Cinnamon rolls were in regular rotation when I was growing up. There was no clearer sign of Sunday morning than the hollow clink of the cake tin hitting the stove and the assertive pop of a vacuum-packed canister of cinnamon rolls being split open. Arranged casually in a baking dish, they would swell and snuggle in the oven, their giraffe-like pattern of flaky cinnamon topping melting to cover the rolls in a layer of perfectly-engineered sweet spice. They were really more like biscuits than “rolls”—with a questionable ingredient list and wartime-appropriate expiration date—but these were the cinnamon rolls of my youth. And I loved them. I’ll admit I dabbled with the ‘Bons, their irresistible scent luring my tween posse toward a random alcove of the mall next to the Mrs. Fields. While most of my pals preferred the cinnamon-soaked interior, I liked the drier outer layers drizzled with gooey frosting. But as I grew older I started to find these industrialized rolls unappealing, the icing too sweet, the size intimidating. But that aroma, even after all these years, is still wholly intoxicating. I wanted to create a more sophisticated cinnamon roll, something more reasonable, appropriately-sized, dare I say, adult. A sweet treat that would still make the house smell like a food court without sending me into an extended sugar coma. But where’s the fun in that? So I split the difference. Yes, I came up with cinnamon rolls of a more manageable size and I swapped some of the sugar for maple syrup and sticky sweet dates which offer a complexity that none of the big-box brands can offer. I lost the icing but went instead with a layer of nutty upside-down-cake-inspired brown sugar and butter topping. Make no mistake, these cinnamon rolls are indulgent, but they’re homemade so it’s cool, right? These aren’t necessarily good for you, but they’re good for you. Note: For extra credit you can make your own dough for these, but a couple of balls of prepared pizza dough work just fine.Sticky Toffee Cinnamon RollsIngredients
