole story behind Amish Friendship Bread is that the gooey mixture I talked about earlier is actually the starter for the bread.  When you go to make the bread, you end up dividing the mixture into separate bags and you're supposed to give them to friends so they can make it, too!  Fun, huh?  The treat that keeps on giving! .

[Lot'sa] My Notes:

• DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT use metal bowls or spoons when making this bread.  Don't ask me why, but it's plastered on the directions I was given and also all over the internet.  
• When you divide the starter into bags to give to your friends [or keep for yourself], make sure to use large plastic bags, as noted.  At the time, I didn't have any large ones so I put the mixture into little sandwich bags.  Well, we can ask Robbie how that worked out...hello, starter explosion all over the kitchen counter.  Whoops!
• If you don't want to use the starter right away, you can throw it in the freezer and just start where you left off!  Nice, huh?
• The other variation noted on my directions sheet was for a cinnamon sugar version.  If you want to try this out, simply switch out the chocolate chips with 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon and the chocolate fudge pudding with vanilla.  You'll also need 1/2 cup sugar and 1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon to dust the pans and top of bread with before baking.
• This bread is definitely the best right out of the oven, when the chocolate chips are still melty.  Or if you can wait until the next day, the flavors are really able to come out.  Mm! Mm! Mm!
• 'Mushing the bag' is simply rubbing the mixture in the bag between your fingers to get everything mixed up.  But no need to go crazy or do it for too long, a little mixing is just fine!
• I used a standard 9x5-inch loaf pan, but next time around I will use a little smaller pan.  Because the pan was a bit larger, I ended up with loaves a little more flat than I prefer.

Chocolate Amish Friendship Bread

Ingredients:

Starter:

1 (.25 oz.) package active dry yeast

1/4 c. warm water

1 c. all purpose flour

1 c. sugar

1 c. milk

Bread:

3 eggs

1/2 c. oil

1/2 c. applesauce

2 c. milk, divided

2-1/2 c. sugar, divided

2 c. milk chocolate chips

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1-1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

3-1/2 c. all purpose flour, divided

1 box chocolate fudge pudding

Directions:

1.  If you don't have the starter, combine yeast, flour, sugar and milk, in large re-sealable plastic bag.  Label the bag with the date the starter was created.  This classifies as Day 1.

2.  Days 2 through 5, mush the bag once per day only.  

3.  On day 6, add 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, and 1 cup milk to the bag.  Mush the bag.

4.  Days 7 through 9 mush the bag once per day only.

5.  On day 10, pour the entire contents of the bag into a non-metal bowl.  Add 1-1/2 cups flour, 1-1/2 cups sugar, and 1-1/2 cups milk; mix well.

6.  Measure out four 1-cups of batter and place into four separate large re-sealable bags and mark with that day's date.  These are the starters you can hand out to friends...or keep for yourself!

7.  Heat oven to 325°F.  To the remaining batter, add the eggs, oil, applesauce, milk, sugar, vanilla extract, baking powder, baking soda, 2 cups flour, and pudding mix.  Mix well.  Stir in chocolate chips.

8.  Grease very well two loaf pans.  Pour batter evenly in to pans.  Bake 1 hour or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Let cool in pan until bread loosens and comes out evenly.  

Yield: 2 loaves

Nectarine Sconecakes

. Martha, Martha, Martha.  Oh, Martha.  You've done it to me again.  Caught me hook, line and sinker!

And with what bait, you ask?  Nectarine Shortcakes [but I'm debating calling them scones...].  Pure, plain and simple (I'm all about the three-word phrases today, by the way.  Oh, there's another one!).

Well, it's not hard to imagine that these Nectarine Shortcakes took over my heart in all but the two milliseconds (mmhmm, milliseconds) it took for me to take one large bite out of these little lovelies.  Ever since I can remember, I've had a deep-burnin' love for nectarines.  By far my favorite fruit of all time.  A juicy, ripened [should I add in one more adjective to keep the theme running?] is almost....no, IS impossible to beat.  Please, provide an example of something better than a nectarine.  Can't.  Sorry.

