You guys, being sick stinks. Last week I got this weird cough that has not gone away, and if anything, seems to have gotten worse. I’ve been living off of chicken soup for three days, and last night had to miss going out for a friend’s birthday. I didn’t want to get anyone sick, and lets face it, hacking up a lung at the bar is never attractive. I knew I was doing the right thing by not heading out but I was still disappointed. To make myself feel a little better, I decided to make myself a treat. For the first time, I made homemade cinnamon buns!
I’ve been eyeing them at the store for weeks now – the kind in a container that you whack with the back of a spoon to get them to open, and all you have to do is plop them on a baking sheet and cook. Every time I would pick them up, the ingredient list would stop me from throwing them into my cart. I’m all for eating crap, but I want to know where my crap comes from. I think homemade crap is always better, in how it tastes and how my body processes it. I knew I could make cinnamon buns with a just a little planning, and I was right!
I used this recipe from the Food Network, with a few exceptions. I did use regular all-purpose flour, but I used almond milk instead of regular milk, traditional yeast instead of instant yeast, and less than the 1/2 cup of maple syrup, because I ran out. I wasn’t sure about the almond milk – if the recipe needed the fat from the 2% milk or not, but it seemed to work just fine.
The recipe is pretty straightforward and easy to follow. The only problem I had was repeatedly burning my fingers trying to taste test the goo before it was cooled. It’s just that yummy though. I got them all set up last night and in the fridge, and this morning I was able to bake them from a cold oven. So good! They only took about 1/2 hour to bake from the time my oven came up to temperature, so I don’t know if the 45 minutes I was supposed to time was from when I put them in the cold oven or not, but I pulled them out with the right amount of golden brown so it all worked out.
I also didn’t flip them over… no way (at least I hope not) am I going to eat 12 cinnamon buns today, and it’s just easier for me to store them in the pan I baked them in. Which is how I burnt my finger again on the goo this morning – I didn’t let them cool the full time and tried to use my finger as a spatula. Oh well. Definitely better than the pre-made dough from the store. For those of you in the US, these would make a great President’s Day breakfast if you get them all set up tonight. Here are some pictures in case you still have any doubts!
sophisticatedjerseygirl 