Post by Glen Carman aka Delmonico on Nov 23, 2018 1:51:50 GMT -6
Cinnamon Rolls
For 14” shallow dutch oven
Tips
Scalded milk-If using fresh milk, scald it first by bringing it almost to the boiling point. This kills an enzyme in the milk that slows down the action of the yeast.
Yeast-In the recipe one will notice that the amount of yeast can vary. Less will take more time to rise, more will be quicker. Also when the weather's cool the full amount may be desirable.
Vanilla-Always use the best vanilla extract, the best is Madagascar Bourbon, this can be expensive, however by reading labels I have found that Watkins and Walmart's Great Value brands are this type. Since Walmart sells both, I'm guessing they get the store brand from Watkins.
Cinnamon-Most cinnamon sold is really the bark from related trees known as cassia. This is the common red cinnamon, the true cinnamon is often called Ceylon cinnamon and is more of a tan to light brown in color. This is the best to use because more of it can be used without getting a slight bitter taste.
Sweet bread dough
This basic recipe will make most dessert breads, no just cinnamon rolls.
2 ½ cups warm scalded milk or one 12 ounce can evaporated unsweetened milk and 1 cup of warm water. (Sweetened condensed milk can also be used by leaving out the sugar.)
4-6 teaspoons yeast or 2-3 packages yeast (1 package of yeast is 2 ¼ teaspoon)
¾ cup of sugar (I prefer brown for cinnamon rolls.)
1 teaspoons salt (optional)
2 tablespoons of lard or 3 of butter
2 beaten eggs
7-9 cups all purpose flour
Cinnamon Roll Filling
2 sticks (½ pound butter)
1-3 cups sugar (Again I prefer brown.)
1-4 tablespoons cinnamon
1-2 cups raisins (optional)
If using scalded milk, let it cool to around 95-110F, if using canned milk and water, warm it to the same temperature.
Place liquid in a large bowl and add the yeast, the sugar and the beaten eggs and mix well. I prefer to add about a cup of flour at this time and cover and let the yeast work till well bubbly.
I then add the lard and knead in enough flour to make a workable dough, kneading till smooth and the gluten is well worked.
Cover and let rise till doubled in size, this will take more or less and hour, depending on the amount of yeast used and the temperature.
When the finished dough has raised, punch it down,divide in half and roll out to a sheet 1/4-3/8 inch thick.
Cover the sheet with melted butter, ½ pound for the whole recipe, sprinkle the desired amount of cinnamon on top, 2-6 teaspoons for the whole batch, then cover sugar.
Cut into desired lengths and place touching each other in the dutch oven. Cover and let raise till doubled in size.
If baking in a kitchen in a conventional oven one can use a 15” cast iron skillet and 375F. This will take about 35-45 minutes.
Baking outside in a dutch oven takes a little more skill, but I have discovered a method that is almost foolproof. The more butter and sugar one uses the more difficult it becomes to bake them without scorching the bottom. The normal recommendation of ⅓rd of the coals on the bottom and 2/3rd of the coals on top will tend to scorch the bottoms.
When I first baked cinnamon rolls I simply used a lot less coals on the bottom than normal, but this needed careful monitoring, something hard to do running multiple ovens as I often do. About 3 years ago I tried a different method, instead of using less coals, I put the oven on a lot of coals, often stacking it on top of another oven running hot. I kept checking the bottom of the oven with my finger till it got to around 375-400F and then removed it from the coals, keeping the full load on top and finishing that way. It yields perfection every time. (When the ground is cold or damp it is best to have a spot that is preheated to prevent sapping the heat out of the bottom.)
These can be iced if desired, for icing take 2-3 cups of confectioners sugar and stir in enough milk to make the mix spreadable or drizzable. Cocoa powder or vanilla extract can be added before the milk. Spread over the warm rolls.
Before I finish this I will add a few more tips, I mention touching the oven to check temperatures, at first to many who are just starting out it may sound scary, first you don't touch it long enough to really burn yourself. With a little experience you can get it very close. Practice touching when baking at home when you are baking in the oven and known temperatures. Also using one of the infrared thermometers will help build up this skill although out of place at a historical demonstration most times. I do a day long demonstration every year for 4th graders from a multi-county area. They go to several stations every ½ hour and we bake biscuits at mine with wood coals. My friend who lives in that town and helps me brings an infrared thermometer and as part of each station I give what I think is the temperature and he checks, I am almost always with in 10° either way and within 15°, so with practice this is a very reliable method.
Often in camp and at home I make these with sourdough by replacing some of the milk with sourdough starter. Most times these are baked in the bigger 16” oven so there are plenty to share.
For this I always use canned milk and a cup and a half of starter. The rest of the recipe is doubled. The 14” shallow is 153 square inches and 8 quart volume, the 16” is taller than a normal shallow but shorter than a normal deep at 200 square inches and 13 quart. At first this looks like double would not work but between being able to make taller rolls and that the sourdough comes out denser makes it work out fine.
Making these with sourdough starter the traditional way takes more time than doing it with commercial yeast. By traditional I mean that the yeast in the starter is the only yeast I use. Since this most times is in the long summer days, I start making them around 3-4 in the afternoon, this allows me to have the rolls in the oven by dark, then the rolls are allowed to rise overnight and are ready to bake early in the morning, in time for breakfast.
