Simple Mini Cinnamon Rolls

I've never made cinnamon rolls before (at least not from scratch). They've always seemed so time-consuming & intimidating. Lately I've been trying to get over my fear (more like laziness) & just give things a whirl that I've put off for years. Today it was me verses the cinnamon roll.

I planned to make breakfast for dinner & thought that they would be a lovely addition to the meal. Plus, that would give me lots of time to work on them without actually being hungry. How on earth people wake up & make cinnamon rolls for breakfast is beyond me-- I can't think of a more deadly combination in the kitchen than the morning & a hungry tummy.

Let's just say that I was pleasantly surprised by the ease of these rolls & may even attempt to make them for a morning meal at some point (for real, they took me like 20 minutes).

Although I do enjoy a good fluffy cinnamon roll, these were still quite delish. Most people like to slather their cinny rolls with a super sweet frosting, but I really liked them in their naked state. If you'd like, you could whip up a batch of glaze by adding some powdered sugar to milk & vanilla (or almond!) extract. Just make sure you don't have a dentist appointment for a week.

Simple Mini Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cup heavy cream
⅔ cup dmerara (or brown sugar)
1¼ teaspoon cinnamon
3 Tablespoons butter, at room temperature

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease an 8″ or 9″ baking dish. In a bowl, stir together demerara & cinnamon & set aside. Whisk flour, baking powder, & salt in a large bowl. Stir the cream in to the flour mixture & mix just until combined. The dough will be soft & moist.

Roll out the dough between 2 pieces of parchment paper into about a 20″ x 5″ rectangle. Spread softened butter over dough. Sprinkle demerara/cinnamon mixture over the butter. Roll the dough up lengthwise so that you have a long log. Cut dough log in to 20 or so pieces & place the pieces in to the prepared baking dish. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until light brown.

Recipe adapted from Growing Up Gabel