Well, friends, the time has come: a new year is near.

Which means very soon we’ll be weening out the Christmas cheer.

No more hiding those extra pounds behind an ugly Christmas sweater,

For now is the time to begin prepping for “swimsuit weather”.

Very soon we’ll be trading Chocolate cake pops, for boring tube socks.

Jingle bells for kettle bells.

Endless Christmas munchies for tireless ab crunchies.

Cinnamon buns for a nice, long runs.

I hope you had your fill of delicious Christmas goodies,

For soon you will have to check in with your relentless workout buddies.

There is my pretty sad attempt at poetry :) It looks like I could use some practice! Ha! I am so looking forward to the New Year. This was a silly little poem but it is true for a lot of us. I, like most people have put on a couple extra LBs over the holidays so I will soon be joining the good cause on the treadmills at the gym, so to speak.

But not quite yet! There are still a few last days where bleak excuses are still acceptable! Where sneaking a chocolate chip cookie (or 9!) is reasonably okay. So the question is: what is your final treat you allow yourself to eat before you grab eating healthy by the horns in the New Year?

Do you go for the pastries or the cookies?

Or a HUGE bowl of buttery popcorn while you’re watching Elf for the 5^th time this year?

There’s always seems to be a final meal or final dessert you want before you tell yourself tomorrow is THE day! This year is THE YEAR!!

My particular weakness most often happens to be cinnamon rolls. Not just ANY cinnamon rolls though. They have to be Pioneer Woman’s maple cinnamon rolls. They are absolutely amazing!

An extra bonus of why I love these so much is her story of these cinnamon rolls. It is the recipe her mom used to make to give out to neighbors every Christmas. She’d make a huge batch and then they’d run them out to all their neighbors when they were still warm. Those are some lucky neighbors, I’ll tell you that much! You have got to try these. You’ll never need another cinnamon roll recipe in your life!

Those are the best kinds of recipes though, right? Special family recipes that get passed down from generation to generation. I already have really special, fond memories of making these cinnamon rolls with my kids that I’ll treasure forever!

I wish you all a Merry Christmas! I hope you have an amazing time with your loved ones!! :)

Pioneer Woman Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients:

1 quart Whole Milk

1 cup Vegetable Oil

1 cup Sugar

2 packages Active Dry Yeast, 0.25 Ounce Packets

8 cups (Plus 1 Cup Extra, Reserved) All-purpose Flour

1 teaspoon (heaping) Baking Powder

1 teaspoon (scant) Baking Soda

1 Tablespoon (heaping) Salt

Plenty Of Melted Butter

2 cups Sugar

Generous Sprinkling Of Cinnamon

MAPLE FROSTING:

1 bag Powdered Sugar

2 teaspoons Maple Flavoring

1/2 cup Milk

1/4 cup Melted Butter

1/4 cup Brewed Coffee

1/8 teaspoon Salt

Preparation

For the dough, heat the milk, vegetable oil, and sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat to just below a boil. Set aside and cool to warm. Sprinkle the yeast on top and let it sit on the milk for 1 minute.

Add 8 cups of the flour. Stir until just combined, then cover with a clean kitchen towel, and set aside in a relatively warm place for 1 hour. After 1 hour, remove the towel and add the baking powder, baking soda, salt, and the remaining 1 cup flour. Stir thoroughly to combine. Use the dough right away, or place in a mixing bowl and refrigerate for up to 3 days, punching down the dough if it rises to the top of the bowl. (Note: dough is easier to work with if it’s been chilled for at least an hour or so beforehand.)

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

To assemble the rolls, remove half the dough from the pan/bowl. On a floured baking surface, roll the dough into a large rectangle, about 30 x 10 inches. The dough should be rolled very thin.

To make the filling, pour 3/4 cup to 1 cup of the melted butter over the surface of the dough. Use your fingers to spread the butter evenly. Generously sprinkle half of the ground cinnamon and 1 cup of the sugar over the butter. Don’t be afraid to drizzle on more butter or more sugar! Gooey is the goal.

Now, beginning at the end farthest from you, roll the rectangle tightly towards you. Use both hands and work slowly, being careful to keep the roll tight. Don’t worry if the filling oozes as you work; that just means the rolls are going to be divine. When you reach the end, pinch the seam together and flip the roll so that the seam is face down. When you’re finished, you’ll wind up with one long buttery, cinnamony, sugary, gooey log.

Slip a cutting board underneath the roll and with a sharp knife, make 1/2-inch slices. One “log “will produce 20 to 25 rolls. Pour a couple of teaspoons of melted butter into disposable foil cake pans and swirl to coat. Place the sliced rolls in the pans, being careful not to overcrowd. (Each pan will hold 7 to 9 rolls.)

Repeat the rolling/sugar/butter process with the other half of the dough and more pans. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Cover all the pans with a kitchen towel and set aside to rise on the countertop for at least 20 minutes before baking. Remove the towel and bake for 15 to 18 minutes, until golden brown. Don’t allow the rolls to become overly brown.

While the rolls are baking, make the maple icing: In a large bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, milk, butter, coffee, and salt. Splash in the maple flavoring. Whisk until very smooth. Taste and add in more maple, sugar, butter, or other ingredients as needed until the icing reaches the desired consistency. The icing should be somewhat thick but still very pourable.

Remove pans from the oven. Immediately drizzle icing over the top. Be sure to get it all around the edges and over the top. As they sit, the rolls will absorb some of the icing’s moisture and flavor. They only get better with time… not that they last for more than a few seconds. Make them for a friend today! It’ll seal the relationship for life. I promise.

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