Birthday cinnamon rolls

I’m big into tradition, contrary to what my Mom may claim (LOL). I like to make certain dishes, listen to specific music and watch particular movies annually to commemorate various seasons and occasions. Whether it’s baking an apple crisp as soon as the leaves try to turn, firing up fish tacos when it gets warm after a long winter, or making the feast of the seven fishes with my family on Christmas Eve and spending many hours on homemade cinnamon rolls for John’s birthday, this is where I thrive.

John isn’t that into birthdays, but each year I set out to make him have some fun. And no surprise, in my mind, fun is had through eating your favorite things, especially on a birthday. The first time I gave this a shot was in 2016 after he had bereded me for the two years prior that I “promised to make them” and “hadn’t” (the truth is yet to be determined). Before this venture, I was perfectly happy with Pillsbury’s canned option, and truth be told, these still hit the spot when you’re craving.

Anyway, I made Alton Brown’s Overnight Cinnamon Rolls and they were incredible. The best part is that they have only gotten better each year I make them as I get more confident with yeast and my own intuition. I promise they are not hard and if you follow all of the instructions, they will turn out. Yes, even the part where you let them rise in an oven with boiling water before baking.

Notes for the Chef: I make this recipe exactly as instructed because it really works great. And while I have tried to half these and they turned out okay, it’s honestly just best to make the full batch of 12 — there’s an odd number of eggs and one packet of yeast and something like this is too technical to guess on.

The icing looks runny because I took this picture immediately after pouring it on the warm rolls — it definitely firms up beautifully after.