Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Story telling as its worst...

Once upon a time in a land north of us (called Palos Heights), there was a couple who liked to cook dinner.  One-half of this couple decided to try a new recipe, pizza skillet - yum.  The other half was quite unsure - this needed to be cooked in his precious cast iron skillet - this could cause it irrevocable harm.  But he acquiesced, as he often did, to the blonde half who thought it was a good idea.  Not surprisingly the dish was great but the cast iron skillet's loving coating was damaged and the red-haired one was upset.  The blonde one hid.  She vowed to never touch the skillet again.
And she hasn't.
Ok, that's not true I move it all over the place.  I mean she moves it around the stove or to the basement as needed.  But any recipes that call for a skillet - nope… not going to do it.
Until now.
What?  What's that? Why?
Well…. The red-haired one bought the blonde her very own enameled iron skillet of her very own to use as she desires.  It even has a butterfly on it.
Clearly, you aren't buying this 'story' that is someone other than Andy and me.  Pffft.  My story telling needs some work I guess.
Well… now that I have this gorgeous skillet - I had to use it right?
Labor Day weekend I decided to try out my skillet with a Cinnamon Roll Skillet Bread.  It was really easy to make, especially now that I just let anything with yeast rise in the oven overnight.  The toughest part was twisting the 3-foot rolls of dough covered in butter and sugar… like nailing Jell-O to a wall.
I even convinced my whole family to eat it!  I even saw Andy snacking on it during the day!  This recipe - a success!  Bring on the next skillet recipe!  Woo!

Cinnamon Roll Skillet Bread

For the dough:
3 cups all-purpose flour
4 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
3 teaspoon instant yeast
1/4 cup water, warmed to 105-110 degrees F
1 cup milk, warmed to 105-110 degrees F
3 tablespoons butter, melted

For coating the dough:
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

For the streusel topping:
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoons cinnamon
1 tablespoon butter, cold

For the glaze:
2 cups confectioner's sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt

Begin by making your dough. In a small bowl, mix together the yeast and warm water. (This mixture should bubble. That's how you know the yeast is active.) In the meantime, in a bowl of a stand mixer equipped with a dough hook, combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Then add the warmed milk, melted butter and proofed yeast. Knead with the dough hook until smooth. Add more flour if the dough is feeling too sticky. Remove the dough and place it in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, then a towel, and let it rise until it's doubled in size (about an hour).

Grease a 12-inch skillet and set aside.

For the coating: in a small bowl, combine the melted butter and and vanilla. In another small bowl, mix together the brown sugar and cinnamon. Next, divide the dough into two pieces and roll each piece into a rope about 3 feet long. Place the dough on a piece of parchment paper. Liberally brush with the melted butter and vanilla mixture, making sure to cover all sides of the dough. Once buttered, coat all sides of the dough with the brown sugar and cinnamon mixture.

Then, pinch the ends of the ropes together and twist them together. Pinch the other ends once twisted.

Starting in the center of your skillet, place the twisted dough inside and wind it around. If you have any extra butter from the brushing, drizzle it over the dough. Cover the skillet with plastic wrap and let the dough rise until doubled in size (about an hour).

In the meantime, prepare the streusel topping. Combine the brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Then, using a fork or pastry cutter, cut in the cold butter. Set aside.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Once the dough is doubled, sprinkle with the streusel topping and bake for 40-45 minutes. If you notice that your bread is getting too dark, lightly cover it with a piece of aluminum foil. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly.

Prepare the glaze by whisking together the confectioner's sugar, milk, melted butter, vanilla, and salt. Stir until smooth, adding more milk if necessary to achieve the desired consistency. Pour evenly over slightly cooled bread.

1 comment:

  1. I've reconditioned many a cast iron skillet!! Tell hubby that he can google it and fix that skillet in just a little while. :) Congrats on the new skillet, too!

    ReplyDelete

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