Whiskey Cinnamon Rolls

Whiskey cinnamon rolls. That's kind of weird idea huh? There's this cook book out there called Booze Cakes that I keep picking up when I see it at the book store. But I haven't bought it. Yet. It's only a matter of time. I'm not a big collector of things, that's more my sister's department. But if there's one thing I do collect, it's cook books. I have a LOT. And I have no intention of slowing down. I love cooking, so the more recipes and technique tips I surround myself with the better, I say. Plus I LOVE food photography. It's just plain fun.Anyway, booze cakes. Sounds divine. So then I started thinking about what else might taste better with booze. I started dreaming about cinnamon rolls. And thus, whiskey cinnamon rolls where born. And by "born" I mean baked. 🙂Whiskey Cinnamon rolls, makes 12. Adapted from American Cooking. 

2 1/4 teaspoon (1 package) active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water
1/3 cup + a pinch of sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup softened butter
1 cup hot milk
1 egg
3 cups + 2 tablespoons all purpose flour

First, stir together the warm water plus a pinch of sugar. Stir the yeast into the water and allow this to sit and bubble for a 5-8 minutes. It should start to look foamy.

In a large bowl, or in the bowl of your stand mixer, combine the sugar, salt, butter and milk. You can heat the milk on the stove top or in the microwave, you just want it hot enough so it continues to melt the butter. Stir everything together and then allow to cool to room temperature. Stir in the egg (if your mixture is still warm you can temper the egg first with some of the mixture). Stir in the flour, 1 cup at a time until a very soft dough forms. Continue to knead for a few minutes. The dough should be very soft but should hold together. If it doesn't hold together add another tablespoon of flour. Now place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and allow to rise in a warm, draft-free spot for 1 to 1 1/2 hours (until doubled in size).Turn the dough out on a floured surface and roll out into a long rectangle. Melt 3 tablespoons of butter and brush the butter all over the dough. Sprinkle on 1/3 cup sugar + 1 tablespoon cinnamon. Roll up, like a jelly roll, and slice into 12 pieces. Place the rolls in a lightly buttered pan and bake at 350°F for 25-27 minutes until the edges are brown. 

For the glaze, whisk together 3 tablespoons milk, 1 tablespoon whiskey, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract and 2 cups powdered sugar. Pour the glaze over the warm cinnamon rolls.As you can see, most of the whiskey flavor is in the glaze. So if you're not a booze person simply replace the whiskey with an additional tablespoon of milk and you'll just have really good, classic cinnamon rolls. Like, I mentioned above, this dough is quite soft and can be a little bit of a pain to work with while you are forming the rolls. But I love how moist the final cinnamon rolls are, so it's worth it. To me. Make them yourself and see what you think. 🙂 xo. Emma