cookies are the key to world peace.

Day 9 of 12: Cinnamon Roll “Cupcakes” :)

Over the summer, I made my first attempt at baking cinnamon rolls.  I failed epically.  Ever since that horrible experience, I’ve been gathering tons of recipes and even more courage for making cinnamon rolls.  I came across a few cinnamon roll recipes that seemed so promising and fool-proof.  But when I stumbled upon Beantown Baker’s recipe for these adorable cinnamon roll cupcakes, I knew I couldn’t resist.

This recipe is definitely a keeper. :)  I was so happy when these came out of the oven looking and smelling like delicious cinnamon rolls!  You have NO idea how excited I was (or maybe you do..).  These turned out really well, and my brother even said these are probably his favorite of everything I’ve made this break!  A few things I’d do differently:

1. I wouldn’t roll the cinnamon rolls so tight (a few of them literally just shot up vertically out of the cupcake liner)

2. I would lightly butter the cupcake liners beforehand (these get super sticky)

With those suggestions in mind, I’m definitely keeping this recipe in my arsenal of recipes. :)

I’ve got 2 more recipes to post about, but I’ll have to do that later.  Then, just one more thing to bake, and my 12 Days of Baking will be officially completed!  Let’s hope I can do it… :)

Day 7 of 12: Pumpkin Muffins :)

So, I’ve kind of been slacking on updating my “12 Days of Cookies.”  Actually, I’ve been a complete bum about it.  It’s just, you see, I’ve been a little discouraged.  Discouraged, I say?  Why so?  Well, the other day, my camera died on me — while I was trying to capture the little goofy moments of my brother’s 22nd birthday.  I went into my mom’s room to look for the camera battery charger, but it was nowhere to be found. :(  I thought we had a spare charger at home, which is exactly why I didn’t bring mine home from school.  Now I’m in Portland and camera battery charger-less.  Of course, I can still use my phone to record the results of my baking spree, but the quality is just disgusting… I promise my food doesn’t look THAT bad.

Anyway.  Onto a few brighter notes…

Today’s Christmas!  Merry, merry Christmas, everybody!  I hope it’s full of lots of high quality, ridiculously delicious food — and even higher quality family time. :)

Because I’ve been slacking on my posting so much lately, I’m going to be doing a few speed posts today (to catch you up with all of my baking projects).  I’ve decided to change these “12 Days of Cookies” into “12 Days of Baking/Cooking.”  To be honest, making cookies was getting a little repetitive.  Don’t get me wrong, I love baking cookies; cookies are probably my favorite thing to bake.  But I thought I would stray off the cookie route and explore some other recipes I’ve been dying to try (my brother bought me a muffin pan when he got home, so I definitely had to incorporate that into my holiday baking).

Pumpkin muffins, the first thing I made in my new muffin pan. :)  I got this recipe from Smitten Kitchen.  These were pretty delicious.  So perfectly soft and fluffy, just the way I like my muffins.  I do wish these muffins were more pumpkin-y; I feel like the sugar just kind of overpowered everything else in this recipe.  But, toasted up or eaten at room temperature (or even cold), these pumpkin muffins make for a great breakfast bite. :)

Sorry for the horrible picture quality.  I really wish my camera was working; this photo doesn’t even come close to capturing the true essence of the muffin…

“Spicy” Chocolate Cookies. :)

… I’d say more, but I’m exhausted. Update later?

Perhaps.

Hopefully.

Yes.

Now? Sleeeeeeeeeep.

Granola!

I made granola for the first time yesterday.  My sister taught me!  I had no idea it was as simple as it is.  The best part about making granola is the scent that floods your house while you’re toasting it. Mmm. :)
I wish I had some dried mango (or any other dried fruit).. I’d definitely toss it into this granola!

The infamous bloody, dry mess. Next time will go better— much better— I promise.

So, I attempted to make cinnamon rolls for the first time today.  Prior to heading into the oven, my experiment looked a little something like this.

It all seemed pretty promising.. But the results?  They were a bloody, dry mess.

The flavor was perfect.  The texture, on the other hand, was completely wrong.  Rather than soft rolls that melted in your mouth, these turned out to be rolls that were hard to cut through with a fork, and a bit on the rough side. :(

On a brighter note: I’m pretty sure I know where I went wrong.  Next time (which might be tomorrow!), I know what to do differently to make this recipe a success.  I will prevail. :)