Why hello there. It’s good to see you guys again 
After spending the weekend blissfully unplugged from the computer, I have to admit that it’s kind of nice to get back into the swing of things… although I suppose I’m not exactly getting back into the swing of anything seeing as I have yet to tame my morning hair, put my contacts in, and change out of my pyjamas thanks to a little thing called Family Day. Long weekends, I kind of love you.
I’ll be heading over to “celebrate” [read: hang out and watch movies all day] family day with my mom and dad later today, but I thought I’d stop by and say hi since it’s been a while since we last talked. Actually, what I really wanted to do was brag. You see, this weekend I conquered a food fear…
Yes. A food fear; and no, it wasn’t cinnamon buns. Rather, it was a little something inside the cinnamon buns. A little something that goes by the name of yeast…
I’ve been wanting to make homemade cinnamon buns for as long as I can remember, and I’ve been intimidated by working with yeast for just as long. I don’t even know why, either – the extra step/chemical process just made it seem like so many more things could go wrong! But when I came across this recipe for caramel apple cinnamon rolls, all my fears were instantly replaced with a single thought: “I need these in my belly now.” So, I bought my little packets of yeast, let them mingle with what I hoped was warm enough water…
… nervously played the waiting game with a small ball of dough…
… marvelled as I was greeted by a bigger ball of dough…
… flattened aforementioned bigger ball of dough…
… loaded it up with the good stuff…
… rolled it up…
… and impatiently hoped for the best, only to be greeted by this beautiful sight…
But even better than the sight, was the taste.
Oh…
… my…
… word…
Victory is sweet indeed, or should I say… marvelous.
Hope you guys are having a great Monday! And whether or not you’re celebrating Family Day, be sure to give your loved ones a hug.
. – . – . – .
Are there any recipes/ingredients that intimidate you? Working with yeast was a huge one for me, and cinnamon buns always kind of turned me off because of the time/effort involved – the whole process took me about 4 hours with waiting time! Now that I’ve got that tackled, though, I really want to try making homemade bread.
Do you live close to your family? I’m extremely fortunate to live close to my mom and dad, but all the rest of my family lives in Poland so I don’t get to see them often.
Oh my lord girl! Those pictures are amazing! Must….stop….drooooooling!
I conquered my fear of yeast a couple of years ago when I made my first loaf of homemade bread…and then I made ANOTHER! And that was the LAST loaf I ever made! Boo! It’s not really hard at all, but I just hate the time it takes…I’m sooooo impatient! Howabout YOU make me some cinnamon rolls and then MAIL THEM to me! Yeah, that sounds all kinds of perfect!
I am fortunate to live pretty close to my mom and dad, about an hour away. But like you all the rest of my family is in England, Australia or New Zealand! Its tough growing up without aunts, uncles and cousins but I think it made our family grow a little closer
gotta make these STAT. love cinnamon buns. The first time I used yeast, I didn’t know I had to put it in water first… I just poured the packet in the batter.FAIL.
Yeast used to give me such anxiety! My mom and I messed it up (killed the yeast) every time! Thanks to my classes here I have learned the art of handling yeast with care and my stuff turns out wonderful every time! These look amazing!
Oh.My.Gawd. No words. Cinnamon rolls are my one true love…I used to eat one whenever I went to the mall or when my mom bought the pre-made pop-in-the-oven version. Homemade cinnamon rolls have been sitting on my to-bake list for over a year already and this may just be the inspiration I need for this upcoming weekend. I have a horrible relationship with yeast – it never rises for me! TWSS
(sorry that’s horrible haha) In the past 2-3 months I’ve had multiple failed attempts with active dry yeast. I think live yeast from the refrigerated section in the grocery store seems to be the way to go.
Oh noes! This was actually my first shot at working with yeast and I just used the dry yeast from the packages because they honestly seemed simpler. Maybe rolls are simpler to make? I’d imagine that things like bread and buns would be a little more complicated to make… and that’s what I have lined up as my next baking project. Eep!
SO PROUD OF YOU! I know how hard it is to overcome food fears,but i also know how amazing it feels once the anxiety subsides and you finally say you’ve done it! they look DELICIOUS! congrats girlie keep it up! <3
Ohhh! I love making cinnamon rolls, but the time it takes to make them is daunting. I made pizza for the first time ever this weekend and it was so much easier than I expected. I want to try making cauliflower crust pizza, but that just seems like too much work.
Cinnamon rolls were a bit of a fear for me too. We recently made some, cream cheese and all, and it was so worth it. One think I’m intimidated by is pie. I mean an american-style coconut cream type pie. We just don’t make them here and hardly see them and they look like such a faff but I suspect they’re not as bad as I’m imagining. The cinnamon rolls weren’t so, how bad can it be??
Yeast has never bothered me. It’s such an amazing thing, I’m sort of fascinated by it. I love watching it fizz up!
Plus anything that makes good, fresh bread can’t be bad! 
haha… you crack me up.
