My niece E has arranged to come over and bake cinnamon rolls with me. We will start in the morning as the process takes about 3 hours, although much of it involves waiting for the dough to prove and rise. Even though I took a zopiclone, I did not sleep at all last night. Despite the fatigue, Im looking forward to baking, and the end result.

At 9am I get an unexpected call from North Shore Hospital. They have a cancellation and want me to come in for a consultation with an Orthopedic Surgeon at 11am. You are Priority 1, the booking clerk says. You need to be seen as quickly as possible!
Is this for my spine degeneration or the cancer? I ask. She does not know. I take the appointment and call Sister C to delay the Great Bake Off by a few hours.

Susannah leaves work early and takes me to the appointment which is with lovely young Dr P. He gets me to do some movements and balancing exercises, and checks my reflexes. After his assessment he says that despite the condition of my spine everything currently seems stable. The degeneration is not causing any major pain and neither is the cancer. This means I will be monitored for change, but he does not see any current surgical need. I am relieved as I didn’t even think surgery was being considered. Now though, I am in the system, so should I start to have back issues from either cause, I should be seen pretty quickly. Job done, we go back to the car to head home. At this point I realise I’ve lost my phone. I backtrack every step in the hospital, even asking Dr P to call me but to no avail. I leave a contact number at the reception and morosely wander back to the car. Susannah has it! It was in the bag the whole time, I just couldn’t see for looking. I don’t run well on no sleep.

Sister C and niece E arrive in the early afternoon. E comes downstairs and we spend a very mellow few hours chatting and making the cinnamon rolls. It’s a great way to spend time together. The recipe is quite simple and they turn out great! Mum, C, E, Susannah and I all have one and all enjoy. I send a couple back home with E, and Susannah save the last two for another day. 

Cinnamon Rolls:

Prep Time: 2 hrs, 30 min Cook Time: 20 min Total Time: 2 hrs, 50 min Servings: 9

INGREDIENTS

For the dough
3/4 Cup Milk (warmed to 43 degrees C)
2 1/4 Edmonds Instant Dry Yeast
1/4 Cup Sugar
1 Egg (at room temperature)
1 Egg yolk (at room temperature)
57 g Melted butter (salted preferred)
3 Cups High grade flour
3/4 tsp Salt

For the filling
2/3 Cup Brown Sugar (dark brown preferred)
1 1/2 Tbsp Ground Cinnamon
57 Butter (Soft)

For the cream cheese icing
113 g Cream cheese (softened)
43 g Butter (Soft)
3/4 Cup Icing sugar
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract

DIRECTIONS

Warm the milk to about 43 degrees C. Transfer your milk to the bowl of an electric mixer and sprinkle yeast on top. Add in sugar, egg, egg yolk and butter. Mix until well combined. Next stir in flour and salt with a wooden spoon until a dough begins to form.

Place the dough hook on the mixer and knead the dough on medium speed for 8 minutes. Dough should form a nice ball and be slightly sticky. If it’s too sticky ( meaning it’s sticking to the bottom of the mixer, add in 2 tablespoons of flour). If you don’t have an electric mixer you can use your hands to knead the dough for 8-10 minutes on a well floured surface.

Transfer the dough ball to a well oiled bowl and cover with gladwrap and a warm towel. Warm tea towel in the clothes dryer.

Allow to rise for 1 hour to 1 and a half hours, or until doubled in size. This will vary based on room temperature and humidity.

After the dough had doubled in size, transfer to a well floured surface and roll into a rectangle: 35 cm by 23 cm. spread the softened butter over the dough leaving a 1/2 cm margin at the far edge of the dough.

In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar and cinnamon. Use your hands to sprinkle the mixture over the buttered dough, then rub the brown sugar mixture into the butter.

Tightly roll the dough up, starting from the short side. Place the seam (dough edge) down . Cut about 2 cm off each edge of the roll as the dough ends won’t be as full of sugar as we want.

Move the dough to a cutting surface like a chopping board and using a serrated knife cut 9 even pieces.

Place the cinnamon rolls in a greased and lined baking tin: 23 cm by 23 cm. Cover with gladwrap and a warm towel and let it rise again for 30-45 minutes

Preheat the oven to 175 C. Remove the gladwrap and towel and bake for 20-25 minutes or until just slightly golden on the edges. You want to undertake them a little so that they stay soft in the middle. Allow them to cool for 5 – 10 minutes before frosting.

To make the frosting
In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the cream cheese, butter, icing sugar and vanilla extract. Beat until smooth and fluffy. Spread over the cinnamon rolls and serve immediately. Enjoy!

To make overnight
After placing the rolls into the greased pan (after first rise), cover and place overnight in the fridge and then bake in the morning. Bring the rolls to room temp first by leaving them on the counter for 30-45 mins before baking (second rise)