Ladies and Germs ;), it gives me great pleasure to announce that I have FINALLY perfected a cinnamon roll to my liking. I have omitted, replaced, added, and everything in between, to achieve what I think is the ultimate “Lulu Cinnamon Rolls.” It took a total of four tries, but here they are….

They are perfect little bite-sized rolls. Not too sweet, not too fluffy, not too healthy, not too evil, perfectly sweet with strong cinnamon flavor and dressed up with a citrus zest glaze (this was only because I ran out of cream cheese). I’m keeping this filed in my recipe archive! 🙂

Using the Cinnamon Rolls III recipe I found on allrecipes.com…

INGREDIENTS:
Dough:

• 1/4 cup warm water filtered water
  
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1/2 (3.4 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix OMITTED
  
• 1 cup warm milk buttermilk
  
• 1 organic egg, room temperature
• 1 tablespoon white organic evaporated cane sugar
  
• 1/2 teaspoon sea  salt
  
• 4 cups bread flour 2 cups King Arthur 100% organic unbleached/unbromatd bread flour -and- 2 cups 100% organic pancake-waffle flour mix from Sprouts
  
• 1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast

Filling: 

• 1/4 cup organic butter, softened 
  
• 1 3/4 cup light brown sugar
  
• 4 5-6 teaspoons ground cinnamon 
  
• 3/4 cup chopped pecans (I did not have handy) OMITTED. I used 1 heaping cup organic raisins
  

Frosting: 

• 1/2 (8 ounce) package organic cream cheese, softened 
  
• 1/4 cup organic butter, softened 
  
• 1 cup confectioners’ sugar 
  
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 
  
• 1 1/2 teaspoons milk buttermilk
• ADDED: 2 tbs citrus (Minneola tangelo, tangerine, orange mix) zest 
  

DIRECTIONS:
Follow these directions as is, but keep in mind of all my edits above. Happy Baking!

1. In the pan of your bread machine, combine water, melted butter, vanilla pudding, warm milk, egg, 1 tablespoon sugar, salt, bread flour and yeast. Set machine to Dough cycle; press Start.
2. When Dough cycle has finished, turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and roll into a 17″ x 10″ rectangle. Spread with softened butter. In a small bowl, stir together brown sugar, cinnamon and pecans. Sprinkle brown sugar mixture over dough.
3. Roll up dough, beginning with long side. Slice into 16 (I wanted to make mini rolls, so divided my dough into 25) one inch slices and place in 9″ x 13″ buttered pan. Let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 45 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350° F (175° C).
4. Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes. While rolls bake, stir together cream cheese, softened butter, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla and milk. Remove rolls from oven and top with frosting.