Whenever the heavy
rubber-lipped subway doors spring open at Eglinton station here in Toronto, a gust of sweet
cinnamon fills the train. Other passengers don’t seem to notice, no one’s eyes
light up, nor does anyone breathe deeply, taking in the sugary scent, or how,
like me, I immediately perk up from my seat, a smile slowly spreading across my face and worries of my tardiness to my
appointment dissipates as the buttery aroma of fresh, yeasty rolls float into
the TTC.
There is a Cinnabon or
something with the similar name on the basement level of a mall in Montréal
(another evil decoy to tease hungry subway goers), always luring me to stop by
and buy a cinnamon roll but I’ve always resisted the urge. The only time I did
give in to its seductive scent was at the Cinnabon at Union Station. I bought
one with my then-boyfriend, an impulse purchase in our morning rush to some
event we were on our way to.
The cinnamon roll was given to us in a large turquoise box, similar to the paper boxes that McDonald’s packages its Big Macs, and for a second, I thought we bought a quarter pounder, the box was heavy and as I peeked at the cinnamon bun, it was massive, large enough to feed a family of four. Its microwave warmth numbed my hands and I grabbed a handful of napkins to clean up the thick, glossy syrup seeping through the folds of the cinnamon roll.
The cinnamon roll was given to us in a large turquoise box, similar to the paper boxes that McDonald’s packages its Big Macs, and for a second, I thought we bought a quarter pounder, the box was heavy and as I peeked at the cinnamon bun, it was massive, large enough to feed a family of four. Its microwave warmth numbed my hands and I grabbed a handful of napkins to clean up the thick, glossy syrup seeping through the folds of the cinnamon roll.
Yet I don’t remember how it tasted at all. Clearly, it wasn't enough for me to turn back on my heels and demand the young cinnabon server to hand me over the recipe lest I call the cops for his disobedience.
So I made these cinnamon
rolls, yeasty buns to be shared with friends and family and even a stranger or
two. I promise they will be remembered, engraved in your palate memory for many
years to come, you won’t be able to resist their sticky, cinnamony fun. From the day
these bad boys are baked to the end of their lifespan, they will be the reason
to get up in the morning. Forget coffee, forget breakfast, forget work, these
cinnamon rolls my friends, is your new reason to live.
Written by one of my
favourite food bloggers, Molly Wizenberg (whose book the Homemade Life made me
cry when she pours her heart out about the French boy who broke her heart),
this recipe has been sitting in my ridiculously long list of “Must-Make”
recipes for a much too long. If you start on it now, you could have fresh,
warm, cinnamon rolls in less than three hours. To help you pass the time, you
could busy yourself reading this (hilarious!) or this (heartbreaking!) while the dough rises or make plenty
of this to enjoy with the rolls, and trust me, the three hours will pass
very quickly.
You don’t even need a
stand mixer (though I’m counting on you Santa), since the dough easily comes
together in a few steps. Besides, who doesn’t like playing with food? Or revelling
in that soft, silky feeling of flour between your fingers? Or the way a sticky,
raggedy mess transforms into a smooth ball with just the kneading of your
palms? This takes a bit more time than say, quick breads, but it was well worth
the extra effort. Really.
In other news! Guess who
I had the honour of meeting last week? Another of my favourite food bloggers:
Clotilde Dusoulier of Chocolate and Zucchini. She gave a talk on the Art of
Food Blogging and George Brown College,
part of the Stratford Chef School Joseph Hoare Gastronomic Writer in Residence.
I’ve never pounced on
anyone before, not even James Franco (Oh! I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to drool on
you). She’s the sweetest, kindest person and I’m glad she didn’t call on
security given the eager way I urged her to sign my cookbook. Thanks to Lisa for taking
the picture!
