Hey guys! Guess what?
Today we’re celebrating a special day that’s coming up tomorrow and I’m quite excited about it.
I’ll give you a few hints:
- It’s going to be a two-year celebration
- It involves something that started out as an idea, which turned out to be a hobby
- It involves food (lots and lots of food), lots of time in the kitchen, hours of time spent on learning photography and techie things, and a little space I own here on the internet
That’s right, you guessed it! Tomorrow will be Simple Everyday Food’s 2nd blogiversary! Can I get a whoop whoop?!
This little site of mine started out as an idea, and after a few encouragements from the mister, I bit the bullet two years ago, signed up for my own domain name, and BOOM! SEF was born. Fast forward throughout the years, this little corner of mine here on the world wide web has slowly became my happy place where I get to temporarily run away from everyday stresses, let loose, and be creative. I still have so much to learn in regards to the food blogging business, but SEF wouldn’t be able to continue to grow without all my supporters and those that I constantly learn from every single day.
So it’s only appropriate that we celebrate this special occasion with sprinkles. Lots and lots and looooots of sprinkles. And instead of a cake, we’re celebrating with some soft and fluffy cinnamon rolls. Homemade cinnamon rolls dotted with plenty of sprinkles baked to melt-in-your-mouth perfection, generously drizzled with a sweet and creamy cream cheese frosting with sprinkles, to be exact.
A big thank you to all of you who have been part of this journey – I wouldn’t be here without you guys! xoxo
- 2 and 1/2 cups water
- 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 box funfetti cake mix (I used Pillsbury)
- 5-6 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- 2 and 1/2 cups dark brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 2 and 1/2 oz light cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 3 tablespoons milk
- A splash of vanilla extract
- 1 and 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- rainbow sprinkles for garnish, if desired
- Heat water in a microwave safe bowl until it reaches ~120-125 degrees F. Sprinkle in the yeast and salt and give it a good stir. Let sit for 5 minutes until foamy.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the cake mix and the 5 cups of flour, stir to combine. Using a dough hook attachment, slowly add in the yeast mixture and vanilla extract. Turn on the mixer and mix on low, gradually increasing the speed to medium-low. Knead the dough for about 5 minutes or until the dough is elastic and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. If the dough is still too sticky, add in additional flour, 1/4 cup at a time, until it no longer sticks to you hand (I only used about 1/2 cup of extra flour). Remove dough and place in a lightly greased bowl, cover and let rise until it doubles in size, about 1-2 hours.
- In the meantime, combine the brown sugar and cinnamon in a medium bowl and set aside. Grease two 9x13" baking pans and set those aside as well.*
- Once the dough has risen, divide the dough into two portions so it's easier to work with. Turn half of the dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll into a rectangle, approximately 11x15" (or in my case, my dough always turns out to be a large blob instead). Brush half of the melted butter onto the dough, covering every single inch if possible. Then generously sprinkle half of the brown sugar/cinnamon mixture evenly on top.
- Starting on the long end, tightly roll up the dough and cut dough into 10-11 slices, about 1.5-2" thick each. Place into prepared baking pan. Repeat with the other half of the dough.
- Cover baking pans and let rise overnight on your kitchen counter.
- The next morning, bake rolls in a 400 degree oven for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown (mine took exactly 15 minutes). Remove from oven and let cool.
- While the rolls are cooling, make the glaze: beat the cream cheese in an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Add in the milk and vanilla extract and beat until incorporated. Slowly add in the powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Drizzle over rolls and sprinkle with additional rainbow sprinkles, if desired. Rolls taste best the same day, but can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days**.
- Makes 20-22 rolls
- * If you only have one 9x13" baking pan like me, you can always use a 9" pie plate along with the baking pan.
- ** You can always freeze one pan of the rolls after they've cooled from the oven, then wrap well and freeze. Thaw out in the refrigerator or at room temperature, make the glaze, and heat rolls in microwave until warm.
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