Buttermilk Cinnamon Rolls

My rating: 5 stars
Kids' rating: 5 stars

Some thoughts: I always double this recipe. I feel like it's a lot of work for just 12 rolls, and with the number of mouths I have going on in my kitchen, 12 go fast! I do each 12-roll batch in their own 11x17 pan.
As for the mixer, unless you have either Bosch or a 6 qt KitchenAid, I wouldn't double. It's a doozy for the kneading.
These freeze beautifully. If you want to freeze the whole shebang, go for it. If you want to bake in smaller batches, that's fine, too. Finish the whole thing, baking and frosting, and then cover and freeze. I will then take them out of the freezer the night before, and then in the morning, throw the whole thing in the oven (at 225°) for about 35 minutes, or just individually microwave the rolls for about 12 seconds.

I think that's it. Here we go:

Ingredients

Rolls:

3/4 cup buttermilk, warm (pour the buttermilk in a glass liquid measuring cup and microwave for 1 minute on 50% power, stir and repeat until it's warm)

6 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled

3 large eggs

4 1/4 cups flour

1/4 cup sugar

2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast

1 1/4 teaspoons salt

Filling:

1/2 cup butter, softened to room temperature

1 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

Frosting:

8 oz cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 teaspoons vanilla

pinch of salt

2 1/2 to 3 cups powdered sugar

cream or milk (cream!) for consistency

Directions:

Whisk the warmed buttermilk and butter together in a large liquid measuring cup. Combine 4 cups flour, sugar, yeast and salt together in mixer, fitted with the paddle. With the mixer on low speed, add the buttermilk mixture and eggs and mix until the dough comes together, about two minutes. You want it to just come together. Don't be tempted to add too much flour. You want it to be combined, but still pretty wet.

Switch to the dough hook, and knead for 10 minutes. If after 5 minutes of kneading, the dough is still overly sticky, add flour 1 tablespoon at a time, up to 1/4 cup. After the 10 minutes of kneading, the dough should clear the side of the bowl, but still have a slight tacky feel when pressed between your fingertips

                          

Place the dough in a large, lightly oiled bowl and cover the top tightly with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled, around 2 to 2 1/2 hours, depending on the warmth of your kitchen.

  

When ready to roll out, grease a 9x13-inch baking dish (or 11x17-inch if doubling). In a small bowl, mix brown sugar and cinnamon together. 

Turn the dough onto a lightly covered counter and press it into a 16x12-inch rectangle (if you've doubled the recipe, split the dough in half.

Gently brush the softened butter over the rectangle, using a rubber spatula. Sprinkle on the sugar mixture, leaving a 1/2-inch border along the top edge. 

Lift the longest edge closest to your and begin rolling the dough into a tight log. Roll the log so it is seam side down. Gently stretch the log to be 18 inches in length, with an even diameter all the way throughout (this step is kind of a safety step to get the log even, stretching the thicker parts to even out with the thinner parts).

Using dental floss, slice the log into 12 evenly sized rolls, about 1 1/2-inch each. Arrange the rolls, cut-side down on the prepared baking pan and cover lightly with a towel. I almost always get a little more than a dozen each batch, so I just bake the extras in a pie pan. For doubling, I usually get an additional 6-7 rolls. Perfect to bring to a neighbor! Let the rolls rise in a warm place until doubled, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Bake at 350° for ~15 minutes, until the rolls are lightly golden, almost brown, on top. You really want to make sure the rolls are cooked through, and you'll get a nice caramelized bottom. Like I mentioned before, if you double the recipe, you'll likely have some mutant buns.

For the frosting, cream the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Slowly add the sugar and cream, alternating, until desired consistency. (When doubling, I usually double this recipe and it's pretty generous. But if you're the type who's scared of a little too much frosting on your buns, then you're reading the wrong blog!)

I like my frosting more on the creamier side, than the thick side, so I probably add about 1/4 cup of cream. You really can't go wrong here. 

A new tip I've discovered since these photos were taken, is to use a large cookie scoop to get the desired amount of frosting on each roll without having to spread too much. Just plop each roll with a scoop and go back through with the back of a spoon for just a little spreading. Each roll with get a generous amount and you can still make out the individual buns of glory.

So, so much glory.