Bake Up This Melt-in-your-Mouth Christmas Tradition

By: Danielle DeMarco | December 19 2010
Posted in Portland - Cook It - Portland

Photo credit: Danielle DeMarco

Nothing adds to the mystique and excitement of Christmas morning more than hot, sticky, sweet cinnamon buns fresh out of the oven. Whether you’ve perfected the task of homemade or prefer the store bought variety, cinnamon rolls are a holiday morning staple.

The best buns in town are, of course, up for debate. However, Sarah’s Cookies Cream Cheese Cinnamon Rolls beat out most. They are moist and buttery; with each layer they get more sticky and flavorful. These cinnamon rolls are smothered in deliciously sweet cream cheese frosting.

If you've been in Portland long enough, you might remember a small bakery on SE Hawthorne called Bower’s Bakery. This family owned bakery served giant cinnamon rolls, sweet fruit-filled muffins, beautifully decorated short bread cookies, killer cream cheese brownies, and piled-high deli sandwiches on their homemade bread. Unfortunately, Bower’s Bakery closed about 2 years ago.

Not to fret. Matriarch Sarah Daniels decided to go the wholesale route with Sarah’s Cookies. She and her daughter, Jessica Bowers, now bake the above wonders and sell them wholesale much to the delight of shopppers at Zupan’s, City Coffee, Wizer’s Oswego Foods and Thriftway. Sarah and Jessica’s Cream Cheese Cinnamon Rolls are the moistest, gooiest, buns in town. For a melt-in-your-mouth experience, try warming the rolls in the oven for a few minutes before serving.

Zupan’s sells the large rolls for $3.00 a piece or a pack of 6 mini’s for $8.00. The large rolls are big enough to serve four.

Sarah couldn’t give out her families Cream Cheese Cinnamon Roll recipe . . . understandably enough. However, Better Homes and Gardens featured Our Best Ever Cinnamon Rolls recipe by Joy Taylor in 1991, which with a few minor changes, is quite similar.

Best Ever Cinnamon Rolls

Makes 8 rolls

5 cups all-purpose flour (divided)

1 pkg. active dry yeast

1 cup milk

1/3 cup margarine or butter

1/3 cup sugar

½ teaspoon salt

3 eggs

¾ cup packed brown sugar

¼ cup all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon. ground cinnamon

½ cup margarine or butter

1 tablespoon half and half or light cream

Cream Cheese Frosting

4 oz unsalted butter (softened)

4 oz cream cheese (softened)

2 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon Vanilla extract

In a large bowl combine 2 ¼ cups of the flour and yeast.

In a small saucepan heat the milk, 1/3 cup margarine or butter, 1/3 cup sugar and salt just till warm (120-130 degrees) and until margarine is almost melted, stirring constantly. Add to flour mixture. Add eggs. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds, scraping sides of bowl constantly. Beat on high speed for 3 minutes. Using a wooden spoon stir in as much of the remaining 2 ¼ to 2 ¾ cups flour as you can.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead in enough of the remaining flour to make moderately soft dough that is smooth and elastic (3-5 minutes total). Shape into a ball. Place in a greased bowl, turning once. Cover; let rise in a warm place until double in size (about 1 hour).

For filling: Combine brown sugar, ¼ cup flour, and cinnamon. Using a pastry cutter or two knives, cut in remaining margarine or butter until crumbly; set aside.

Punch dough down. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Cover with towel and let rest for 10 minutes. Roll the dough into a 12-inch square.

Sprinkle filling over dough square. Roll up jelly-roll style; pinch edges to seal. Slice roll into eight 1 ½ inch pieces. Arrange dough pieces, cut side up, in a greased 12-inch deep dish pan or a 13x9x2 inch baking pan.

Cover dough loosely with clear plastic wrap, set aside to rise. Refrigerate dough for 2 to 24 hours. Uncover and let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. (Or, for immediate baking, don’t chill dough. Instead, cover loosely; let dough rise in a warm place until nearly double, about 45 minutes).

Break any surface bubbles with a greased toothpick. Brush dough with half-and-half or light cream. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 25-30 minutes or till light brown. Remove from oven and brush again with half-and-half or light cream. Cool for 1 minute. With a spatula, cover with cream cheese frosting.

For cream cheese frosting, beat butter and cream cheese until well blended. On low speed add powdered sugar and vanilla until creamy.

Danielle DeMarco is dedicated to finding thrifty food finds from Portland's best restaurants, cafes and carts. Her food blog can be found at www.mangiapdx.blogspot.com