Christmas Eve Cinnamon Buns Recipes

CHRISTMAS MORNING CINNAMON BUNS

Steps:

• Dissolve the vegetable shortening in the milk in a bowl and cool to lukewarm. Stir in the eggs, 1 cup sugar, potatoes, and salt. Dissolve the yeast in lukewarm water and stir onto the potato mixture. Stir in the flour, raisins, and nuts. Mix thoroughly for 5 minutes by hand. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm, draft-free place for 1 hour.
• Turn out onto lightly floured surface. Roll into a 1/2-inch thick rectangle and spread with the butter. Sprinkle with the 1 remaining tablespoon sugar and the cinnamon. Roll like a jelly roll and slice 12 equal slices. Place slices flat in 12 by 8-inch baking dish. Cover with a tea towel and let rise until double in bulk, about 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

CHRISTMAS MORNING CINNAMON ROLLS

Steps:

• For the dough: Combine the milk, granulated sugar, butter, salt and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the hook attachment and stir to combine well. Add the eggs and stir until well mixed. Add the flour and mix on medium-high speed until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 4 minutes.
• Transfer the dough to a large, lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel. Let stand in a warm, draft-free place until doubled in size, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
• Punch the dough down and lightly flour a work surface. Lay the dough out and pat or roll the dough out into an 18-by-12-inch rectangle.
• For the filling: Butter a 13-by-9-inch glass baking dish. Spread the softened butter evenly all over the dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border, then sprinkle evenly with the brown sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle with the pecans and raisins if using. Starting with a short end, roll up the dough and press and crimp the edges to seal. Cut the dough into 12 slices and arrange them in the buttered baking dish. If you want to bake them the same day, cover with plastic wrap and let stand until doubled in size, about 1 hour. Otherwise, refrigerate overnight; take out of the refrigerator and let sit at room temperature for 1 hour before baking.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake the cinnamon rolls until puffed and golden brown all over, about 25 minutes.
• For the icing: Put the confectioners' sugar in a medium bowl. Whisk in the melted butter, vanilla and 4 tablespoons of milk; whisk until smooth. Add additional milk, about 1 teaspoon at a time, if needed to achieve a thick but spreadable consistency.
• Spread the icing over the warm cinnamon rolls. Serve warm.

CHRISTMAS EVE SHORTCUT CINNAMON BUNS

Steps:

• 1. Lightly grease a 10-inch bundt cake pan. Place frozen rolls into the pan and sprinkle with brown sugar, the pudding mix and cinnamon. Pour melted butter over the top. If you don't have a bundt pan, you can use a muffin tin, but they turn out better in a bundt pan.
• 2. Cover with a clean, damp cloth and leave overnight at room temperature to rise.
• 3. In the morning, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake rolls for 25 minutes, until golden brown. Turn rolls out onto a serving plate and dig in!