Gooey Pecan Cinnamon Rolls
Here in Mid-Missouri, Fall continues to be one of my favorite seasons. Cooler days. Chilly nights. Brilliantly colored leaves. Crackling fires. Football season. Soups, stews, and slow cooker meals.
In the Masters household it marks the beginning of waterfowl season. That means for the next three to four months my husband, son and their many friends will rise before dawn to head out toward rivers, lakes, ponds and corn fields for a day of hunting.
One of my favorite things to do is prepare some sweet and filling baked treats for them to enjoy during a break in the action. I mean I can’t let them survive in the great outdoors on jerky, aerosol canned cheese and prepackaged doughnuts. I happened upon this Nancy Fuller recipe in my Facebook news feed last week.
So I took the time to make a different spin on the traditional cinnamon roll with the addition of pecans. Each year my husband brings home a couple of large bags of pecans from his trips to Northern Missouri, where he often goes to hunt waterfowl. Since pecans are our favorite, I’m always looking for ways to include them in recipes.
As with all homemade yeast breads, these rolls take a bit of time. The buns require two separate risings..for a total of around 3 hours for the proofing and baking. So mix up this simple batter, pop it near a warm place to rise for 1.5 – 2 hours and find something else to do while you wait. If you’re lucky like me, you might have an oven with a “proof” setting. It barely warms the oven, but gets the job done – especially if you’re like me and keep your house pretty cool in the fall and winter months.
Simple batter. Just dump it all in a stand mixer with the dough hook and let it do the work…about 5 minutes of kneading on low.
Only four ingredients are needed for this amazing filling.
Roll the risen dough out to about a 12 x 16 rectangle. Top with the filling. Carefully roll the dough away from you. You want a 16 inch long log that you will slice into 12 pieces.
I popped the rolls into an aluminum pan so that the hunters could take it with them to the field. This tray shows them after they’ve risen a second time (about another hour). Ready for a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes.
So click on this link for Nancy Fuller’s online recipe as well as a video tutorial on the process.
It was my first attempt at this recipe and I found it to be easy, straight forward and delicious. If you decide to make these for those you love, make sure and hold back a roll or two for you (the baker) to enjoy!
