Cranberry-Maple Cinnamon Rolls

Anytime I think of Fall

I think of gooey yummy delicious cinnamon rolls.

And spiced pumpkin lattes.

Duh.

 

I must admit the past few days have been pretty rough for me {yes this would be the part where I insert my own personal venting sesh because this is a blog and we can write whatever we want, right?}  Long story short, I had my identity stolen which compromised all my bank accounts and social security number...which isn't the greatest timing since I'm currently in the middle of purchasing a home and waiting on a loan approval.  So if placing fraud alerts on my credit and freezing/cancelling bank accounts weren't enough for one day, of course my car had to break down on my way home.

Crap.

Yes when it rains, it seriously POURS.  Not to mention it's kind of hard to get your car fixed when your bank account is currently frozen.  Moral of the story?  Cheer yourself up with your favorite comfort food on days that you pretty much wish you could do over!

Like how I brought this full circle??

 

Cinnamon rolls, truly the single greatest comfort food.  But comfort doesn't always have to mean unhealthy!  These are made with whole wheat flour and very little butter.  Sweetened with pure maple syrup and a touch of brown sugar, these cinnamon rolls are certainly something to swoon over!

Feel free to plump your cranberries up before baking by mixing them with a little water and nuking them in the microwave for about 30 seconds.  I love this little secret and it really brings out their flavor!

______________________________

Servings: 15

Serving Size: 1 cinnamon roll

Calories: 180

Fat: 4 g

Carbs: 33 g

Fiber: 2 g

Protein: 5 g

Old Points: 3.5 pts

Points+: 5 pts

______________________________

 

Here are your ingredients:

Recipe adapted from Better Homes and Gardens

 

1 cup fat-free milk

2 Tbsp pure maple syrup (or agave nectar)

2 Tbsp butter

1 tsp. salt

1/4 cup warm water

1 package active dry yeast

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 cup dried cranberries

1/4 cup chopped pecans, toasted

Maple-Brown Sugar Icing:

 

2 Tbsp packed brown sugar

1 Tbsp very hot water

3/4 cup powdered sugar

1/4 tsp. maple flavoring

1-2 tsp. fat-free milk

In a large bowl, combine warm water and yeast and allow to stand for 10 minutes.  Meanwhile, heat milk, maple syrup, butter and salt in a small saucepan over medium heat until just warm then set aside.  Using a stand mixer, add egg and milk mixture to yeast mixture and slowly add in the whole wheat flour.  Add as much all-purpose flour as you can, reserving the rest.

Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface.  Knead in enough of the remaining flour to make dough moderately soft so that it is smooth and elastic (kneading about 3 to 5 minutes).  Shape dough into a ball and place in a lightly greased bowl, turning once to grease surface of dough.  Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for an hour until doubled in size.  Punch down dough and turn out onto a lightly floured surface, cover and let rest for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, lightly grease a 13x9-inch baking pan and set aside.  In a small bowl, combine brown sugar and cinnamon.  Stir in dried cranberries and pecans.

Roll dough into a 15x8-inch rectangle.  Sprinkle with pecan mixture, leaving one inch unfilled along one of the sides.  Starting from the long filled side, roll up rectangle.  Pinch dough to seal seam and slice into 15 equal pieces.  Arrange pieces, cut sides up, in prepared baking pan.  Cover and let rise in a warm place, about 30 minutes, until nearly doubled in size.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.  Meanwhile, in a small bowl combine brown sugar and the hot water, stirring to dissolve brown sugar.  Whisk in powdered sugar and maple flavoring.  Whisk in enough milk to make drizzling consistency.  Once rolls are done, let them cool for about 5 minutes and remove rolls from pan.  Drizzle with maple-brown sugar icing and enjoy!

Click here for a printable version of this recipe

 

I challenge you to eat just one.

Can you do it??