Cinnamon buns (or “rolls” as we call ’em in the States) intimidate me, too! I’ve made them a grand total of ONE time from scratch. But this recipe looks easy and tasty, so now I’m intrigued. Maybe I’ll brave some yeast in the near future!
Holy wow those look amazing.
I’m a little intimidated by yeast too! I’ve been wanting to make cinnamon swirl bread (http://www.preventionrd.com/2012/03/whole-wheat-cinnamon-raisin-swirl-bread-weekly-menu/) but I never ever find the courage to! The last thing I want is a bad bread and a whole lotta cleaning up
Big time swooooon! These remind me of the pecan rolls my grandmother used to make for breakfast Christmas morning. Like these, hers were made sans white frosting, but that was more than okay, because the delicate buns and their delicious filling were show-stoppers in themselves. I have yet to try my hand at her recipe (I’ve left that up to my mom the past few years), mainly because I have a yeast fear, too! I think it’s rooted in a failed attempt to make hot cross buns for a big family brunch when I was in high school. They were a major flop (literally), and memories of the embarrassment I felt afterward have kept me FAR away from yeast ever since. You’ve inspired me to give it another go, though!
Another “fear food” of mine is the poached egg. For some reason, thee thought of dropping a raw egg into boiling water terrifies me!
xoxo
I haven’t been brave enough to tackle the poached egg fear either. I’ve read up on it and watched tonnes of videos of people who make it look so easy, but in my mind there’s just no way that would work for me…
Oh wow, those look AMAZING!!!!! GET IN MA BELLYYY!
I’m always intimidated by working with yeast. What if it turns out FLAT?! The world would just END, right? haha a bit overdramatic…
I live WITH my family. I have yet to leave the nest
Pasta scares me, I have yet to make a decent pasta dish, one day I will though, I think I just need a cooking class…cinnamon rolls look delicious I have not had one in forever but seeing your photos made my mouth water! I live semi close to my mom but with traffic it makes it difficult to spend time with her. Hope you have a great week! love + shine Courtstar
Aaaaaooogghuuuuuhhhhh… That’s the sound of me drooling over your foodie porn pics. Cinnamon buns are one of my favourite treats EVER and probably one of my biggest fear foods (the buns, not the yeast). I need to face that one soon, very soon.
They were a pretty big one for me too, but I definitely recommend putting your GRRR face on and kicking that fear in the butt, because these things are just too amazing not to have in your life.
Homemade cinnamon rolls are something I want to conquer as well, but in the meantime I have a little shortcut I like to use–fresh pizza dough. Since it already has yeast, I just have to let it rise and it’s basically foolproof. But of course, not nearly as satisfying as ones made from scratch.
One thing I really want to make is some kind of raw vegan cheesecake. I’ve made simpler versions before but I really want to make a delicious, complicated version like caramel apple or triple chocolate, and serve it for non-vegans just to show how amazing raw desserts can be. I’m mostly just scared because I don’t want to invest in all these pricey ingredients and then mess it up!
I am terrified as yeast as well, but you have eased my fears a bit. I typically have to stick to wheat-free breads so when I do bake bread (aka never) it is usually of the non-rising variety, but I would love to try making a traditional loaf, yeast and all. I hope you enjoyed your day off with your family girl!
OMG FOODGASM. Those look amazing!! I definitely need to try them, especially because they take up a lot of time…and I have a LOT of time on my hands lately…lol.
But I totally 100% feel you on the yeast thing. I guess I never thought twice about it until high school biology class – we’re Sicilian so my mom was ALWAYS making bread, pizza, and homemade pastas with the stuff. But when I stop to think about it, it’s like….OMG THERE ARE MICROORGANISMS IN MY FOOD WTFFFFFF. lol. Some foods are totally worth it though!
Whyyyyyy can’t I live near you!? These look UNREAL! God I am drooling.
Whoa. Those look gorgeous!!
One of my fear foods to make is actually cinnamon rolls as well; I’ve gone to the trouble before to find a no-yeast recipe
BUT my Mom makes the best cinnamon rolls fearlessly with yeast. So I just leave it to her to make them and me as the taste tester to make sure they’re, you know, tasty enough.
I live VERY close to my parents; you could even go so far as to say we share the same bathroom.
Haha! Sometimes I miss living that close to mine as well
No joke… my belly literally started growling when I scrolled down to all the photos. It must know what’s good!
Mmm, cinnamon buns are delicious! I need to get on the yeast ban-wagon too. I get nervous >.<
isn’t unplugging awesome!?!?! I love it. I’m totally jealous of those cinnamon buns. Too bad they don’t come in gluten free style!
OMG those look good!
WOW those look good…I am kind of intimidated by yeast as well…
Oh my GOSH these look amazing! I especially love the addition of the apples – that sounds like such a delicious twist on cinnamon rolls!
And congrats on facing your fear of cooking with yeast! I baked bread with yeast a few years ago, but I haven’t cooked with yeast since. It’s still pretty intimidating to me! Pie crusts, homemade nut butters, and making my own soup stock also intimidate me.