Cinnamon Roll Puzzle Bread

Such a cool twist on traditional cinnamon rolls! Like if cinnamon rolls and pull-apart bread had a baby. Balls of dough, rolled in butter and cinnamon-sugar, glazed with maple syrup and brown sugar, and baked until golden. Puffy, chewy, sweet, and sticky. Everything a cinnamon roll should be.

The inspiration for this recipe is a funny one... My son's friend Grant is enjoying his first year away at college. Actually, he's enjoying college, just not a lot of the food! When he was home for a recent weekend visit, he requested my food. Literally got on the phone and asked me to make something... Love that kid. When I asked, "What are you craving", he replied, "Cinnamon rolls." Well, I've never made cinnamon rolls for Grant, so I knew I didn't have to recreate/duplicate something he had before; I could have some fun. So I got to thinking... and I had a LOT of fun. 

I took a loaf of bread dough, shaped it onto balls and rolled those balls in warm butter and cinnamon-sugar. Then I spooned a buttery sauce of maple syrup and brown sugar over top and baked the rolls until they were golden and sticky. Holy fabulous! I'm so glad Grant reached out! These easy-to-make cinnamon rolls are outrageous! And, they're much easier to pull off than regular, filled-and-rolled cinnamon rolls.

About adding frosting: I decided not to slather these warm rolls with vanilla frosting. I was planning to at first, but they simply didn't need it. Feel free to add vanilla frosting after the rolls bake and cool for a few minutes.

Cinnamon Roll Puzzle Bread

Cooking spray
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
1 pound bread dough, fresh or frozen and thawed according to package directions
Vanilla frosting, optional

Coat an 11x7-inch baking pan with cooking spray. 
In a small bowl, combine the granulated sugar and cinnamon and mix well. Set aside.
Melt the butter in a small saucepan or in the microwave. 
Separate the dough into 24 little pieces and shape the pieces into balls. Dip the balls in the butter, and then the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Turn to coat all sides. Arrange the balls in the prepared pan, in an even layer; reserving the leftover butter. 
Add the brown sugar and maple syrup to the remaining melted butter and whisk until blended (if the butter has thickened, return it to the stovetop or microwave to melt). Spoon the mixture all over the dough balls. Let the balls rise, at room temperature, for 45 minutes, until they puff up/out and touch each other.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Bake the cinnamon rolls for 20 to 30 minutes, until they're golden brown and the butter mixture is bubbly. Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes (until the butter mixture stops bubbling). Serve or, if desired, spread frosting all over the top and serve. 
Serves 6-8