Growing up, it was a special treat when mom and dad declared it “cinnamon roll Sunday.” It usually happened in the winter, when heating up the oven would do double duty – bake and help heat the house. I have so many great memories of these day-long endeavors, and I think that’s why some of my favorite smells are blooming yeast and cinnamon.
Back in the day, there was what we lovingly called “the Watkins man” who came door-to-door selling his wares. Back in the day, that was the only way to get Watkins products…by your door-to-door salesman (I don’t frankly know if women did that way back when!) I don’t recall my mom ever buying anything from him except vanilla extract. She always said theirs was the best. Lord knows we went through it fast. My mom was an excellent baker, especially of fruit breads and cookies. But oh, her cinnamon rolls were the best, and that magical recipe also came from “the Watkins man.”
“The Old Watkins Cookbook”
Watkins Hearthside Cookbook, published 1952
Anyway, apparently the Watkins man broke my mom down for more than just her vanilla supply and she bought their “Hearthside Cookbook”, published in 1952. For all time, even to this day, it’s known as “the old Watkins cookbook” in our family. That poor thing has been through the wringer, and is barely holding together now, some 60+ years later as of this writing. But nestled safely in the pages is mom’s magical cinnamon roll recipe. You can tell how often this recipe was used based on the “glop” still on the pages! Mom was always one to double recipes, and write the doubling right on the recipe, if she really loved them or if they took a lot of work. Why bother with a single batch’s work when you could just as easily double, and save yourself some time!?
Several years ago, I attempted to make the cinnamon rolls. As with any baking, I diligently followed the recipe to a “T”, only to find they didn’t rise well, and they baked up hard as rocks. Silly me…I thought it was because I used my mix master rather than doing so much by hand as my mom did. Must be “new machinery” not working with an old recipe! Right, Barb…that’s brilliant!! Then, a “yeast master” co-worker of mine made the $64,000 comment …”your yeast didn’t bloom properly.”
Learning Yeast
So, I set about to learn how to bloom yeast properly and found the magic is not only in fresh yeast, but in the temperature of the liquid you use! Apparently too hot kills the yeast; not hot enough and the little buggers won’t wake up. I’m a bit like that with coffee myself! Who knew?
Most recipes will tell you what temperature your liquid needs to be. I learned (thanks to my co-worker) for water-based blooming, simply running your hot tap water until it’s hot will get you the right temperature. Duh! I should have known that simply from working in senior living where at-the-tap water temperature (115* maximum) was dictated by our regulations!
I just love the illustration!
Milk was a little trickier for me, and it took me several attempts to figure out how to get milk hot enough in my microwave or on the stovetop without scalding it. Yikes! What I learned is that if you stick your clean finger into it and it hurts, it’s too hot. LOL! Really…unless you want to haul out a thermometer to get a precise temperature, that’s as good as it gets. You want to be able to stick your finger in it and feel it’s warm, but not warm enough to hurt. How’s that for science!?!
Anyway, here’s the recipe for my mom’s magical cinnamon rolls. I’ve found there’s something really therapeutic about making these on a Sunday afternoon, even though I’m not always doing all the kneading by hand like mom did. Pulling the “old Watkins cookbook” out, paging through the pages still dusted with flour and splotched with globs of dough brings back precious memories of my mom and dad. You see, Dad’s donut recipe is in there, too! This one’s for you, Mom and Dad…wishing I could have one more cinnamon roll Sunday with you.
A Note on Scalded Milk
You’ll note in the recipe it calls for “scalded” milk. You don’t often see this in recipes, but it was originally a technique for killing bacteria in milk before pasteurization came along. Scalding milk serves a couple more purposes though…it brings out the flavors of yeast doughs, and it speeds up dissolving and blending together your liquid ingredients, and boosts your yeast bloom.
How To:
Put recipe amount of milk in a saucepan on the stovetop. Heat to just prior to boil. You’ll see bubbles starting around the edge of the pan. If using a thermometer, it should be about 180°F. Remove from heat and let cool to lukewarm temperature, then proceed with your recipe. Trust me…you’ll want to do this step!
Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
- 2 envelopes dried yeast
- 1/2 C lukewarm water (approx 115°F)
- 1/4 C butter room temperature
- 3/4 C milk scalded
- 1/2 C granulated sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 eggs beaten
- 5 C flour sifted
Inside Cinnamon Rolls
- 1 stick butter melted
- 1/2 c granulated sugar
- 1/4 C cinnamon
- 1-2 C raisins optional
Glaze
- 1 C powdered/confectioner's sugar
- 1/4 C melted butter
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/4-1/2 C milk
Instructions
- Dissolve yeast in lukewarm water. Scald milk; add butter, sugar and salt, and cool to lukewarm temperature. Add flour to make a thick batter, then add yeast and eggs, and beat well. Add enough flour to make a soft dough that can be kneaded. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and satiny. Place in lightly greased bowl, cover, and let rise until double in size (about 2 hours). When light, punch down and divide dough in workable pieces. Roll out on floured surface. Brush with melted butter, and sprinkle liberally with cinnamon and sugar. Sprinkle with raisins, if using. Roll up tightly along the long edge, and pinch to close edge. Slice into 1-1.5" slices. Place on greased baking sheet. Cover lightly, and let rise until double in size, 30-45 minutes. Bake in a 350°F oven for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool. Top with glaze, or your preferred frosting, as desired.
Glaze
- Mix first 3 ingredients well. Slowly add milk, only enough to desired consistency of glaze.
