Thursday, December 15, 2011

Eggnog and Cranberry Cinnamon Rolls


I'm trying something a little different with this post. My friend Kristen at Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker is offering up a monthly "Improv" challenge. There are different themes each month and should we decide to participate, we simply conjure up a recipe with the two specified ingredients for that month. This month we have eggnog and cranberries. Since I've made nearly every flavor combination there is of my cinnamon rolls, I figured I might as well go ahead and add eggnog and cranberry to the mix. They were fabulous, if I do say so myself. :) Now, let's see if I remembered how I made them...

Eggnog and Cranberry Cinnamon Rolls

1 cup eggnog
1/4 cup butter
1 (.25 ounce) package instant yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
1 egg, room temperature, slightly beaten
3 1/4 to 3 1/2 cups flour (I use bread flour, but you can use all purpose)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup chopped fresh cranberries

Heat the eggnog and 1/4 cup butter in a small saucepan until butter is melted. Remove from heat. Let cool until temperature is about 110 degrees F (like bathwater warm).

In a large mixing bowl, combine eggnog mixture with yeast, egg, and 2 cups of the flour and the salt; beat well. Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the dough has just pulled together, turn it onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, about 5 minutes. (Alternately, just use the dough hook on your mixer and let the mixer knead the dough for about five minutes)

Place the dough in a greased bowl and cover with a clean damp towel. Allow dough to rise until double, about 1 hour. In the mean time, in a small bowl, mix together the softened butter, brown sugar and cinnamon.

Roll out the dough into a 12X9 inch rectangle (I like to do this on my Silpat). Spread the dough with the cinnamon/sugar mixture. Sprinkle with chopped cranberries. Roll up the dough from the long side and pinch seam to seal. Cut into 12 equal sized pieces and place into a greased 9X13 inch pan. Cover and let rise until doubled.

Bake rolls at 375 ° for 25 to 30 minutes or until browned. Remove from oven and frost with Eggnog Cream Cheese Frosting while warm.



I went a little overboard on the frosting by adding too much eggnog, so I merely added more powdered sugar to compensate. Hint: Leftover frosting is really good spread on graham crackers--it wasn't such a bad mistake.

Of course, I went a little nuts on the theme and made some eggnog pancakes, too. That recipe will be up in a few days...much plate licking went on with those...

Next month the theme will be lemons and sour cream. The brain is ticking already.

21 comments:

  1. Is it really possible to have too much frosting? LOL! The cinnamon rolls look wonderful, and so moist! What a fun idea, and now I want one:-) Take care, Terra

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  2. I too have on occasion "accidently" made extra frosting and it isn't such a terrible thing at all. These look very tasty, I wondering how they'd turn out if made gluten free? We have a Celiac in the house who I know would appreaciate cinnamon rolls of this magnitude.

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  3. Wow - delicious and SO creative! Frosting is a delicious thing.....too much is just right!

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  4. I saw that picture with the cranberries peeking through the beautiful cinnamon roll and my mouth started watering! These look fantastic.

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  5. Well isn't that perfect. I have exactly 1 cup of eggnog and 3/4 cup of cranberries left over after making my scones for this challenge. I'm definitely going to make these cinnamon rolls this weekend. They look great!

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  6. I need a couple of these right now! I’m #2 in the challenge, I hope you’ll stop by and visit :)
    http://thecrunchymamacita.blogspot.com/2011/12/eggnog-cranberry-pound-cake.html

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  7. Hello fellow ICC blogger those rolls look like pur yummy goodness. Come visit and check out our cookie. Also be sure to register to win the wonderful book we are giving away. Today is the last day. Look for the Southern Fried Women post.

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  8. That is SUCH a clever way to use the eggnog! That would work for just about any bread recipe. Ooh, love it!

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  9. What a beautiful, light texture - I'll bet these made for a superlative dessert. A wonderful holiday treat!

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  10. These look perfectly delicious. I think I will be adding this to my Christmas Brunch! Yummmmm!!

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  11. Oh my goodness I am drooling over these scrumptious rolls. Well done!!!

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  12. mmmmmmmmmmmmm! So delicious looking I had to "pin" them to my Christmas board. I was considering trying to come up with a cinnamon roll recipe for this challenge; but now you've done such an excellent job, I'll just try yours! Thanks!

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  13. Personally, I don't think you can have too much frosting on cinnamon rolls. :-) These look great!

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  14. Oh my goodness... I think this one is my favorite. Yummmm!

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  15. Cathy, those are WONDERFUL! I can just imagine the yummy flavor the eggnog gave to the rolls with the tartness of the cranberries. I love it!!

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  16. What a perfect and creative way to use those ingredients! These cinnamon rolls sound wonderful!

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  17. I made these 2 nights ago and put them in the fridge for the 2nd rise overnight. These were WONDERFUL! Thank you thank you thank you for the recipe!

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  18. I like your hint about the leftover frosting! :-)

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  19. Yum! I love cinnamon rolls and these ones sound sinfully delicious. I will definitely be trying this recipe in the near future.

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