Yesterday was a revelation in my world of sweets baking. One of my goals for the year was to learn how to make cinnamon rolls – sticky, sweet, and simple. The longterm goal is to whip up a quick batch as a holiday morning treat. But first, one must practice these things! Here is the first batch of the series – and yes, they were de-licious.

I don’t usually have eggs or dry milk around, so I created a vegan version of the sweet bread recipe from The Tassajara Bread Book. All the easier! The recipe came out well, the details are below – but know that this is still a work in progress. I look forward to many more cinnamon roll “testing” in the future…

Vegan Cinnamon Rolls
adapted from The Tassajra Bread Book

For dough…
1 c. warm water
3 1/2 tsp. dry yeast
3 Tbs. sugar
1/4 c. soy milk
1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
3 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 1/4 tsp. salt
1 c. sifted flour
extra flour for kneading

For filling and topping…
1/4 c. melted “butter” (I love Earth Balance!)
3/4 c. brown sugar
1 Tbs. or more cinnamon
1 c. powdered sugar
4 tsp. or more soymilk
1 tsp. vanilla extract

In a large bowl, add yeast to water and let sit for 5 minutes. Add sugar and soy milk. Then add whole wheat flour, and stir into thick batter. Tassajara says beat for about 100 strokes – or a couple of minutes. Then let rise for 30 minutes.

Fold in oil and salt, and then add sifted flour. Dump the batter onto a floured board. Knead for 5-10 minutes, adding flour as needed, until the dough is smooth. Then let rise for 40 minutes.

Roll out on a floured board in a 1/4-inch thick rectangle. Spread with melted butter, and then sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon. Roll up the dough (“fairly tight as you would a carpet”).

(At this point, we put the dough in the fridge overnight. The next morning, I doubled the rising time and they came out great!)

Cut the roll into 1/2-inch thick sections, and place on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 375 for about 20 minutes or until golden and bubbling!

To glaze, mix powdered sugar, soymilk, and vanilla. Frost the cinnamon rolls when they’re hot from the oven.

These cinnamon rolls are best eaten with a hot cup of coffee on a weekend morning. Enjoy!

listening to: Someone Like You by Adele (listen)
Just bought her new CD this week, love love it!