Herren's Cinnamon Rolls
Herren's was a beloved restaurant in Atlanta, which opened in 1934 and closed in 1987. While they were famous for good food, their main claim to fame (IMHO) is their delicious cinnamon rolls. They would serve a basket of the cinnamon rolls AND a basket of their Parker House rolls with meals, and you were hard put to decide which you wanted more!! You could take home your leftover rolls (or buy another couple dozen!) in a waxed paper bag. By the time you got home, there would be butter stains all over the bag. Yum. They also printed the recipe on the bag -- luckily enough, now the recipe isn't lost to posterity!
I made some of these yesterday, and they're as delicious as they ever were.
HERREN'S CINNAMON ROLLS
Dough:
1 cup milk
1/4 cup butter, cut into slices
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 tsp. salt
2 packages yeast + 1/4 c warm water
4 cups all purpose flour, sifted
Cinnamon sugar mixture:
2 cups sugar
4 tablespoons cinnamon
1. Heat the milk to boiling, then remove from heat. Add butter, sugar and salt, stir until melted. Let cool to about 110° F -- otherwise you'll kill your yeast. It should feel barely warm if you stick a finger in it.
2. Meanwhile dissolve the yeast in the warm water.
3. When the milk mixture is cool enough, pour it into your mixer bowl. Add the yeast mixture and mix.
4. Add the flour 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. The dough will be very soft.
5. Let the dough rest for 15 minutes, then knead by hand 10 min or in your mixer 4 to 5 min. The dough will still be very soft. If you have to add flour, just be careful NOT to add very much extra, just enough to keep it from sticking to your hands.
6. Place the dough in a buttered bowl, let rise until doubled. (I like to turn on the oven to 200° when I start making the recipe, turn it off when it's heated, and let dough rise in the warm oven.)
7. Turn the dough out on a floured surface, and roll out 1/4 inch thick. Brush liberally with melted butter, then sprinkle thickly with the cinnamon sugar mixture.
8. VERY IMPORTANT STEP: brush a cookie sheet liberally with melted butter, then sprinkle GENEROUSLY with the cinnamon sugar mixture. You almost want a 1/4" layer of cinnamon sugar on the pan.
9. Roll up the dough into a jelly roll, gently roll and stretch to make a uniform roll, and cut into 1/2" rounds. Place in pan, just barely touching. Don't crowd the pan.
10. After all the pieces are in the pan, brush the tops liberally with melted butter, and sprinkle the rest of the cinnamon sugar mixture on top. More Is Better.
11. Let the rolls rise for 1 hour by the clock (the warm oven is your friend here, again).
12. Bake at 350° for 18 to 20 min. Eat.
The thick layer of sugar and cinnamon on the bottom won't burn if you make it thick enough, and forms a wonderful crunchy layer on the bottom of the rolls, as well as on the top. These are fantastic, and IMHO a lot easier to make than regular cinnamon rolls.
I made some of these yesterday, and they're as delicious as they ever were.
HERREN'S CINNAMON ROLLS
Dough:
1 cup milk
1/4 cup butter, cut into slices
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 tsp. salt
2 packages yeast + 1/4 c warm water
4 cups all purpose flour, sifted
Cinnamon sugar mixture:
2 cups sugar
4 tablespoons cinnamon
1. Heat the milk to boiling, then remove from heat. Add butter, sugar and salt, stir until melted. Let cool to about 110° F -- otherwise you'll kill your yeast. It should feel barely warm if you stick a finger in it.
2. Meanwhile dissolve the yeast in the warm water.
3. When the milk mixture is cool enough, pour it into your mixer bowl. Add the yeast mixture and mix.
4. Add the flour 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. The dough will be very soft.
5. Let the dough rest for 15 minutes, then knead by hand 10 min or in your mixer 4 to 5 min. The dough will still be very soft. If you have to add flour, just be careful NOT to add very much extra, just enough to keep it from sticking to your hands.
6. Place the dough in a buttered bowl, let rise until doubled. (I like to turn on the oven to 200° when I start making the recipe, turn it off when it's heated, and let dough rise in the warm oven.)
7. Turn the dough out on a floured surface, and roll out 1/4 inch thick. Brush liberally with melted butter, then sprinkle thickly with the cinnamon sugar mixture.
8. VERY IMPORTANT STEP: brush a cookie sheet liberally with melted butter, then sprinkle GENEROUSLY with the cinnamon sugar mixture. You almost want a 1/4" layer of cinnamon sugar on the pan.
9. Roll up the dough into a jelly roll, gently roll and stretch to make a uniform roll, and cut into 1/2" rounds. Place in pan, just barely touching. Don't crowd the pan.
10. After all the pieces are in the pan, brush the tops liberally with melted butter, and sprinkle the rest of the cinnamon sugar mixture on top. More Is Better.
11. Let the rolls rise for 1 hour by the clock (the warm oven is your friend here, again).
12. Bake at 350° for 18 to 20 min. Eat.
The thick layer of sugar and cinnamon on the bottom won't burn if you make it thick enough, and forms a wonderful crunchy layer on the bottom of the rolls, as well as on the top. These are fantastic, and IMHO a lot easier to make than regular cinnamon rolls.