Recipe // Banana Cinnamon Rolls

It is finally hot outside, but I don’t think I need to convince you that gooey, warm cinnamon rolls are great year-round.

These cinnamon rolls are made of a yeasted, banana-sweetened dough, swirled around a heavily spiced, cinnamon-butter mixture.

In short, you’ll want these for breakfast tomorrow.

I am trying to get over my hesitation to making yeasted doughs. Their particular preferences for temperature, the long time it takes to rise… I used to think it wasn’t worth the effort. But with the longer days of summer, I am ready to make it yeasted doughs my new project.

Banana Cinnamon Rolls

Inspired by Like Mother Like Daughter

Rolls
2 1/4 tsp yeast (1 package)
3/4 c warmed milk
1/3 c sugar
1/2 c butter (1 stick, softened)
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
2 bananas
4 1/2 – 5 c flour

Filling
1/3 c butter (melted)
1 c brown sugar
Rolls
  1. Dissolve the yeast in the warm milk in a large bowl.
  2. Add in the sugar, butter, salt, eggs, banana, and flour (Start with 4 /12 cups of flour and add a little more at a time as needed) and mix well.
  3. Once the dough starts to come away from the edges, continue to knead the dough for about 5 minutes (If you are using your hands, dust them with flour to avoid sticking) until a large ball is formed.
  4. Cover the bowl with a towel and allow to rise for 45 minutes to 1 hour until the dough is double in size.
  5. Lightly flour the counter top. Roll the dough out until it is approximately 16×21 inches and 1/4 inch thick.
  6. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
  7. Combine brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.Spread butter over the surface of the dough.
  8. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar mixture generously over the surface of the dough.
  9. Carefully roll the dough from the long top edge to the bottom edge.
  10. Using a thread, or a sharp knife cut the dough into 1 – 1 1/2 in slices.
  11. Lightly grease a baking pan or two.
  12. Place rolls in the baking pan and bake for 25 minutes or until the tops turn a light golden color.
  13. While they are baking combine frosting ingredients. Add more powdered sugar if the frosting is too runny, or a little more milk if it is too thick.
  14. Remove rolls from the oven and allow them to cool for about 5 minutes before frosting.
Frosting
  1. Beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth.
  2. Add in powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt and continue to blend until the frosting is smooth.
  3. Apply frosting generously to the tops of the rolls.
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Exploring Philly / Love & Honey’s Fried Chicken

There are very few restaurants in Philadelphia that I go out of my way to return to. Love & Honey’s is one of them.

I am normally not a fried chicken/food person, but Love and Honey’s does it perfectly. They cook every plate of chicken to order, so it normally takes around 15 minutes to get your food. However, once it arrives, it is perfect; tender meat, perfectly crispy skin, and slightly sweetened with honey.

Their sandwich is good, but the bread and slaw gets in the way of the fried chicken (and trust me, you don’t want to do that). Overall, Love & Honey’s lives up to every expectation I had and more.

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Recipe // Funfetti Layer Cake

It’s the end of finals, so obviously I made funfetti cake.

I always wanted to make Molly’s homemade funfetti cake, but after meeting her last year for Cherry Bombe, I was feeling particularly inspired.

I don’t associate funfetti cake with my childhood like I feel a lot of my friends do. I can appreciate the colorful sprinkles and fluffy white cake, but I have no attachment to the fake, from-a-box flavor.

This cake just takes all the childhood fun and makes it a little more gourmet.

 

Funfetti Cake by Molly Yeh

Cake

2 1/2 c flour
1/4 c constarch
1 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp baking powder
1 c unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 c sugar
4 large egg whites
1/4 c flavorless oil
1 tb clear imitation vanilla
3/4 c whole milk
1/2 c rainbow sprinkles (artificially colored cynlinders, not nonpareils, sanding sugar, or anything naturally colored)

Cake Soak

1/2 c milk
1 tsp vanilla extract

Frosting

1 3/4 c unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 1/2 c powdered sugar
1/8 tsp kosher salt
1 1/2 tsp clear imitation vanilla
2 tb whole milk

 

Cake

  1. Preheat the oven to 350ºf. Grease and line the bottoms of three 8-inch cake pans.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, salt, and baking powder.
  3. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the egg whites, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. add the oil and vanilla extract.
  4. With the mixer running on low speed, add the dry mixture and the milk in two or three alternating batches and mix until just barely combined, using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the sprinkles until they’re evenly distributed. distribute the batter among the cake pans, spreading it out evenly.
  5. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Begin checking for doneness at 25 minutes.
  6. When the cakes are still warm, brush with cake soak.
  7. Let cool in the pans for 10 minutes and then turn onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Frosting

  1. In a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter until smooth and gradually beat in the powdered sugar. Add the salt, extracts, and milk and beat to combine.
  2. Frost the cake as desired and enjoy!