So the nectarine element in this treat is fairly self explanatory.  I'll admit though, I was a bit worried when I first started putting these together because my nectarines were not quite ripe.  But don't worry folks, Martha covered us on this, too.  The nectarines macerate before being added to the dough and this little trick really brings out their wonderful sweetness.  So ripe or not quite there yet, everything will turn out just fine.

The shortcake/scone [I can't decide which is a better descriptor?  Sconecake?!]  part is, quite honestly, one of the best I've tasted.  And no questions asked, the best 'sconecake' I've ever tried making.  I've made shortcakes and scones before and have been somewhat disappointed.  The last shortcake I made was beyond bland.  My parents and boyfriends' parents can vouch for me on this one.  And I've made a few scones before that were actually pretty good, but can sometimes run on the bland side or dry out.  However, not the case with this one here.

This 'sconecake' has a slight sweetness, which kind of reminded me of those Hawaiian Sweet Rolls we have come to love and devour.  Not too sweet but just enough to keep your attention.  They were also so extremely moist [thanks to the nectarines] and soft that I was actually very surprised.  Like I mentioned, it's hard to find recipes that turn out like this.  And before baking, the 'sconecakes' are brushed with cream and sprinkled with raw sugar, which gives them an ever so subtle crunchy top.  Superb.  Simply superb.

And even though I can't get nectarines at my local farmer's market [boo], this is such a great weekend breakfast/brunch recipe to try for those of you who can.  Well, I guess even if you can't you can still have a go!

But before you get started, I came to the realization that including the 'My Notes' section of my posts before the actual recipe would probably be more beneficial.  I mean really, what sense does it make for someone to get through the recipe and then read my tips.  A little too late, right?  So here are my notes for Nectarine Shortcakes, let me know if you like this move or if you'd still prefer keeping 'My Notes' until the end .

My Notes

• These 'sconecakes' are best the day they are made, however, I surprisingly noted that they were still fantastic two days down the road.  They did soften quite a bit because of the fruit, but they were addicting nonetheless.
• I am thoroughly, thoroughly, thoroughly, convinced that the reason these scones came out so wonderfully [not to toot my own horn!] is because I used a food processor for as many of the steps that I could.  In the past, I've handled the dough much more and it resulted in tougher goodies.  Use a food processor if you have one!
• Keep your ingredients (i.e., butter, heavy whipping cream) in the refrigerator until you are absolutely ready to use them.  The cold ingredients produce a lighter, flakier, end result.

Nectarine Sconecakes

From Martha Stewart



Ingredients:

1/2 lb. nectarines, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1 tbsp. lemon juice

1/4 c. plus 2 tsp. sugar

2 c. all purpose flour

1 tbsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

6 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1 c. heavy whipping cream, plus more for brushing

Sugar in the Raw, for sprinkling

Directions:

1.  Heat oven to 400°F.  Combine nectarines, lemon juice and 2 teaspoons sugar in small bowl.  Let stand for 15 minutes.

2.  Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and 1/4 cup sugar in a large bowl.  Using a pastry blender or food processor, cut in butter until mixture forms small pieces.

3.  Stir in heavy whipping cream.  

4.  Fold in nectarine mixture.

5.  Turn out dough onto lightly floured surface.  Pat into 8-1/2-inch round.  

6.  Using 2-1/2-inch cookie cutter, cut out 8 rounds and place on parchment-lined baking sheet.  Brush with heavy whipping cream; sprinkle with sugar in the raw.  

7.  Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.  Let cool on wire racks.  

Yield: 8 'sconecakes'

Tried & True Tuesday: Blueberries & Cream Sweet Rolls

. The day has finally come!!

