Mini Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon rolls are one of my favorite things to eat.  I don't eat them often, which makes it a real treat when I get to have one.  I'm not a morning person, so making them from scratch is normally out of the question because of the time needed to let the dough rise.  When I find a recipe that sounds good and cuts out that rising time, I like to give it a try.  This one uses refrigerated crescent roll dough and bakes in only 13 minutes!   

In addition to the ease of putting these treats together and the short time invested in doing so, another great thing about this recipe is that the rolls are baked in a mini muffin tin, so you get 16 mini cinnamon rolls from each batch.  The first time I made them, I took them to a Bible study I was attending and everyone loved them and asked for the recipe.  I originally found this recipe on Pinterest by Iowa Girl Eats.  She didn't give exact measurements on a couple of the ingredients, but I've added them to my recipe below for your convenience.

I begin by putting a little flour on my work surface so the dough doesn't stick.  When I open the can and take out the dough, I "peel" off the first rectangle of dough and place it on my surface.  Then I pinch together the perforated seams, flip the dough over (making sure there is more flour underneath) and pinch the seams on the other side.

I then lightly roll the dough with a rolling pin to smooth out the seams and to make the dough a uniform thickness.

In a small bowl, I combine the brown and white sugars with the cinnamon.

Next, I spread half of the butter on the dough.  This helps to make the cinnamon/sugar mixture adhere a bit to the dough and contributes to the ooey, gooey goodness once baked.  Sorry, I forgot to take a picture of this step before I started adding the cinnamon/sugar mixture.

Using a tablespoon, I sprinkle half of the cinnamon/sugar mixture over the dough, then using the back of the spoon, spread it over the dough, almost to the edges.

The next step is to start rolling the dough into a log, beginning on the long side.  Because of the dry cinnamon/sugar mixture, this won't be a tight roll.

I didn't measure it, but I would guess it is about a foot long when rolled up (left).  Make a cut right in the middle to make 2 pieces (right).

 Cut each of those pieces in half (left), and then each of those pieces in half (right).  I then have 8 pieces.

I spray my mini muffin pan before carefully placing the cinnamon rolls in the pan, cut-side up.  Then I repeat with the other piece of dough from the can.  Most mini muffin pans hold either 12 or 24 muffins, so either one large pan or two of the smaller pans should be used.  Hint:  Whenever you use muffin tins where not every space gets used, put some water about half way up in the empty spaces to aid in even baking.

Don't they look scrumptious?  They are a beautiful golden brown and smell heavenly!

About 5 minutes before the rolls come out of the oven, I begin making the icing.  I work the softened butter into the powdered sugar before adding the maple syrup and milk.

Once all of the ingredients are incorporated and smooth, it should be thick enough to spread where the heat of the roll will allow it to melt into the cinnamon crevices!  Hint:  Let the rolls sit for a minute once they come out of the oven so they aren't so hot that the icing all melts to the bottom of the pan.

I usually frost them in the pan before removing them to a serving platter.

I use a spoon to remove each roll from the pan to serve.  This way I don't loose any of the gooey cinnamon goodness that has made it's way to the bottom of the pan.  The only problem with these tiny cinnamon rolls is their size.  It's easy to keep popping them in my mouth before realizing I've eaten more than I would have if I had eaten one normal size cinnamon roll!  It really is hard to stop eating these scrumptious little cinnamon rolls!  Enjoy!

Mini Cinnamon Rolls

  

1 (8 oz.) tube crescent roll dough

3 tablespoons softened butter

1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar

2 tablespoons white sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

¾ cup powdered sugar

2 tablespoons softened butter

1 teaspoon maple syrup

1 teaspoon milk

Preheat oven to 375°.  Lay out half the dough (4 triangles) on lightly floured work surface and pinch all seams together.  Flip the dough and pinch seams together.  Using a rolling pin, smooth the seams and roll the dough until about ¼ thick, keeping the rectangular shape.  Spread half of the butter on the dough coming almost to the edges.  In a small bowl, combine the sugars and cinnamon.  Sprinkle sugar mixture over butter, covering completely.  Starting at the long side, carefully roll dough into a log.  With a sharp knife, make one cut in the middle of the log, cutting it in half.  Cut each of these pieces in half, then each of the resulting pieces in half again.  You should have 8 pieces.  Place each piece in a mini muffin pan sprayed with a non-stick coating.  Repeat with the other half of dough.  Bake at 375° for 13 minutes, or until golden brown.  Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together powdered sugar and butter; and syrup and milk.  Remove buns from oven, let sit for 1 minute before icing.  Enjoy!