Balance. That’s my resolution. One word.
I think a lot of resolutions come down to that, finding a balance by remembering the things that you have allowed to unbalance in your life.
Most problems in life come down to too much, or not enough, of one thing or another. This is where I am, right at this moment.
I care too much about what others think about me, my blog and my recipes. I worry too much about how many Twitter followers or Facebook likes I get. I’m much too hard on myself about not being further along in my quest to work full time in the world of food. I am much too self-deprecating too often.
I don’t allow myself enough space and time to grow and learn. I don’t give myself enough credit for my accomplishments.
In the name of balance:
I am grateful. I am a hard worker. I am a fast learner. I push myself. (That is the start of my resolution, balance the bad thoughts with good ones.)
More than anything I want to teach these things to my Daughter. This thing called "balance" that we all find so hard.
My promise to my little girl, just a year and a half into her life, is this:
I will try as hard as I can to show you how to love yourself, by loving myself. The world will teach you enough self-loathing, I will not model it for you. I will be the example of how to push yourself towards your goals, while still enjoying your life. And while every little girl in the world, at some point, will say, "I wanna be like my Momma!" I promise to try and be worthy of that statement. I will do my best to teach you how to put your self-worth into your SELF not into others. How to be in a relationship, not defined by it. How to set a goal and reach it, while still giving space to fail and get back up.
Cinnamon Rolls where my resolution two year ago, when I was pregnant. I called my sister in a pregnancy induced semi-panic over Christmas Traditions. We didn’t have any Holiday traditions growing up and I wanted, no, NEEDED to have some for my own family. Where do I start? What do I do?? My sister, who has always been a strong force in my life, as well as a great example of balance, reminded me that my fetal child had no current need for holiday pageantry and I had time for decision making. I told her that I wanted to make cinnamon rolls from scratch on Christmas Morning. She said that was a great place to start.
A few weeks later, on my birthday, a Cinnamon Roll pan from King Arthur Flour showed up at my house. I cried. I decided right then that my Holiday Traditions would revolve around being together as a family, like a Traditional Christmas Morning breakfast with Cinnamon Rolls. I resolved to spend more time with people I love.
For the rest of my life, I’ll be making these on Christmas Morning. Sometimes resolutions do stick with you.
This is food Networks attempt to re-create the carefully guarded secret recipe of Cinnabon’s Cinnamon Rolls. It’s amazing, which is why this is the recipe that I have decided to use as my Christmas Tradition and not attempting to create my own, although slight alterations have been made.
Almost Famous Cinnamon Rolls
(Adapted from The Food Network)
For the Dough:
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 1/4-ounce packet active dry yeast
- 1/4 cup plus 1/4 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for the bowl
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more if needed
- 1/4 cup Dry Milk
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
For the Filling:
- All-purpose flour, for dusting
- 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, plus more for the pan
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp fresh ground nutmeg
For the Glaze:
- 2 cups confectioners' sugar
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Directions
Make the dough: Warm the milk in a medium saucepan over low heat until it reaches about 100 (you can also use the microwave, and test every 20 seconds. I keep a digital people thermometer from the drug store in the kitchen to use when I heat up liquid to proof yeast. It’s cheap and accurate). Remove from the heat and sprinkle in the yeast and 1/4 teaspoon sugar (don’t stir). Set aside until foamy, 5 minutes. Whisk in the melted butter, egg yolk and vanilla.
Whisk the flour, the remaining 1/4 cup sugar, dry milk, the salt and nutmeg in the bowl of a stand mixer. Make a well in the center and pour in the yeast mixture. Mix on low speed with the dough hook until thick and slightly sticky. Knead on medium speed until the dough gathers around the hook, 6 minutes. (Add up to 2 more tablespoons flour if necessary.)
Remove the dough and shape into a ball. Butter the mixer bowl and return the dough to the bowl, turning to coat with butter (those are the Food Network instructions, I use a large glass bowl that I spray with butter flavored cooking spray). Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled, 1 hour 15 minutes.
Roll out the dough, fill and cut into buns (see instructions below). Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking pan; place the buns cut-side down in the pan, leaving space between each. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled, 40 minutes. If you are making this the night before, this is a good place to stop. Instead of allow to rise until double in size on your counter top, place the buns in a cold fridge. It should take about 6-8 hours for the second rise to happen in a cold fridge, instead of 40 minutes at room temp.
Preheat the oven to 325.
Bake the buns until golden brown, about 35 minutes. Cool in the pan 15 minutes. Meanwhile, make the glaze: Sift the confectioners' sugar into a bowl, then whisk in the cream and melted butter. Transfer the buns to a rack and spoon the glaze on top while still warm.
How to Form Cinnamon Buns
1. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into a 12-by-14-inch rectangle with the longer side facing you.
2. Spread with the softened butter, leaving a 1/2-inch border on the far long edge. Mix the sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over the butter.
3. Brush the unbuttered far edge with water. Roll the dough away from you into a tight cylinder and press on the long edge to seal.
4. Cut the cylinder with a sharp knife to make 6-9 equal-size buns.