Directions: |
Directions:Remove from frozen dough from freezer and place in fridge the night before inside a sealed ziplock bag to thaw out the dough.
The next morning, remove the bag from the fridge. Place on the counter to warm to room temperature – 1 to 2 hours.
Grease one 13 x 9 glass baking pan. Use butter. Make sure to get the corners and sides of the pan covered.
Mix the white sugar and cinnamon together. Set aside.
Chop pecans. Divide the pecans into two bowls. Set aside.
Make caramel by adding all the caramel ingredients to a small heavy saucepan. Heat until all the sugar is dissolved. Do not boil. The caramel will finish cooking in the oven as the rolls bake.
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Arrange the oven racks so that they are in the middle of the oven. Warm the oven. Turn it on to 350º for approximately 5 minutes. Turn off the oven and turn on the oven light and leave it on.
Pour the caramel into the baking pan. Smear it around with the spoon so that you cover the entire bottom of the pan. Evenly sprinkle the nuts over the caramel in the pan. Set aside.
Lightly sprinkle the surface where you will roll out the dough with flour. Take the loaf of dough and stretch it. Roll it so that it forms a rectangle that is 8” by 12”. Cool dough is harder to roll than dough that is room temperature. Using the softened butter, butter the dough, but do not get closer than ¼” of the edge of the dough. Sprinkle the buttered area with the cinnamon/white sugar mix. Starting with the long side nearest you, roll the dough up. If the resulting log is longer than 12”, push the dough together. Cut the log in half. Cut each piece into 6 pieces. Place each roll in the pan. You want 12 rolls in the pan, space them out evenly, 3 across, 4 rows.
Cut open the a plastic bag and lightly butter the inside side of the bag. Place a bag on top of the rolls. Put the rolls in the oven so that the dough can raise. They should double in size and fill the pan. This takes 60-80 minutes.
Remove the pan from the oven. Turn the oven on and warm it to 350°. Place the pan in the oven. After 25 minutes, check the rolls. Turn the pan around. My oven is hotter at the back than the front. Turning the pan makes the rolls brown more evenly. Bake for another 10 minutes, until done. Done rolls pull away from the sides of the pan.
Take a cookie sheet. Place a piece of foil large enough to wrap the set of rolls on the pan, if you intend to freeze the rolls after cooling them to room temperature. After the rolls sit outside the oven for 5 minutes, run a table knife around the outer edge of the pan to loosen the rolls. Place the cookie sheet with foil on top of the roll filled pan. Flip the pans. Using a table knife, lift the edge of the pan and remove the pan. Scrape the remaining caramel from the pan and use it to cover bald spots on the rolls. Look for “pockets of caramel” on the roll surface. Redistribute that caramel. Serve the rolls or after they cool to room temperature, wrap them tightly with the foil and freeze them. |
This recipe for Winnie's Famous Caramel Rolls is from