Easy Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

Let me start off this post by saying it did take me a few tries to get these cinnamon rolls right.  I had been wanting to learn how to make homemade cinnamon rolls for a while now.  During the holiday season I was at a family party and a friend of mine had made these amazing cinnamon rolls, I had to try and make them.  I asked her for the recipe but both of us got distracted with school and she just gave me her recipe about a month ago.  The recipe she gave me instructed you to make your own dough but she told me she usually just used pizza dough to make things easier.

A few days later I tried making the recipe with Pillsbury pizza dough and it was a major fail.  The dough did not rise at all and barely cooked even though I kept them in the oven for almost double the time suggested.  I then tried the same recipe using Bridgford Bread Ready-Dough.  This worked a little bit better but they still did not rise as much as I wanted and the filling just didn't taste as good as I remembered.

After some research I decided to try again. Third time's the charm right?  Sure enough, it was!
So here's what you'll need for this easier homemade cinnamon roll recipe:

• Bridgford Bread Ready-Dough, Frozen White 
• 1/4 Cup Butter
• 1/4 Cup Sugar
• 1 1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
• Cinnamon (the recipe recommends 2 tablespoons but I just had as much as I want.)

For the frosting I usually just eye-ball it.  But you would need about:

• 3 Cups Powdered Sugar
• 3 Table Spoons Milk
• 1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

The first thing I did was spray and flour a cookie sheet then I placed the frozen block of bread on the cookie sheet.  I covered it with a towel and left it on the kitchen table to defrost.  Be sure and place your dough in a warm place with on draft.  I live in Southern California and it was about 90 degrees in my house today so defrosting was not a problem.  Just try and pick the warmest place in your house.  I let the dough defrost for about 2-3 hours, just until it is soft enough to roll out.

After the dough was defrosted I rolled it out into as much of a rectangle I could.  Put more flour on the cookie sheet and the dough if necessary so it does not stick.  Rolling the dough may take a while, mine kept wanting to go back to its original shape but I just kept working it.  It may not turn out as a perfect rectangle but that's okay, you're just going to cut it up anyway.  Just make sure the dough is not spread too thin, you do not want it to rip.

Once the dough is rolled out spread the 1/4 cup butter over the entire dough.  The first two times I melted the butter and brushed it over with a pastry brush, however, this time I found it better to just slightly soften the butter and spread it over the dough.  Then, you will need to put the sugar and brown sugar on.  The first two times I just sprinkled the toppings on the dough but I found it better the third time to mix together the sugar and brown sugar in a mixing bowl first.  I also added a bit of the cinnamon to the mixture then sprinkled evenly over the dough.  I then added as much cinnamon as I desired evenly over the top.

After you have added your cinnamon, roll the dough up from the sides so it becomes a log.  If you would like you roll to be a bit longer, gently pull on the ends to lengthen it.  Be sure not to tear it.

Then cut the roll into about 1 to 1 1/2 inch sections with a knife and put into a sprayed pan.

Then, again set you rolls aside in a warm, draft-free place so they can rise.  Be sure and cover them just like before.  I left my rolls to rise for about 2-3 hours again.  See, they get slightly fluffy already...

I then preheated the oven to 350 and cooked for about 18-20 minutes or until fluffy and slightly brown on top like so...

For the frosting, like I said I usually eye-ball it.  Alternate adding powdered sugar and milk and mix together with a mixer until the desired consistency is reached.  Lastly, mix in your vanilla extract.

Finally, ice your cinnamon rolls...

Enjoy with a big glass of milk!