Vanilla Pudding Cinnamon Roll

I saw this recipe probably over a year ago. I kept thinking about it but never got a chance to make it. One, I was afraid to have 24 large cinnamon rolls in my possession without someone to give it to. Two, I just never had the time to make it. One day I just woke up and I knew I had to make it!! I read on the recipe that you can freeze the rolls, so I made half the cinnamon rolls and there are 12 more frozen cinnamon rolls waiting in the freezer.

I am so glad I took the time to make these!! I knew they would be good when I was kneading the bread dough. It was such a sticky dough, but once it started coming together, the dough was so soft and smelled so wonderful. Can you believe it? Even the raw dough smelled nice!! The best way to knead sticky dough is with this method. I highly recommend it! This is the way that I knead most of my bread doughs now.

When it came out of the oven, both Mr. G and I were so excited!! Within five minutes, we devoured three cinnamon rolls and these are LARGE rolls. I knew I had to call for backup! The rest of these rolls were given away!! These cinnamon rolls are really really good! Much better than anything from those "bons" people. They are so soft and the frosting just melts on top. MAKE THEM!!

Vanilla Pudding Cinnamon Roll
adapted from Mel's Kitchen

Rolls:
1/2 cup warm water
2 tablespoons active dry yeast
2 tablespoons sugar
3 1/2 ounce package instant vanilla pudding
1/2 cup butter, melted
2 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
6+ cups flour (see note)

Filling:
3/4 cup butter, softened to room temperature (see note)
1 1/4 cups brown sugar (see note)
2 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon (see note)

Frosting:
8 ounces cream cheese
1/2 cup butter, softened to room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar (see note)
2-3 tablespoons milk

1. In a small bowl combine water, yeast and sugar. Stir until dissolved. Set aside. In large bowl, take pudding mix and prepare according to package directions.

2. Add butter, eggs and salt. Mix well. Then add yeast mixture. Blend. Gradually add flour; knead until smooth. Do not overflour the dough! It should be very soft but not sticky. Place in a greased bowl. Cover and let rise until doubled.

Then roll out on floured board to 34 X 21 inches (see note) in size. Take 1 cup soft butter and spread over surface. In bowl, mix 2 cups brown sugar and 4 teaspoons cinnamon. Sprinkle over the top. Roll up very tightly. With knife put a notch every 1 1/2 inches. Cut with thread or serrated knife. Place on lightly greased cookie sheet 1 inch apart. Cover and let rise until double again. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Remove when they start to turn golden (don’t overbake). Frost warm rolls with cream cheese frosting (combine butter and cream cheese and mix well, then add vanilla and sugar and mix again, then add milk for desired consistency). Makes about 24 very large rolls.

*Freezable Recipe: After shaping the rolls and placing them on the baking sheet, cover with lightly greased saran wrap and a layer of tin foil. Store in the freezer. The night before you want to serve them take out the rolls and put them in the refrigerator. Let them thaw in the refrigerator. Take them out about 8-9 hours after being in the refrigerator and let them rise until doubled. Bake according to the recipe. (If you have less time, you can take the rolls out of the freezer and let them come to room temperature on the counter – about 4 hours, then let rise until doubled).

Notes:

• *I used 7 cups of flour for my rolls, but the amount of flour will depend on the humidity, the brand of flour you're using, and other factors.  I would start with 6 cups and just add 1/4 cup of flour at a time until the dough is no longer sticky.  Sometimes dough will be sticky because it's not kneaded enough, not because there's not enough flour.  Make sure you knead it thoroughly before adding extra flour.
• *For the filling, the original recipe calls for 1 cup of butter, 2 cups of brown sugar, and 4 tsp of cinnamon.  I decreased it to 3/4 cup of butter, 1 1/4 cup of brown sugar and 2 1/2 tsp of cinnamon.  
• *As for the frosting, I decreased the confectioner's sugar from 3 cups to 1 1/2 cups.  It was sweet enough for me.  The consistency didn't suffer either.