In a world where cinnamon rolls could be somewhat {healthy}, they’d be called OATMEAL Cinnamon Rolls. This recipe includes healthy ingredients like oatmeal, whole wheat flour, wheat germ, nutritional yeast, applesauce. and nonfat instant milk. That all sounds healthy, right? If you make this recipe just as stated, you’ll whip up dreamy Oatmeal Dinner Rolls to take to Thanksgiving dinner. They’ll look like this…
Or, you can take the dough one step further and make Oatmeal Cinnamon Rolls. I taught this recipe at our teen cooking class. The girls did GREAT! I never realized how much sensory input could be involved in making cinnamon rolls, but ask someone to take half a stick of softened butter and spread it over rolled dough and see what response you get. For the girls, we inundated their sense of touch allowing them to play in flour, smother butter, sprinkle butter, and knead dough. This proves to be not just a cooking class but a class on sensory experiences.
OATMEAL CINNAMON ROLLS
Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients:
2 cups rolled or quick oats
4 cups boiling water
Pour boiling water over oats and let sit for about 20 minutes, cooling slightly.
ADD:
1 cup brown sugar or 2/3 cup honey
1/4 cup oil
1 cup applesauce
1/2 cup instant non-fat milk (We used Bob’s Red Mill)
IN A SEPARATE BOWL:
Combine:
1 cup warm water (cozy like bath water)
2 tablespoons yeast, Red Star Active Dry Yeast (2 lb. package available at Costco for $4.69)
1 teaspoon sugar or honey
Let sit until yeast starts to bubble.
When oat mixture is cool enough, add yeast mixture to oat mixture. Stir.
ADD:
5 cups whole wheat flour
4 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup wheat germ (optional)
1/4 cup nutritional yeast (optional)
Stir.
Slowly ADD:
5 cups unbleached white flour. Work in enough white flour to form a nice ball of dough.
Knead well, until dough is no longer sticky. Approximately 10 minutes.
To knead, fold dough toward you, turn one-quarter turn, then press away from you with the heel of your hand. Repeat until dough becomes smooth and elastic.
Grease bowl for rising. Add dough and turn over in bowl to entire surface is lightly greased. Cover with a towel and place in warm, draft-free area for one hour or until doubled in size.
Punch down dough and divide into manageable balls (2-4). Roll into rectangle. Spread with melted butter, brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon and raisins if desired. Cut into sections with sharp knife or dental floss.
I’m VERY generous with butter, and sugars! There’s a reason why everyone wants to eat the center of the cinnamon roll and not the exterior. The edges are often forgotten. Don’t forget the edges. Generously slather with butter and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugars. (Don’t overdo the cinnamon though. Too much cinnamon is not a good thing).
Tightly roll and then pinch to seal. The pinched portion doesn’t have to be beautiful. It will all rise and won’t be noticeable after baking.
I taught the girls the dental floss trick. It’s like Magic! If you don’t have a VERY sharp knife, the cinnamon rolls will get squished when you cut them. Instead, take a piece of dental floss, slide it under the rolled end and then cross the ends of dental floss cutting through the dough.
Place cinnamon rolls in greased baking dish. Glass is best. Flatten so they’re the same height and allow to rise about 30-40 minutes.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.
