Carol Pipp's Famous Cinnamon Rolls

Several years ago, a sweet lady from our church demonstrated how to make her delicious cinnamon rolls. They are without a doubt the best we've tasted and have since become our Christmas morning tradition! They are very easy to prepare the night before, pop in the refrigerator, then place on the counter for the final rise.

Basic Sweet Dough
1 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar
1-1/4 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup butter
2 packages (2-1/4 t. each) active dry yeast
1/3 cup warm water (105 to 115)
3 eggs, at room temperature
5 1/2 to 6 1/2 cups flour

Combine milk, sugar, salt, and butter in small saucepan. Heat over low heat until butter melts and sugar dissolves. Cool to lukewarm. Dissolve yeast in warm water in warmed bowl. Add lukewarm milk mixture, eggs, and 5 cups flour. Attach bowl and dough hook. Turn to speed 2 and mix 2 minutes. Continuing on speed 2, add remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until dough clings to hook and cleans sides of bowl, about 2 minutes. Knead on speed 2 for 2 minutes longer. Place in a greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover; let rise in warm place, free from draft, until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour. Punch down dough and shape as desired for rolls or coffee cakes.

Filling
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
1-1/2 tablespoons cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped nuts

Place brown sugar, sugar, butter, flour, cinnamon and nuts in bowl. Attach bowl and flat beater. Turn to speed 2 and mix for 1 minute. Roll dough to a 10 x 30 x 1/4-inch rectangle. Spread sugar-cinnamon mixture evenly on dough. Roll dough tightly from long side to form 30-inch roll, pinching seam together. Cut into twenty-one 1-1/2 inch slices. Place 7 rolls each in 3 greased 8 inch cake pans. Cover; let rise in warm place, free from draft, until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes. Remove from pans immediately. Spread caramel glaze over warm rolls.

Caramel Glaze
1/3 cup evaporated milk
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1-1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine evaporated milk and brown sugar in small saucepan. Over medium heat, cook, stirring constantly, until mixture begins to boil. Place milk mixture, powdered sugar, and vanilla in bowl. Attach bowl and flat beater. Turn to speed 4 and beat until creamy, about 2 minutes.
* These are yummy, but they are very sweet. I have cut the sugar in the filling and they tasted just as good.

Carol Pipp's Famous Cinnamon Rolls - On A Diet!


These rolls simply are the best!  If I'm making them to give away or for our special Christmas morning brunch, I'll most likely not mess with the ingredients.  But with how much we LOVE dessert in this house and how much I LOVE baking, I thought I'd play around with this recipe a bit to make it a little healthier.  So I made these for my sweet son's birthday.  I did everything according to the recipe except I used 1/4 cup butter and 1 cup sugar (half white, half brown) for the filling.  Instead of combining together in the mixer, I spread the dough with softened butter, then sprinkled with the sugar/cinnamon mixture.  The results?  No complaints here-everyone loved them, in fact my hubby prefers them a little less sweet.  By cutting back on the butter and sugar, I can almost justify making these weekly!  :)