Large and In Charge, this cinnamon roll is like no other. It’s size leaves the inside soft and doughy and the outside ready for piles and piles of frosting and butterscotch syrup. Bring a friend to eat this one!
Start out by melting the 1/2 cup of butter with the milk.
Remove from heat once the butter has melted, and allow to cool slightly.
Next, grab your mixer and add 2 1/2 cups of flour, yeast, sugar, and salt. Mix.
Then add your water and eggs, as well as the warm butter/milk mixture from earlier. Mix well.
Now we want the dough to come together. Add the remaining flour 1/2 cup at a time. When the dough starts to form a ball, it’s ready!
Trade out your mixing blade for a dough hook (or kneed by hand if you’re a super hero). Mix with the hook for 5 minutes.
Grab the dough out of your bowl, sprinkle some flour in the bowl, and plop the dough back in the same bowl to rise (another bowl to rise in? more dishes? ain’t nobody got time for that). Let rise 10 minutes
Meanwhile, get your filling ready. Put the brown sugar, cinnamon, and softened butter into a bowl. Mix well. I ended up using my hands just to get that spreadable consistency I was looking for.
Roll out the dough into a long rectangle. You want it to be much longer than it is wide to achieve the giant size.
Spread the filling evenly across the whole surface.
Starting at a short end, roll the dough like a jellyroll.
Make a cut in the very center of the long roll, and then two cuts about 6 inches from the center on either side.
Place both the rolls, swirl down, in a greased 9×13 pan.
Don’t waste the remaining dough! I cut the rest of the dough into normal size rolls and put them in another pan to cook afterwards.
Melt 1/4 cup butter and drizzle over your dough. Allow your rolls to rise for 30 minutes.
Preheat your oven to 375 Degrees F. Bake (the large rolls) for 20 minutes. Then cover loosely with foil and bake another 10 minutes. This will help the inside finish baking without burning the top.
While the rolls are baking, get your toppings ready.
In a saucepan, add your cream cheese and 1/4 cup butter. Melt.
Next add the powdered sugar and stir. Once incorporated, add the vanilla and salt. Put aside
In a saucepan, add the brown sugar, butter, and cream. Bring to a boil and maintain for 5 minutes stirring frequently. Remove from heat.
Add the salt and vanilla. Put aside.
Now grab a giant roll and put it on it’s own plate like the king it is. Drizzle copious amounts of cream cheese frosting in one direction, then drizzle with butterscotch in the other direction. Just for presentation pizzazz. And Viola! Your very own Gaston’s Tavern Giant Cinnamon Roll. Phewf!