Homemade Cinnamon Rolls with Sugar Icing - Step-by-Step Recipe

Step-by-step recipe

1. For cinnamon baking, all the ingredients must be at room temperature. Natural milk and butter matter here, so don't use products of doubtful quality. Broadly, the whole process of making these rolls can be split into three stages: preparing the dough and filling, shaping and baking, and making the sugar icing.
   
2. Sift two cups of wheat flour (300 g) through a sieve into a large deep bowl. Add 5 g of active dry yeast meant for mixing into dry flour. If you use fresh yeast or a starter, the rolls are made differently. Add 50 g of white sugar and 0.5 tsp of fine “extra” salt, level. Mix the dry mixture thoroughly with a fork until completely uniform.
   
3. Melt 50 g of butter in a small bowl. The butter should only just melt and stay at room temperature. Pour the melted butter into the flour mixture, add one egg and 150 ml of milk. Knead into a smooth dough.
   
4. Dust the table with flour and turn the dough out onto it. Add flour in small portions while continuing to knead, until the dough is very soft and “moist” to the touch but doesn't stick to your hands. The dough should stretch easily without tearing. For soft, fluffy rolls the dough needs to be as soft as possible.
   
5. Dust a deep bowl with flour and put the dough in it. Cover the bowl with a cloth and leave in a warm place for 1 h 30 mins to 2 h.
   
6. While the dough rises, mix 0.5 cup each of white and brown (cane) sugar in a small bowl. If the sugar has lumps, sift it. Add 3 tsp of cinnamon, heaped. Mix the sugar with the cinnamon until uniform. Melt the remaining bit of butter in a small bowl.
   
7. Knead the risen dough thoroughly once more. It is convenient to roll the dough into a sheet and then shape the rolls on a cloth, either a towel or coarse linen. Spread the towel on the table and dust it generously with flour. Don't be afraid of this, as flour washes out perfectly, leaving no traces. The dough, raised by the yeast, doubles in volume. It is soft and stretches wonderfully.
   
8. Put the dough on the floured cloth and roll it with a rolling pin into a thin rectangular sheet 5-6 mm thick. You don't need to fuss over the geometry, since the ends of the rolled-up dough aren't used.
   
9. Using a brush, thoroughly coat the whole surface of the rolled-out dough with melted butter. Try to coat it evenly, otherwise the cinnamon sugar won't stick to the dough. Use the leftover butter later to grease the pan the rolls will bake in.
   
10. Generously and evenly sprinkle the whole buttered surface with the prepared mixture of white and brown sugar and ground cinnamon. Spread the sugar with your palms, pressing the surface down very lightly. Thanks to the butter, the sugar sticks to the dough perfectly.
    
11. Next we roll the dough up into a log, the blank from which the rolls will be cut. As I said, a cloth makes this easy and simple. The same principle is used when shaping apple strudel. Lifting one of the long edges of the towel, let the rolled-out dough tumble over itself and form a roll. You can help with your hands so that the roll is tight and of roughly even diameter.
    
12. Put the finished log on the table and trim off the ends, literally 2-3 cm. They are rolled unevenly and have very little cinnamon sugar at the edges. It is better to discard these bits so that the rolls end up identical, with an even filling.
    
13. Prepare a square heat-resistant glass baking dish. The inner size for this amount of dough is about 20-22 cm. With a sharp knife, cut the log into nine pieces of equal length. So that the dough doesn't get squashed while cutting, the knife must be razor-sharp, and you shouldn't press down, only slice.
    
14. Grease the baking dish with the remaining butter, especially the sides well. Stand all nine rolls upright in the dish. There should be small gaps between the rolls, and they shouldn't touch the sides of the dish. Then cover with a cloth and leave in a warm place for 30-40 mins.
    
15. During this time the dough rises a little, the rolls become fluffier, join one another and press against the sides. The dish is now full, and the dough and rolls are ready for baking.
    
16. Preheat the oven to 190-200°C. Put the dish with the rolls into the hot oven. Bake until they are browned on top and have a lovely color. Baking can take 20 to 30 mins, so go by the color of the surface. Then do a simple toothpick test: a wooden pick comes out without traces of dough if the roll is baked through.
    
17. While the rolls bake, make the sugar icing for glazing. It is easy, and you could also make a chocolate one, like for éclairs. In a cup mix 6 tsp of powdered sugar and squeeze in 2 tsp of lemon juice. Add 1 tbsp of boiled water and stir to dissolve the sugar. Add more water or lemon juice if needed. The icing should be like very thick, runny honey. If you like, add a little cream cheese or mascarpone.
    
18. Put the dish with the finished rolls on a wooden board and let them cool. Then pour the sugar icing over all of them so that it spreads. Let the rolls cool completely. You shouldn't eat the hot dough, as it can upset your stomach.
    Run a knife around the edges to separate the rolls from the sides of the dish. The rolls pull apart from one another, but you can separate them with a knife if you like. Serve the sweet rolls one or two at a time on a dessert plate or a wooden board.
    
19. If you serve the rolls with milk, warm it a little to just above room temperature. Hot tea with lemon goes well with a piece of fragrant cane sugar or honey. A sip of fragrant tea and a tasty cinnamon roll is simply indescribable!