Scrumptious Secret Ingredient Cinnamon Rolls

My family has always loved cinnamon rolls.  Cinnamon rolls are often our holiday breakfast treat.  I have tried many different recipes over the years. One recipe even claimed to be just as good as Cinnabon's cinnamon rolls.  :0)  They were good, but I wasn't completely satisfied.  So, I kept looking.  Then I came across this recipe where the secret ingredient was mashed potatoes!  To my surprise, the potatoes give the cinnamon rolls a moisture that make them simply irresistible!

I found the recipe several years ago published in a newspaper.  It turns out the cinnamon rolls were the blue ribbon winner of 2008 Tones contest at the Iowa State Fair.  Here is the recipe with my own directions...

Frosted Cinnamon Rolls

Makes at least 24 rolls

Rolls

1 cup mashed potatoes from 2 med. sized potatoes

1 cup warm potato water

3/4 cup butter

3/4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons salt

1 cup hot water

2 envelopes Fleischman's Active Dry Yeast

1/2 cup warm water

2 eggs

8 1/2 - 9 1/2 cups flour

Filling

1/2 cup butter

1 cup sugar (I often substitute for brown sugar)

1 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

Icing

3 cups powdered sugar

6 tablespoons butter softened

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

5 - 6 tablespoons milk

Directions:

Place mashed potatoes, potato water, butter, sugar, salt and hot water in a large bowl.  Mix until the butter melts.  Let this mixture sit a while until cooled.  In a separate bowl, dissolve the yeast in the 1/2 cup of warm water.  Add the yeast mixture to the first mixture.  Now add the eggs and 2 cups of flour to the blended mixture.  Add the flour 1 cup at a time until a soft dough is formed.  Knead the dough just until smooth and elastic.  Place in a greased bowl and let rise for about 1 hour or until doubled in size.  (At this point, you may place the dough in the refrigerator to keep for days.  More on this below.)

When the dough has risen, punch the dough down, divide it in half (if you are not storing half of it in the fridge) and roll it out into a 12 x 18 rectangle.  Spread with 1/2 the butter, then the sugar/cinnamon mixture.  Roll up the dough tightly, then cut into 12-18 slices and place in a 9 x 13 pan.  Do the same for the other half of the dough.  Let the rolls rise about 30 minutes.  Preheat your oven, then bake the rolls at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

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Just this past week I tried a new trick with my cinnamon rolls.  We all know that you can store your dough in the fridge overnight and bake them the next morning, right?  Well, my problem was that I needed fresh cinnamon rolls the next weekend too!  Was there a way I could store my dough in the fridge that long?  I did some research and found that, yes, you can.  For up to 7 days!  I decided to take the risk and try it.  Low and behold, IT WORKS!!  I was so excited.  No flavor was lost, they weren't flat, they didn't taste heavy, and they were just as good as the first batch.  {All of these pictures are taken of the second batch!} Now I could have fresh baked cinnamon rolls two weekends in a row.   The best part?  I only had to make the dough once and didn't have to freeze it.  Here are a few things to note:

- Place the dough in the fridge immediately after making it (do not let it rise) and allow it to rest up to 7 days.  Make sure the bowl is sealed tight with two layers of plastic wrap.  While it is in the fridge it will rise, but not very much.


- After the 7 days (or sooner) remove the dough from the fridge and roll it out.  Follow all the normal directions, just make sure to let the rolls rise for about 30 minutes before baking.

- Because I wanted to bake my rolls the next morning, I rolled them out and put them in the pan, then I put them back in the fridge.  The next morning before I baked them, I let them warm up about 30 minutes at room temperature.

They turned out great!  I am so glad I learned a new trick!

ENJOY!!  

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