For 14” shallow dutch oven
Tips
Scalded milk-If using fresh milk, scald it first by bringing it almost to the boiling point. This kills an enzyme in the milk that slows down the action of the yeast.
Yeast-In the recipe one will notice that the amount of yeast can vary. Less will take more time to rise, more will be quicker. Also when the weather's cool the full amount may be desirable.
Vanilla-Always use the best vanilla extract, the best is Madagascar Bourbon, this can be expensive, however by reading labels I have found that Watkins and Walmart's Great Value brands are this type. Since Walmart sells both, I'm guessing they get the store brand from Watkins.
Cinnamon-Most cinnamon sold is really the bark from related trees known as cassia. This is the common red cinnamon, the true cinnamon is often called Ceylon cinnamon and is more of a tan to light brown in color. This is the best to use because more of it can be used without getting a slight bitter taste.
Sweet bread dough
This basic recipe will make most dessert breads, no just cinnamon rolls.
2 ½ cups warm scalded milk or one 12 ounce can evaporated unsweetened milk and 1 cup of warm water. (Sweetened condensed milk can also be used by leaving out the sugar.)
4-6 teaspoons yeast or 2-3 packages yeast (1 package of yeast is 2 ¼ teaspoon)
¾ cup of sugar (I prefer brown for cinnamon rolls.)
1 teaspoons salt (optional)
2 tablespoons of lard or 3 of butter
2 beaten eggs
7-9 cups all purpose flour
Cinnamon Roll Filling
2 sticks (½ pound butter)
1-3 cups sugar (Again I prefer brown.)
1-4 tablespoons cinnamon
1-2 cups raisins (optional)
If using scalded milk, let it cool to around 95-110F, if using canned milk and water, warm it to the same temperature.
Place liquid in a large bowl and add the yeast, the sugar and the beaten eggs and mix well. I prefer to add about a cup of flour at this time and cover and let the yeast work till well bubbly.
I then add the lard and knead in enough flour to make a workable dough, kneading till smooth and the gluten is well worked.
Cover and let rise till doubled in size, this will take more or less and hour, depending on the amount of yeast used and the temperature.
When the finished dough has raised, punch it down,divide in half and roll out to a sheet 1/4-3/8 inch thick.
Cover the sheet with melted butter, ½ pound for the whole recipe, sprinkle the desired amount of cinnamon on top, 2-6 teaspoons for the whole batch, then cover sugar.
Cut into desired lengths and place touching each other in the dutch oven. Cover and let raise till doubled in size.
If baking in a kitchen in a conventional oven one can use a 15” cast iron skillet and 375F. This will take about 35-45 minutes.
Baking outside in a dutch oven takes a little more skill, but I have discovered a method that is almost foolproof. The more butter and sugar one uses the more difficult it becomes to bake them without scorching the bottom. The normal recommendation of ⅓rd of the coals on the bottom and 2/3rd of the coals on top will tend to scorch the bottoms.
When I first baked cinnamon rolls I simply used a lot less coals on the bottom than normal, but this needed careful monitoring, something hard to do running multiple ovens as I often do. About 3 years ago I tried a different method, instead of using less coals, I put the oven on a lot of coals, often stacking it on top of another oven running hot. I kept checking the bottom of the oven with my finger till it got to around 375-400F and then removed it from the coals, keeping the full load on top and finishing that way. It yields perfection every time. (When the ground is cold or damp it is best to have a spot that is preheated to prevent sapping the heat out of the bottom.)
These can be iced if desired, for icing take 2-3 cups of confectioners sugar and stir in enough milk to make the mix spreadable or drizzable. Cocoa powder or vanilla extract can be added before the milk. Spread over the warm rolls.
Before I finish this I will add a few more tips, I mention touching the oven to check temperatures, at first to many who are just starting out it may sound scary, first you don't touch it long enough to really burn yourself. With a little experience you can get it very close. Practice touching when baking at home when you are baking in the oven and known temperatures. Also using one of the infrared thermometers will help build up this skill although out of place at a historical demonstration most times. I do a day long demonstration every year for 4th graders from a multi-county area. They go to several stations every ½ hour and we bake biscuits at mine with wood coals. My friend who lives in that town and helps me brings an infrared thermometer and as part of each station I give what I think is the temperature and he checks, I am almost always with in 10° either way and within 15°, so with practice this is a very reliable method.
Often in camp and at home I make these with sourdough by replacing some of the milk with sourdough starter. Most times these are baked in the bigger 16” oven so there are plenty to share.
For this I always use canned milk and a cup and a half of starter. The rest of the recipe is doubled. The 14” shallow is 153 square inches and 8 quart volume, the 16” is taller than a normal shallow but shorter than a normal deep at 200 square inches and 13 quart. At first this looks like double would not work but between being able to make taller rolls and that the sourdough comes out denser makes it work out fine.
Making these with sourdough starter the traditional way takes more time than doing it with commercial yeast. By traditional I mean that the yeast in the starter is the only yeast I use. Since this most times is in the long summer days, I start making them around 3-4 in the afternoon, this allows me to have the rolls in the oven by dark, then the rolls are allowed to rise overnight and are ready to bake early in the morning, in time for breakfast.
Attachments:
