Sweet bread is the quintessential recipe that reminds me of my Mom.  I like to say “Yvonne’s in the house” when pans of this dough are baking in the oven.  It infuses the house with memories of my childhood.  It’s also the EASIEST bread dough I’ve ever come across. It’s a very versatile dough, as it can be made into loaves of amazing bread – sliced, toasted, and slathered with butter; luscious breakfast cinnamon rolls dripping with icing ; and what we lovingly refer to as “sugar pie” – a thin pie using the dough as a base, then topped with butter, brown sugar and evaporated milk.  Unbelievably simple, and good!  One recipe can make all 3 of these.

For this post, however, I chose to make 4 – 8″ cake pans of the cinnamon rolls – out of 1 recipe. (2 – 9″ x 13″ pans would work as well).

Typically you think of making bread dough as a tedious process involving lots of kneading.  Well no kneading with this one!  The dough comes together beautifully on it’s own.  It is a rather “sticky” dough compared to other bread dough.  So expect to make a bit of a mess!  It is a bit time-consuming, but the end result is so worth it.

Here is what you will need:
1 large bowl – I use the same one my Mom used to use – made by Tupperware.
Any very large bowl will work
3 pkgs active dry yeast (I like rapid rising yeast)
1 quart of very warm water (not scalding)
2 1/2 sticks of melted butter
1 1/4 c sugar
1 Tbsp salt
2 tsp vanilla
5 eggs
11 – 12 c flour (all purpose)

First you will need to dissolve the yeast in the warm water.  Allow it to sit for about 10 min, to begin
“blooming” – you will see foam develop on the surface when ready.

Add the dissolved yeast and water to the large bowl.  Then add the melted butter, sugar, salt, vanilla, and eggs.

Mix well with a wooden spoon.  Add flour – 6 cups initially – stir in til smooth.  Mixture will be sticky, and lumpy.

Add another 4 cups of the flour.  Stir again til smooth and combined.  You want the final product to be sticky but still hold together.  It will remain slightly lumpy as well.  Add another 1-2 cups flour – until you have this consistency.
The total amount of flour will depend on several factors (humidity, type of flour).  This is the same for baking time – it will vary depending on your particular oven.

Cover the bowl with a lid, or plastic wrap.  Cover again with a dish towel.  (Not sure what the point of the dish towel is – but Mom always did it, and so do I!)

Let rise in a warm location for 1 hr 15 min.  The dough should double in size.  Punch it down with a floured fist, or a floured wooden spoon.  Re-cover as before, and let rise another 15 – 20 min.  Repeat punching it down, then prepare your pans by spraying each with non-stick spray. 

Get ready to get messy!  Here are a few pics of my Mom making sweetbread!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Flour a large surface very well (large cutting board 18″ x 24″, or your countertop). Pour out 1/2 or the dough onto the floured surface.   Roll out with a floured rolling pin. Roll out to a full 18″ x 24″ size.

Now this is the part where you can get creative – and messy!  I use about 1 stick of softened butter to roughly spread over each of the cinnamon roll slabs. Use your fingers, or a knife to spread the butter on the dough. Then top with granulated sugar, brown sugar, and cinnamon – all to your desired amount of each. (you can also add raisins, or chopped nuts if you like). This will contribute to your “gooey factor”, so be generous!

Cut the dough into 3 even slabs, using a pizza cutter.

Roll each slab of the dough to make a 24″ log (the long way).  Cut each log into 10 -12 even slices.

Place each cinnamon roll, standing upright, into the prepared pans. Leave a little space between each roll, to allow for rising.

Let all pans sit for about 10 – 15 min on the counter to rise one final time.  Then place pans on a baking sheet (this will prevent dripping into the bottom of your oven), and bake at 350 degrees for 20 – 25 min. You are looking for each to be a light golden brown color. (adjust your time for 13″ x 9″ pans)

Don’t be afraid to touch them!!  They should feel a bit “crusty” on the edges, but should feel “soft” to the touch when pressing. I tend to slightly UNDERBAKE the cinnamon rolls, as I prefer them a bit more gooey!!

Now for the frosting!  Stir together about 4 cups of powdered sugar, with 1/4 c of milk, and 1 tsp of vanilla extract.  You can NEVER mess this up!  If it is too thin, add more powdered sugar.  If it is too thick, add more milk.  Super simple!  You should be able to pour it, and spread it.

Enjoy!

I recently tried making 1/2 of this recipe, and added 1/2 c “jimmie” sprinkles to the dough just before rolling it out. Work these into the dough gently. This made a 9″ by 13″ pan of cinnamon rolls (24 small rolls) which came out amazing!