Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

Don’t you want to wake up to a pan of this tomorrow? You can! Of course, you have to start with Grandmother Bread. My overnight cinnamon roll recipe uses the one-loaf standard version, or for a more egg bread-like texture (which suits cinnamon rolls well), sometimes I add oil and egg. (To add oil and egg to any Grandmother Bread recipe, use 1/3 cup oil and one egg per one-loaf recipe.) You can let these rolls rise and bake them right away, or let them rise overnight in the fridge for that make-ahead easy breakfast! (These are perfect for lazy weekend mornings. Recipe can be doubled for two pans of rolls.)

Attribution Link

Difficulty: Easy

Servings: 15

Prep Time: 90 to overnight   Cook Time: 30 minutes  

Ingredients

One-loaf Grandmother Bread recipe

1 1/2 cups warm water
1 teaspoon yeast
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar*
(Optional add-ins: 1/3 cup oil, 1 egg)**
3 1/2 cups flour

*If you have a sweet tooth, add up to 1/3 cup sugar to the dough instead of 2 tablespoons.

**If using oil and egg, you’ll need about 1/2 cup more flour.

Filling:
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon

Directions

In a large bowl, combine water, yeast, sugar, and salt, along with oil and egg, if using. Let sit five minutes. Stir in first cup and a half cup of flour with a heavy spoon. Add more flour a little at a time as needed, stirring until dough becomes too stiff to continue stirring easily. Add a little more flour and begin kneading. The amount of flour is approximate–your mileage may vary! Continue adding flour and kneading until the dough is smooth and elastic. Let dough rise in a greased, covered bowl until doubled. (Usually, about an hour.) Uncover bowl; sprinkle in a little more flour and knead again. Roll out onto a floured surface into an approximately 15 x 8 rectangle.

Brush dough with melted butter.

Combine sugar and cinnamon; generously spoon onto dough, taking care to get right up to the edges!

Roll dough up and seal seams. How many rolls you get will depend on how you cut the slices. I cut them about an inch thick to get 15 rolls.

Place rolls in a large greased pan. To bake right away, let rise 30 minutes to an hour, until doubled, or for overnight rolls, stick the pan (covered) in the fridge. They’ll be risen and ready for you the next morning!

Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven for approximately 30 minutes. (How thick you cut your slices will vary your baking time, so keep an eye on ‘em!)

Drizzle lavishly with powdered sugar icing.

And I mean lavishly.

Then devour the sweet, yummy, fresh-baked goodness!

(Hurry. They go quick.)

Try a variation!

Raisin-Cinnamon Rolls:
Add one cup raisins to the water/yeast mixture before adding flour. (Or, if you’re making the two-loaf recipe for Grandmother Bread and want to reserve one half for a regular loaf of bread, you can also sprinkle the raisins on top of the cinnamon mixture after the first rise.) You can also use chopped apples for Apple-Cinnamon Rolls.

Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls:
Make it sourdough! Learn how to convert any Grandmother Bread recipe to sourdough here.

Caramel-Pecan Rolls:
Heat and stir 2/3 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup butter, and 2 tablespoons light corn syrup in a small pan. Pour into baking pan and sprinkle with 1/2 cup chopped pecans. Brush dough with 3 tablespoons melted butter. Combine 1/2 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Sprinkle sugar/cinnamon mixture over dough. Roll up and place slices in pan on top of pecans and brown sugar/syrup mixture. After baking, invert rolls onto a serving platter or aluminum foil-covered baking sheet etc to serve.

Any Jam Rolls:
Instead of brushing dough with butter and sprinkling with sugar and cinnamon, spread dough with homemade jam or apple butter! (It will take an 8-ounce jam jar.)

Orange Rolls:
For the filling, spread a combination of 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons butter (softened), 4 tablespoons sugar, 2 teaspoons orange juice, and 1 teaspoon orange extract or orange peel. For an orange glaze on top, stir together 1 cup powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons orange juice, and 1/4 teaspoon orange extract or orange peel.

See the Grandmother Bread Cookbook page for even more recipes, tips, and ideas.

Categories: Breads, Breakfast, Entertaining, Holiday, Rolls, Yeast Breads

Submitted by: suzanne-mcminn on July 24, 2010