Get ready for Valentine’s Day with these beautiful Heart Cinnamon Rolls!

Ingredients

Dough Ingredients:

• 2 cups warm water (about 115°F)
• 1/4 cup nonfat powdered milk
• 1/2 cup boxed potato flakes
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon instant yeast
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup butter flavored shortening
• 2 large eggs
• 5–6 cups bread flour

Filling Ingredients:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter
• 2 cups lightly packed brown sugar
• 4 TBS white flour
• 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

Pink Icing:

• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 2–4 Tablespoons milk, or enough to yield a thick glaze
• 1–3 drops pink gel food coloring

Topping:

• Your favorite sprinkles or small candies, for an extra sweet touch!

Directions

Prepare the dough:

1. In a mixing bowl, combine warm water, powdered milk, potato flakes, sugar, yeast and salt. Mix.
2. Add the butter, butter flavored shortening and eggs. Add 3 cups of the bread flour. Mix for about 30 seconds until ingredients are incorporated. Stop the mixer and scrape down sides of bowl with a spatula.
3. Turn mixer on low and add 2 more cups of the bread flour, 1/2 cup at a time. After adding the 2 cups of flour, let dough continue to mix for about 1 minute. Stop and scrape the sides of the bowl as needed. If dough is not mostly cleaning sides of the bowl, add more flour 1/4 cup at a time until it cleans the sides of the bowl. Stop the mixer and check the dough by gently pressing your finger into it. The dough should feel soft but not wet or sticky. *When in doubt, it’s always best to go lighter on the flour. You can always add more flour, but you can’t take flour away. Too much flour in your dough will give you dry, dense rolls.
4. Knead on low speed for 5 minutes.
5. Remove dough from mixer and place in a greased bowl. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rise until doubled in size, about 60-90 minutes.

Prepare the filling:

1. Mix together all the ingredients and set aside.

It’s time to roll:

1. Divide dough into two 28-30-ounce portions. If you don’t have a scale, you can eyeball it. Round each portion to an oval shaped piece of dough.
2. Flour your work surface and roll dough out to a rectangular shape, about 10 inches by 18 inches.
3. Spread the filling over the dough evenly.
4. Place a piece of floss in the center of the dough, lengthwise, creating a visual guide.
5. Start with one corner and along the 18-inch side, begin to roll the dough up. You can tug and pull as you go which will tighten the roll and make more swirls. Roll towards the center where the floss. Stop rolling when you get to the center. Then repeat with the other 18-inch side towards the center – meeting them both in middle.
6. Pull the floss out and cut the dough into 1.5-2 inch rolls. There should be two side-by side swirls connected at the bottom.
7. Place the rolls on a baking pan lined with parchment paper, about 2 inches apart. With lightly floured fingers, gently flatten the rolls while pinching the bottom into a point, forming a heart. Once all of your cinnamon rolls are shaped, cover them with a clean kitchen towel and let them rise until doubled in size, depending on how warm your kitchen is, it should take about 30– 45 minutes.

Bake:

1. Bake in a fully preheated 350°F oven for 18-22 minutes or until edges are just golden brown. Allow to cool for 15 minutes on the pan before transferring them to a wire rack. Let them cool completely before icing.

Make the Pink Icing:

1. In a medium bowl, sift the powdered sugar. Add the vanilla. Add 1-2 Tablespoons of milk at a time and mix with wire whisk. Continue to add just enough milk to get it to a thick glaze. Tint with pink gel food coloring.
2. Drizzle over cooled cinnamon rolls. (Or of the frosting is a thin glaze, you can dunk the cool rolls into the glaze) Add sprinkles before the icing sets. It should set up within 10-15 minutes.
3. Serve and enjoy!