Rollin' in the Dough...20º

About 5am I mixed a batch of "sweet roll" dough...This is a soft delicate dough, doesn't need much kneading and really doesn't take long from start to finish...I wanted the dough ready to roll when the "girls", Becky and Jen arrived...They arrived at 8am, almost awake and anxious to get started...Hands were washed and we were ready!...I removed the lid from my big green bowl, let them breath in the aroma of the rising pillow of flour, water, butter, eggs, sugar, salt and yeast, as I said, "This is what you are going to make." The dough was ready, but first we had to get their batches of dough mixed so it could raise (proof) while I demonstrated how to shape dinner rolls and cinnamon rolls...I had rewritten the recipe so that ingredients went into the bowl as listed, first I demonstrated, then watched as they mixed their very own batch of dough...(For me a recipe is but a rough outline, good to have but not set in stone.)About a half hour later, sticky, doughy fingers were cleaning off as the dough began to take shape...A little bacon grease was spread over all and the dough was left to proof.

On a nicely floured surface B & J took turns patting, stretching and rolling the dough (batch I had made earlier) into a rectangle...Softened butter was then spread over the surface...Taking a pizza cutter we cut long strips off the side, then cut them across into small rectangles, folded over and voilà, dinner rolls...The remaining, big rectangle was then covered with brown sugar and liberally sprinkled with cinnamon, rolled into a big long roll, cut across with a bench knife, into cinnamon rolls...Sorry I didn't get photo's of the entire process...We had a little time to wait, so played a few hands of "Five Crowns" and ate a bowl of soup.

The two batches of dough were nicely raised and now B & J got to proceed on their own, making rolls and cinnamon rolls out of the dough they had mixed and kneaded...By 1pm our house on Barton Heights resembled a first class bakery as the rolls came out of the oven and smells of cinnamon had our mouths watering...We had made over 4 dozen cinnamon rolls and 3 dozen dinner rolls...I sent them out the door amid cries of "Thank you and we want to pay you for the ingredients at least." And I said, "No, all the thanks I need is for you to go home and bake!"...Hugs To All...OWAV:)

Ready for the oven

Jen's

Becky's

Ready to eat.