No Yeast Choc Chip Cinnamon Rolls

Planning the wedding has made me think about the word family in ways it never occurred to me to think about it before. I am building a guest list and I have Tyler family, which is large and warm and full of people who know each other, and I have Gloria and Destiny, and I have a small number of coworkers and friends, and I have Crystal, who I have invited and who said she would come.

I am also thinking about who is not on the list. The caseworkers. The other foster parents, most of whose names I can barely remember. The social workers who filled out forms about me. Nobody from any of the first six homes. No teachers who pulled me aside. No one from before Gloria. There are no photographs from the first twelve years of my life. I sometimes think about that. A whole childhood with almost no record.

Tyler and I talked about this at dinner this week. He said the record starts now if I want it to. I said what do you mean. He said he is going to take photographs of everything from now on. Every Sunday dinner. Every birthday. He said we are going to document everything so that when we have children they will have everything documented and when they are adults there will be a record of them being loved clearly and often.

I made macaroni and cheese for dinner after that conversation. The real kind. The baked kind. Comfort food, which is what you make when someone says something that moves through you and you need to do something with your hands while you feel it.

I didn’t actually make the macaroni that night — or rather, I made it, and then I made these too, because Tyler’s words were still moving through me and I wasn’t ready to stop using my hands. No-yeast cinnamon rolls are exactly the right thing for a moment like that: no waiting, no rising, no pause between the feeling and the thing you can hold. You just mix and roll and fill and bake, and by the time they come out of the oven smelling like butter and cinnamon and warm chocolate, you have done something with all of it. I make them when I want to mark a moment without making a speech about it.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 25 min | Total Time: 45 min | Servings: 9 rolls

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
3/4 cup whole milk
1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted (for dough)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened (for filling)
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
For the glaze: 1 cup powdered sugar, 2–3 tablespoons milk, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

Preheat and prep. Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C). Lightly grease an 8x8-inch or 9x9-inch baking pan and set aside.
Make the dough. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and granulated sugar. Add the milk and melted butter and stir until a soft, shaggy dough forms. Do not overmix.
Roll it out. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead 3–4 times until it just comes together. Roll into a rectangle roughly 12x9 inches and about 1/4 inch thick.
Add the filling. Spread the softened butter evenly across the dough surface, leaving a 1/2-inch border on one long edge. In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar and cinnamon, then sprinkle evenly over the butter. Scatter the chocolate chips over the top.
Roll and slice. Starting from the long edge opposite the border, roll the dough snugly into a log. Pinch the seam gently to seal. Using a sharp knife or unflavored dental floss, cut the log into 9 equal rolls, each about 1 inch thick.
Bake. Arrange the rolls cut-side up in the prepared pan, edges touching. Bake for 22–26 minutes, until the tops are lightly golden and the centers are just set. Do not overbake — they firm up as they cool.
Make the glaze. Whisk the powdered sugar, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons of milk together until smooth. Add the remaining tablespoon of milk a little at a time until the glaze is pourable but not watery.
Glaze and serve. Drizzle the glaze over the warm rolls and serve immediately. Best eaten the day they’re made, straight from the pan.

Nutrition (per serving)

No Yeast Choc Chip Cinnamon Rolls — The Baked Thing You Make When You Need to Feel It