Perfect Thanksgiving Breakfast: Easy Maple Pecan Cinnamon Rolls

Sorry for the lack of posting this week, you guys. I was kinda busy, and I didn’t plan ahead at all and get something crazy good made in advance so that I wouldn’t have to think or work all weekend (cause I’m a professional).

I think I may have mentioned that I was going to meet Jen and John Yates, of Cake Wrecks, this past weekend, right?

Jen was doing a book signing a few hours away from where I am, and I just had to go. I think it’s a pretty vlid excuse for depriving you of sweets for a day or two.

I mean, I love Cake Wrecks. I’ve been an avid Wreckie since almost the very beginning. I’ve even been blessed to have been featured on Sunday Sweets three times. Then there’s Epbot, Jen’s blog away from blog. Epbot is her personal blog, a place for “geekery, girliness, and goofing off.” Hello?! Sound like a place I’d fit in? I think so.

I’m sure most of you have heard of Cake Wrecks, but if you’re crafty, girly, a little or a lot, or not at all, geeky, you should definitely check out Epbot, too. It’s super fun.

John and Jen were so great. They’re warm, funny, and friendly, and totally down to earth, make you comfortable, laugh with you-not at you kind of people. I made them matching Ghostbusters aprons – Jen’s was girly and ruffly, John’s was more simple and masculine – but you know John immediately had to wear Jen’s ruffly apron. Totally suited him.

I was also fortunate enough to get to sit down with Jen and John for a couple of hours and chat over dinner, and I had such a great time. It was exciting to get to meet two people, in person, that I’ve had the opportunity to talk to a few times, and to learn more about them. It was a lot of fun, and I’m grateful they made time in their super busy schedule for me.

As for the book signing, it was fun and funny…of course. This was cake at the signing; it was made by iHeartCakes, and it was delicious and adorable.

Just look at the perfect little sugar John and Jen that sat on top of the cake. Totes dorbz, right??

And looky who else I got to meet! It’s Katie! I got to introduce myself to Katie, her mom, and her whole family after the show. Katie’s parents were extremely nice and Katie herself was just plain adorable. It took her a couple of minutes to warm up, but once she did, she got a kick out of the fact that we’re both major (I’m talking MAJOR) Harry Potter fans, we had matching glasses, long sleeve white shirts under our tees, and brown shoes. We geek girls know our stuff.

So that’s my excuse for not posting at all since last week. Do you guys forgive me? I’m thinking once you see how quick and simple these amazingly yummy cinnamon rolls are, you will.

When I say these are quick and simple, I’m not lying. I made (and ate) these last night, in less than an hour…and that was with me taking the time to photograph them and the whole process. Not too shabby, I’d say.

The yummy filling in these is just made up of brown sugar, cinnamon, chopped pecans, sugar, and butter (melted). If you want to make these vegan/dairy free, simply replace the butter with margarine (and make sure your sugars are vegan).

Easy peasy to make: stir the dry ingredients together. Add the melted butter. Combine. Done.

The cinnamon roll dough is simple, too: all-purpose flour, more melted butter, maple syrup, buttermilk, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt.

If you don’t have buttermilk on hand (I never do), you don’t need to waste a trip to the grocery store. Personally, I always use Saco Buttermilk, which is a dry buttermilk. When using it, you can either rehydrate it by stirring the powder into water, or you can add the dry powder in with the rest of the dry ingredients in a recipe, and just add water as the “buttermilk.” I use this stuff for all of my baking and cooking, and it has always worked wonderfully. However, you may not have this either, and if you do, then you already know how great it is.

If you need buttermilk, but don’t want to hit the store, make your own using regular milk and lemon juice or vinegar. Simply stir one teaspoon of lemon juice or vinegar into one cup of milk. Let it sit for 10 minutes, stir, and you have buttermilk.

