sweet potato cinnamon rolls w/ maple vanilla cream cheese frosting

ingredients:

dough:

1/2 cup of warm milk heated to 110 degrees F

2-1/4 tsp or 1 packet of active dry yeast

1/2 cup of white sugar

3/4 cup of sweet potato puree

6 tbsps of butter, melted

1/2 tsp of salt

2 large eggs

4 cups of flour

1/4 tsp of ground nutmeg

filling:

1/2 cup of butter, softened

3/4 cup of brown sugar

1 tbsp of ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp of ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp of ground ginger

1/4 tsp of ground cloves

icing:

4 oz of cream cheese, softened

3 tbsps of pure maple syrup

1-1/2 cups of powdered sugar

1/2 tsp of vanilla bean paste

1-2 tbsps of heavy cream

directions:

add the warm milk, yeast, and sugar to a bowl. mix and let sit until the yeast foams - about 5-10 mins.

in separate bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the sweet potato puree, butter, salt, and eggs. add in the milk and yeast mixture, and combine well.

mix the flour and nutmeg together in a bowl, then using the dough hook on a stand mixer or a wooden spoon (dusted with flour), slowly add the flour to the wet ingredients and combine. if the dough seems too sticky, add a little more flour, a few tbsps at a time.

• if using a spoon: once the dough is too tough to mix with a spoon, knead it with your hands for about 3-5 minutes on a lightly floured surface.

• if using a stand mixer, knead with the dough hook for 3-5 minutes. after kneading, grease a large bowl with non-stick spray, and put the dough inside.

once kneaded, cover the bowl with a towel and set in a warm place to rise for at least an hour.

after the dough has risen, roll it out on a lightly floured surface with a rolling pin, until it is in the shape of a large rectangle. spread the softened butter onto the dough, and generously cover with brown sugar and spices. with the longest side of the dough facing you, begin to roll up the dough, making sure it is a tight roll (so when you cut the rolls, they don’t fall apart). when you get to the end, pinch the end of the dough into itself slightly. with a sharp knife, cut the rolls. do not roll your dough too thin. you should be able to get about 10-12 large cinnamon rolls from this recipe.

grease your baking dish with non-stick spray and put the cinnamon rolls in, with a little space between them. cover with a towel and let them rise for 45-60 minutes. once they have risen, bake the cinnamon rolls for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown on 350 degrees.

while the cinnamon rolls bake, make the icing: mix all the ingredients well until smooth. for thicker icing, use less heavy cream. for thinner icing, use more heavy cream.

once the cinnamon rolls have baked, cool for about 5 minutes before topping with the icing. enjoy!

notes:

• sweet potato puree is mashed sweet potato

• you can omit the maple and/or the vanilla bean paste for a plain cream cheese frosting

• to make these at night and bake in the morning, do the 2nd rise in the refrigerator instead of in a warm space - this will allow the cinnamon rolls to rise slower. before baking, bring the baking dish to room temperature.