Grandma's Caramel Rolls

There’s nothing that reminds me more of my grandma’s house than the smell of caramel rolls baking in the oven.

The aroma instantly transports me back to laughter filled days, sitting at grandma’s dining room table, eating ooey gooey caramel rolls.

Grandma still makes her caramel rolls, but I live too far away to visit often so we usually meet in the middle at my parents’ house.  

But everything comes full circle.

When she moved out of the home I remember from my childhood, her beautiful antique dining room table came to my house.  And after I mastered Grandma’s bread recipe, I realized that it was time to make here caramel rolls, too… 

…but not without a few phone calls to grandma to make sure I got it just right!

Aren’t family recipes just the best?

Recipe Notes:

*In this recipe, you’ll only be using half of the batch of bread dough, but since measurements get awkward if you try to cut the recipe in half, I always make the whole batch and use the remainder for hamburger buns, dinner rolls, or a loaf of bread.

Grandma’s Caramel Rolls

1 batch bread dough

1 ½ cups dark brown sugar, divided

1 cup cream

2 tbsp light corn syrup

1 tbsp vanilla

1-2 tbsp butter, softened

1 tbsp ground cinnamon

Follow bread dough instructions through the first proof.  After punching down, cut the dough in half (use the second half for another batch of caramel rolls or to make a loaf of bread or about 12 buns).

Place 1 cup brown sugar, cream, corn syrup, and vanilla into a 9x13 inch baking dish.  Stir until the ingredients are uniformly mixed and set aside.  Alternately, split the mixture evenly into two disposable 8x8 inch pans for easy travel or for freezing (but more on that in a minute.)

Take the dough and roll it into a large rectangle, approximately 8x12 inches.

Spread the surface of the dough with butter.  Then sprinkle the remaining ½ cup brown sugar and cinnamon over the top.  On one long side, begin rolling the dough tightly into a log to slice into rolls.

To get evenly sized rolls, use a strip of unflavored dental floss (or a sharp knife) to cut the dough log in half.  Then cut if half in half.  Last, cut each of the quarters into thirds.  You should end up with 12 rolls.

Arrange the rolls in the prepared baking pan (or place 6 rolls into each of the square pans).  At this point, you may also securely cover the rolls (I used press & seal) and place in the freezer.

To bake right away:

Cover the pan lightly with a damp kitchen towel and proof for 30 minutes.  Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Once the rolls are light and airy, place then into the preheated oven and bake for 20-30 minutes or until the tops are deeply browned.

Remove from the oven and invert the caramel rolls onto a serving platter.  Serve warm.

If using frozen rolls:

Take the covered pans out of the freezer.  Place the pans, covered, in a warm area (I used the proof function on my oven) for 2-3 hours to thaw.  As the rolls thaw, they will also rise.

Preheat the even to 350 degrees F.

Once the rolls are light and airy, place then into the preheated oven and bake for 20-30 minutes or until the tops are deeply browned.

Remove from the oven and invert the caramel rolls onto a serving platter.  Serve warm.

Makes 12 caramel rolls.