Once your dough is mixed up, roll it out 10 a rectangle about 8 x 12-inches. Spread a little melted butter on it and press all of the filling mixture into the dough. It’s gonna seem like a lot of filling, but trust me, go with it.

Roll the dough tightly, starting on the long side. Pinch the seam closed and place it facing down, then cut the log into eight pieces.

Place the cut rolls into a 9-inch cake pan and brush with a little more melted butter.

Bakes at 425 for 20 to 23 minutes and let cool for about five minutes before icing.

My icing is a simple mixture of confectioners’ sugar, butter, maple syrup and a dash of milk. And it’s delicious. Just sayin’.

Mmmmm.

These are a little tough to get out of the pan. I use a cake/pie server, but you can also remove the entire batch from the pan all at once. You can even do this before icing them, to make them a little less messy, but I prefer icing and storing them in the pan I baked them in.

I need you to understand how fast and easy these are: I made these at the last minute, last night, at eight o clock. Seriously. I mixed them up, baked them, iced them, photographed them, and enjoyed one in less than an hour.

I told you they were fast and easy.

My sister is a goof. She’s slick. She snuck that hand in and out of the shot in about two frames. A goof and a sneak.

But seriously. Yum.

Maple Pecan Cinnamon Rolls [Printable Recipe]
Makes 8

Ingredients

FOR THE FILLING
3/4 cup (191 grams) brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup (50 grams) sugar
3/4 cup chopped pecans
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon (14 grams) unsalted butter, melted

FOR THE DOUGH
3 cups (381 grams) all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons (38 grams) sugar
1 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (250 ml) buttermilk
6 tablespoons (85 grams) unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup (83 ml) maple syrup

FOR THE ICING
2 tablespoons (28 grams) unsalted butter, softened
3 tablespoons (45 ml) maple syrup
1 to 2 teaspoons (5 to 10 ml) milk
1 cup (125 grams) confectioners’ sugar

To make the filling: Combine all of the dry ingredients in a small bowl. Add the melted butter and stir with a fork until the mixture looks like wet sand. Set aside.

To make the dough: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees (220 C). Brush a 9-inch cake pan with 1 tablespoon of the melted butter.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the buttermilk, syrup, and 2 tablespoons of the melted butter, and stir until just combined. Transfer the dough to a floured work surface and knead until smooth (it will still be very soft and a little sticky, but will be smoother and less lumpy). Place in a lightly floured bowl, cover, and chill for 20 minutes.

Once chilled, flatten the dough into a rectangle about 12 X 8 inches. Pour 2 tablespoons of the melted butter on and spread around with your fingers. Pour the filling over the dough and spread it evenly over the top, leaving about a 1/2 inch or so border around the outside edge. Press the filling down to pack it on top of the dough.

Starting on the long side of the dough, roll the side up, pressing as you go, to create a tightly rolled log (be gentle, as this will likely stick to the counter a bit). Pinch the seam closed and lay the log seam side down. Cut into 8 even pieces, and transfer each roll to the prepared cake pan. Brush with the remaining 2 tablespoons of melted butter. Bake for 20 to 23minutes, until golden brown.

To make the icing: In a medium bowl, cream the butter and add the sugar. Mix until the sugar and butter start to come together a bit. Add the syrup and whisk well, until the mixture is smooth. If it is too thick, add a teaspoon or so of milk to loosen it up.

Allow the cinnamon rolls to cool in the pan for about 5 minutes. Pour the icing over the rolls. Serve warm.

These will keep in an airtight container for about 3 days.

Recipe by Darla

Other great Thanksgiving recipes to try:

Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes with Gingersnap Crusts

Soft Ginger Cookies with Ginger-Orange Filling

Treacle Tarts

Maple Nut Cake

Cinnarookies

Semi-homemade Caramel Apple Cookies

Tagged as: Bread, Breakfast, Cinnamon, Cinnamon Rolls, Dairy Free, Maple, Maple Pecan, Maple Pecan Cinnamon Rolls, Pastry, Pecan, Vegan