Notice any changes around here?!  It's been a long time coming, but my new blog design is finally making an appearance!  For the last month or so, I've been working with Leah from Cutesie Blog Designs to create a new look for Life's Simple Measures.  And after my 5...hundred different requests, questions, and comments, we finally settled on this!  I wanted something fairly simple and I've even been trying to go through the different things on my sidebars, taking things out I probably don't really need.  Overall, the whole design process was really great!  Leah was more than accommodating and worked with me to get almost everything I wanted (Blogger has some lame-o restrictions that prevented a few of my visions from coming to life, but nothing you can do about that I guess!).  Anywho, Leah was such a pleasure to work with and she must really have some patience since she had to work with me for such a long period of time.  It was also very affordable, which is always a plus in my book!  But I hope you all like the new change!  Feel free to leave any comments or suggestions if you see something you like/don't like or wish I had!

So now on to my first Tried & True post in a very long time.  I don't know what happened, but those Tuesdays just kept flying by!  But I'm so incredibly excited for this post, I've kept this recipe in my back pocket waiting for my blog design to be ready.

So, this recipe holds a dear place in my heart because it's an actual Wakasugi family recipe.  The very original recipe is actually for Sweet Roll Dough that is tied into little knots and eaten as little snacks.  Apparently these were at all of our family reunions and of course, the biggest hit (though I thoroughly must have passed right by these when I was younger because I didn't ever remember eating them!).  But I've taken the recipe, added an ingredient or two, and made them into the form of cinnamon rolls.  And with this particular one, I added blueberries, making them into Blueberries & Cream Sweet Rolls.  Along with the Best Chocolate Chip Cookies from this last weekend, we also had these to scarf munch on.

Truthfully, this recipe is my pride and joy.  A recipe that I will continue to make for the rest of my life not only because they are a family tradition [and somebody's gotta do it!], but because they are beyond ridiculously good.  Let me repeat.  Beyond Ridiculously Good.

Ugh, they really are.  The fluffy bread has an ever-so-slight sweetness, the blueberries add a wonderful tartness, and the cream cheese filling AND frosting don't need much of a description.  It simply takes these over the top.

Need I say more?  I think not.  You can thank me later .

Blueberries & Cream Sweet Rolls

Ingredients:

Dough:

1/2 c. warm water

2 packages active dry yeast

1-1/2 c. milk, lukewarm

1/2 c. sugar

2 tsp. salt

2 eggs

1/2 c. butter, softened

7 c. flour

Cream Cheese Filling:

4 oz. cream cheese

1/4 c. sugar

2 tbsp. butter

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Scant 1 c. blueberries

Cream Cheese Frosting:

4 oz. cream cheese

3 tbsp. butter

1 tbsp. milk

1-1/2 c. powdered sugar

Directions:

1.  Pour water into large bowl.  Add yeast, milk and sugar, stirring to dissolve.

2.  Stir in salt, eggs and butter.

3.  Stir in, with wooden spoon, 6 cups of flour (add more if needed).  

4.  Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface.  Knead dough until smooth and elastic.

Note the one-handed knead technique.  Yep, definitely didn't have anyone around to take a picture for me!

5.  Round up dough in greased bowl; cover with damp cloth.  Let rise until doubled (about 1-1/2 hours).

6.  Punch down dough; let rise again until doubled (about 30 minutes).

7.  Meanwhile, for filling, mix together cream cheese, sugar, butter, and vanilla extract until smooth.

8.  Heat oven to 325°F.  Roll out dough into 15x12-inch rectangle.

9.  Spread cream cheese filling onto dough.  Sprinkle blueberries evenly over dough.

10.  Roll into log, starting lengthwise. 

11.  Cut log into 12 rolls and place in greased 15x11-inch pan.  Let rise slightly (about 20 minutes).

12.  For frosting, mix together cream cheese, butter, milk, and powdered sugar until smooth.  Set aside.

13.  Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until lightly browned.

14.  While still warm, spread cream cheese frosting over rolls.

Yield: 1 dozen rolls